Keepsake - The cover design

July 10, 2023

Keepsake - The cover design

Writing for 10 years

Editing for 1.5 years

Publish and market research for 6 months

Last week I signed up with blue rose to help me make my dream come true.

The step now is a cover design and here are some working thoughts

Theme:

Overall, the cover design evokes a sense of nostalgia and warmth, inviting the reader to step into the world of the protagonists and their memories. Some sample pictures to showcase it

Target audience

Indian fiction

Contemporary fiction

Short story

Women authors

Nostalgia

Partition

Punjab

Font

The title of the book ‘Keepsake’ is written in elegant thin bold letters in the bottom corner and author's name ‘Neha’ in smaller print under it.

Pictures

https://pin.it/Nr6JbiO

A vintage dressing table in the middle of room with a golden aged look. A mirror with a reflection of a woman or no one. A past. On table tops there are few things to display. - a photo frame, a couple of old letter, a vintage tin box as sewing kit. But make it Indian style as per genre and target audience.

2. A tapestry of things across the book front and behind with

A tin box Sewing kit, Old buttons, pin needles, Monogrammed cloth, lace, buttons
old photographs
Old Jewelery in bowl - ear rings, pendent, emerald necklace
Old letters n blue post cards
Book sides of some Indian classics

3. A fading old photograph of 80s

It could be a family sitting on a sunny afternoon with a river, sun and a baby in the background, or a group family photo with many characters including Chutki bua like in an old photo.

4. A woman sewing with a sewing kit next to her

The scene is a warm summer evening in 1980s Indian small town. A soft glow of fading sunlight pours into the room from the side window creating a fuzzy nostalgia feel. We can see the silhouette of a woman in her 30s sitting on a day bed. She wears a simple cotton saree with light pastel pattern. Her hair pulled back in a loose bun. She is sewing a pattern with needle and thread on a cloth she is holding in her left hand. Besides her or in front of her lies an open vintage tin sewing box showing glimpses of colorful spools of threads, buttons, and cream lace.

5. An abstract modern art piece with generated curiosity and an intriguing interest of the reader

Keepsakes

Each story has certain keepsakes which centre the story around them. I have tried to visualise these in the collages below at a lighter note. some stories can also appeal to children.