Updated April 2023
From self-published books, to traditionally published new releases, and even to reimagined covers of literary classics, cover art is trending toward minimalist design. And while it may seem simplistic, this design trend can be very powerful and effectively capture the mood of the book: serious, comedic, terrifying, romantic, and everything in between. The cover design experts at Self-Publishing Relief know that a strong, minimalistic cover design can help your book stand out from the competition and catch the eye of your potential buyer. If you’re thinking about designing your own book cover—or simply want to keep ahead of the latest cover design trends, these minimalist book covers are worth a second look!
How To Create Effective Minimalist Book Cover Art And Designs
Text Only: Many cover designers are foregoing photographs, images, and artwork and instead focusing on a text-based cover. This allows the clean, simple nature of minimalism to shine while emphasizing the book title and making it pop.
One Feature Element: With a lack of clutter being a staple of minimalism, cover designers are using a central image to focus attention on the cover. This single image can reflect your author brand or a theme, motif, or mood that is present in the work. A cover with lots of clean space and a strong central element grabs the reader’s attention while offering a tantalizing clue about the book.
No Borders: Instead of having a border around the title, image, or author name, a minimalist cover has a solid background that’s unbroken by other design elements. Whether the background is all one color or has a visual texture, this minimalist style emphasizes the elements you want readers to focus on. And it offers a print production bonus: You don’t have to worry about the cover looking crooked, wonky, or poorly made due to shifts in the cutting process that might affect the border lines.
Line Art: Simple, illustrative line art gives minimalist cover design eye-catching impact. Combining smart touches of color with bold artwork and text will irresistibly draw the buyer’s eyes straight to your book’s cover on a store shelf full of competing books with busier cover art.
Monochromatic Color Scheme: Minimalist, monochromatic covers that are mainly black, white, and gray can also be surprisingly dramatic. Desaturating the color from your cover is a great strategy that aligns perfectly with the minimalist trend.
Repeated Patterns: By repeating the same simple pattern over and over, you can create a cover that’s minimalistic but still offers touches of style. Add a touch of color and you’ll be able to convey a sense of your story using very few design elements. Just don’t overdo the intensity of the artwork, which can be a major cover art slip-up.
Remember, just because a cover uses minimalistic art doesn’t mean it’s going to be easy to design. In fact, working with so few elements means any mistakes will be obvious and have nowhere to hide! For the best results, it’s always smart to have a professional design your book cover. Let the cover art experts at Self-Publishing Relief design the perfect cover for your self-published book. Choose from our many predesigned covers, or let us create a completely custom cover for your book.
Question: What do you consider the best element of minimalistic cover art design?
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