Table of Contents
What Are the Book Cover Opening Dimensions in Illustrator?
A fantastic book-reading experience begins with a terrific tale and ends with a beautifully created cover. Learn about typical book cover sizes, correct resolution, and the fundamentals of producing a book cover.
There is no book without a fantastic piece of writing. A fantastic book cover, on the other hand, is essential for getting your creation recognised.
As a writer, it seems to reason that you would concentrate on the creative aspects of writing to make your tale fascinating rather than the technical aspects of publishing. These things, however, will become vital at some point, and we are here to assist. This article will teach you all you need to know about the fundamentals of book cover design, including book cover measurements, aspect ratio, and more.
The fundamentals
Before we get into the specific cover measurements for all of the different book genres, there are a few things you should keep in mind as you transition your book from your laptop to a physical copy that will be displayed in a store, as well as ensuring that the cover works across all of the different platforms.
The file type
The format in which you send the cover file will have an impact on the final product’s quality. The most common printing formats are:
JPG = saves storage space while retaining a high level of quality.
PNG is a high-resolution format that also enables transparency.
TIFF = often used in photography and printing because to its outstanding picture quality (but large file size)
PDF = format the file precisely as you want others to view it (regardless of device type or size)
Resolution and colour
You should also be knowledgeable of the various colour modes utilised in various media. For the greatest results with your cover image for a printed book, use CMYK, and for a digital copy, use RGB.
Keep in mind that a printed cover should be substantially higher resolution—about three or four times bigger than an ebook cover—for maximum quality.
For printing, resolution is measured in DPI (dots per inch) and PPI (pixels per inch) for digitally viewable covers. Anything beyond 150-300DPI renders the file too huge to process for print-on-demand.
Sizes of standard book covers
Books exist in a variety of sizes for a variety of reasons, and the size you choose for your book will be influenced mostly by three factors: printing costs, word count, and established genre standards.
It is also critical to consider the already-established standard book size dimensions for each genre. Fiction book fans will be used to a specific feel and appearance of the book; deviating from these standards would irritate the readers.
Similarly, a cookbook that is normally on the larger side in order to allow more room for the mouthwatering food photos should not be too tiny or deviate from this ideal.
Stick to standard measures as a general guideline, unless utilising a different dimension is justified by a practical purpose. We suggest looking at Amazon’s product measurements for books to obtain a basic idea of the prevalent sizes used among books in your category.
Fiction
Fiction is one of the genres with the most variation in size, ranging from 4.25 inches wide to 5.5 inches wide, allowing for some leeway in word count as well as the quality and application of the book—is your book intended for a proper sit-down reading session at home or the library, or for passing the time while travelling by public transportation rather than staring at a phone screen? These elements will have an impact on the ultimate size of the book.
Novels
A smaller book cover, similar to how novels frequently portray an intimate and personal tale, might feel more comfortable to touch and read than a large encyclopedia-like book that can seem logical and stern. A lower cover size may assist keep the book out of the way of the reader and the tale, making it simpler to get into the story.
Children’s literature
As children learn to read via children’s books, the pages feature a lot more visual graphics and art to assist them understand the tale. A bigger book size is great for allowing the text and artwork to be seen while also allowing the children to handle the book. Bulkier, more whimsical, and script fonts are also encouraged.
Textbooks
Textbooks and books meant to convey information are often less concerned with practicality and more concerned with ensuring that all relevant knowledge is covered inside the pages. Having said that, since textbooks are often on the lengthier side, having too tiny a cover size will make the book too thick and unwieldy to carry about in a backpack, which is a large part of this genre’s book’s usage. As a result, textbooks often have a hardback and are bigger in size, making them simpler to transport.
Non-fiction
Nonfiction book measurements float along with the most common sizes, without becoming too little or too large. Non-fiction books are also divided into a number of categories, thus the book covers come in a wide range of sizes. Larger sizes are preferable depending on the sort of material and the number of words and images in the book.
Memoirs
Memoirs are an excellent method to interact with an intriguing individual and learn about their life. Memoirs, like novels, benefit from a smaller cover size that will not be too uncomfortable and get in the way of the reader getting to know the personality behind the words.
Calculations for bleed, trim, and spine
The cover picture is likely the most essential visual part of the publication process, but it is not the only one. Most print-on-demand providers will want you to give dimensions for the rear cover, spine, and bleed in addition to the front cover.
We can teach you how to create the best graphics through Blue Sky Graphics online graphic design course.
