A really great book cover is one that captures the book inside it in some fundamental and, perhaps, unforeseen way.

Von Langoyan, Tellwell book cover designer

What do you enjoy most about designing book covers?

I enjoy the creative process of capturing and evoking the essence of a story through visuals. The cover needs to both intrigue a reader and give them a sense of the book’s genre and content. I enjoy staying up to date on design trends and using them in my process so our covers look fresh and contemporary.

Our authors sometimes have a vision for how they would like their covers to look, and I work with their input to create something they would love, and that is also captivating and current.

Where do you get your design inspiration?

Social media and the Internet, in general, are great for inspiration. I follow artists and designers who I admire to see what they are working on.

What have been some of your favourite covers that you’ve created for Tellwell? Tell us why.

I’ve had the pleasure of working on several book covers for the talented fiction author Monique Gliozzi, who lives in Australia. Monique’s books Foresight, Vestige and Diversity are paranormal thriller/mysteries and we wanted the covers to evoke a sense of supernatural spookiness.

Monique had a clear idea of what type of cover she wanted and provided us with really great, detailed instructions. I used a number of design elements to create a sense of haunting and mystique, such as the illusion of depth, partially hidden titles and objects, and surrealism.