Design Lesson Number 3 - Color Spaces

RGB and CMYK - What's the difference?

A lot, actually. When you send something to a printer, it needs to be designed in CMYK because that's a 4 color process standard. If you design in RGB and send it away, they will convert it to CMYK before they print it. You can get some UGLY and unwanted results.

You can change the mode in Photoshop by going to Image>Mode>CMYK Do this BEFORE you start designing. I am going to give examples below of what the change can do to specific colors.

Above, you see on the left the colors chosen in RGB color mode. On the right, you will see those SAME colors in CMYK. Beware the change!! If you always design in CMYK, you will never be disappointed with your results.

Colors that are most heavily affected by the change are: greens, blues, yellows, and oranges. Reds get dulled down as well but not quite as badly as the others unless it's a BRIGHT red.

So, start your design in CMYK and let your imagination carry you from there. If you never EVER intend to print your book, RGB it up :)

That's all for today. Time to write!!

Follow me on twitter! @writejomichaels

Until next time, WRITE ON!!

Jo

Design Lesson Number 2 - Printing

Today, I talk about printing. For you indie authors, you need to listen up just in case you decide to print on CreateSpace or another site and wish to DIY. Remember, our goal is to not make it look DIY.

Bleeds, safeties, and folds, here we come!

What is a bleed? Bleed refers to the area around your artwork that is intended to be cut off. You want to make sure to extend any background color or other elements that you don't mind losing some of all the way to the edge of the template. MACHINES cut the book cover and they aren't as accurate as we'd like them to be sometimes. You will LOSE 1/4" of your artwork so your canvas needs to be 1/4" bigger (1/8" on all sides) than your final size. In other words, a 5.25x8 book needs to be designed at 5.50x8.25. Got it? Avoid bars (frames) that can be lost completely or cut wrong and be odd sizes.

Okay, you have that down. Now, what's a safety? Safety refers to the area that will not be touched by the machine even if it is 1/8" off. Your safety margins should go 1/8" INSIDE the CUT line (NOT the BLEED line). This gives you peace of mind that your words will still be intact when your book rolls off the presses. Be safe, not sorry.

Folds are self-explanatory. Remember that where the fold is, the safety should be 1/8" on EITHER side of that line. There is no guarantee that the paper will be cut just right and you need the flexibility of a schoochable fold. I love making up words...

On to the example!!!

This is what a standard template looks like. Take a minute and take it all in.

Tomorrow, we will discuss color space and WHY it MATTERS!

I hope you are all finding this informative.

Pop on over to:

Goodreads

and sign up for your chance at one of two free signed copies of The Abigale Chronicles! Giveaway ends May 29th! For those of you that prefer e-books, hop over to Smashwords and get a copy for just $1.99.

9am and time to write!!

Until next time, WRITE ON!!

Jo

Design Lesson Number 1 - KERNING

I have decided to give four design lessons this week for all you indie authors. I know, I know, I am too kind...

Seriously, if you don't know the rules of design, your book covers will look like they were designed by you. We don't want that. We want them to look like they were done professionally even though they were done by you.

Today's lesson is on kerning. What the hell is kerning, Jo? Well, I'll explain... Of course I'm going to use examples, silly monkey!!

The sample text below shows kerned type and type that has yet to be kerned. The top one is set at 0 all the way across.

 

The bottom example is set at -25 throughout then adjusted a LOT in the places marked with red and a LITTLE in the places unmarked. Some are at -50, some are at -75, and some are at -100. I went with visually pleasing.

Now, you can see that the bottom text is prettier. I used Arial to make it easier to play with for you.

 

  In the example below, you see panels that are in Photoshop. If you can't see this, go to Window>Character and it will show. Click it!!!! Quick!!!

 When you click it, you get this panel. Pretty freakin' cool, right?

This panel shows you the font (Arial) the style (Regular)

Font size (18) Leading (18) Super or subscript position (0) and KERNING (-50)

All that other stuff, we will address on another day. Right now, look at the KERNING panel ONLY.

In order to kern, you must select the character preceding the letter you want to move closer, then click the kerning drop down and select a number. Sometimes you want to space letters out more, sometimes you want to move them closer. No matter what you desire to accomplish, it can be done with the kerning panel.

I see so many great book covers that would be SO much better with a little bit of kerning. Your art director will spend HOURS adjusting and re-adjusting so your book cover looks just right. Do a little kerning and you'll reach a whole new level with your work.

Tomorrow, I will discuss BLEED and SAFETY and how to use a template.

I hope this was informative.

Don't forget to pick up your copy of The Abigale Chronicles - Book One on Smashwords or iBooks for just $1.99! If you're a tangible book person, you can also pick up a copy on Create Space for just $5.99!

Until next time, WRITE ON!!

Jo
@writejomichaels