Every genre has specific cover cues readers look for, and a self-published poetry collection is no exception. At Self-Publishing Relief, we know readers will expect your poetry book cover to display a unique spirit based on the collection’s theme. Yet, as your point-of-purchase marketing tool, the cover design should also grab your audience’s attention and entice them to buy. Here are the latest cover art trends for poetry collections:

4 Cover Design Trends For Poetry Collections

Striking Simplicity (With An Unexpected Twist)

Charles Simic’s 2022 collection, No Land in Sight, boasts a gorgeously simple cover. It sticks to a grayscale color palette and a simple font, and also leaves a ton of empty space, which lets the upside-down balloons really grab the viewer’s attention.

Fun Colors (And Fonts)

The cover for Couplets, Maggie Millner’s 2023 novel told in verse, draws you in immediately with its bright, exciting color choices and the extra-large title repeated across the entire cover. Don’t be afraid to get creative with your color choices, font choices, and text placement. Just be sure to retain a good balance!

Cohesive Type And Artwork

For Song of My Softening, the 2023 collection from Omotara James, the cover design focuses around the artwork—so much so that the title is molded around the image itself. Every choice made highlights the art: The text color, font, size, and placement are all an integral, complementary part of the design, rather than something separate.

Collages

Collages have recently been trending on book covers, and they don’t seem to be going anywhere anytime soon! This cover, for Bernadette Mayer’s 2022 collection, Milkweed Smithereens, makes remarkable use of the art of collaging by placing an image that’s distinctly different in subject, color, and style over another image, all while keeping the same general shape. It’s visually simple but cleverly crafted, and the layering effect adds texture.

When creating your poetry collection’s book cover, consider these trending design elements to stand out and appeal to your target audience. Remember, your self-published book’s cover is your most important marketing opportunity! If you want to put your cover design into the hands of professionals, Self-Publishing Relief can design a custom cover for you! We also have budget-friendly, predesigned covers you can choose from to help make your self-published poetry collection a success.

Questions: What does the cover of your favorite poetry book look like?