Susan Catt of Oracle BookArt & PA Services creates custom book covers and other book-related promotional art materials. We enjoyed having this Author Interview – Susan Catt of Oracle BookArt & PA Servicesfor our blog. Check out this fantastic author and follow them for more amazing stories.
Susan Catt of Oracle BookArt & PA Services creates custom book covers and other book-related promotional art materials. She runs marketing campaigns for authors posted wide over several social media platforms and connects authors with reviewers, interviewers, and podcasts.
Susan alpha/beta reads, and formats manuscripts for submissions, and books for publishing.
How did you get started down this path?
I started writing books back in 2017 and have a certification in graphic design from back in 1996 so tried my hand at creating my own covers. Over the next six years I picked up authors in my PA social media work, and with them came plenty of cover opportunities. I am passionate about working closely with authors to capture their vision in a cohesive product that speaks to their story.
Did you know you would become a Cover Designer when you were smaller?
Absolutely not. I was a passionate horse woman from the wee age of three. I became a professional horse trainer for most of my life, worked at a printing press for four years, then became a massage therapist for seventeen years. The book industry rose its beautiful face in 2017, and I’ve been smitten ever since.
How long have you been Designing Book Covers?
Six years.
What Influences your work?
Intuitive creativity, knowledge of how color affects emotions, knowledge of fonts, and graphics, and composition as they relate to each specific genre/trope.
What is your ideal work assignment?
A client with a clear vision, who may or may not bring art/graphics to the creative process. I prefer a client who is excited about being included in the creation of their vision and likes working one on one with me as we define an eye catching emotionally moving cover that is personal to them and personal to their characters.
Did you go to school for formal training, or has life and skill been your formal training?
I went to school for graphic design and hold a certificate and an Associate’s Degree in the field. Then I worked four years for a printing press company managing a magazine.
What is your favorite photo? can you describe it and why it’s your favorite?
WOW this is hard. I don’t think I have a favorite image. I look for thought-provoking, and visually stimulating images.
What type of editing software do you use for your craft?
I’m old school Photoshop, but can work on E-Pixlr, or Canva, etc. The more dramatic work is always done in Photoshop.
What genre do you design for?
All genres
What tips would you give to create the perfect cover?
There are many aspects to making a quality cover. Alignment I think is the most important. If alignment is off the cover loses its drama, and interest, it creates confusion for the eye and leads the reader’s attention away from the intended message.
I work a lot with color. Color is very important. How do you want to affect the reader? Red is aggressive, can be very dramatic, but it can also make the reader feel anxious, and thus they may scroll right on by. Yellow is happy, but it can create more of a cutesy feel if not handled carefully.
Black can be overused. I do a lot of covers on black backgrounds, but balance is very hard to achieve. Sometimes you just have to drop that black background and go with white or another color that’s more refreshing or inviting. Don’t get stuck on your idea. It probably is not what the end result is going to be.
what are the must have’s when designing in your genre?
All genres, a good story, a client with a good vision.
How do you tell a story with your covers?
I look for things about the characters, or events, or the environment they live and work in. Quotes that give us a sense of the characters personality. I create visuals with feel. We feel the air, we feel the energy, we are standing next to the character. We can smell them. Maybe we should pick up a sword, or meet up at the bar, etc. Immersed. I want my cover viewers to feel immersed in the visual.
What does your design process look like?
We have a discussion to discover the driving points of the work. We’ll go over the type of art, potential color, and maybe share a few photos or graphics to get a feel for what fits best with the authors vision. Then I jump in and create a mockup. It’s a jumping off point. From there we work together as I add and remove elements, font styles, messages, and consider drop shadows, stroke, etc.
As a Cover Designer, what do you struggle with the most?
Getting enough work. I try to price my work in the lower end of middle of the industry. Mostly I find many authors either do not want to invest in their cover or can’t. I do try to work with authors to make their cover happen affordably.
Checkout Susan Catt of Oracle BookArt & PA Services authors:
https://www.facebook.com/john.konecsni (Declan Finn)
Follow Susan Catt of Oracle BookArt & PA Services:
https://www.instagram.com/oracle_bookart_pa/
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