Gimp & EBook Covers - Any shortcuts?

Outsource it perhaps? You can find some pretty good outsource service for $20-$50.

I'm new here - what's up with using 'shortcut'?

Hi caren.nothing wrong with wanting a shortcut to save time don't worry about that.
check this lady out she uses gimp and teaches some stuff concerning it
Adrienne Lee Marketing

Hope that can help you. Also you could google creating ecovers with gimp the easy way or something like that I am sure there are tutorials out there to help make it easier
cheers
-WD

There is an eBook report out there on how to create an ebook cover using Gimp. I can't recall the name, but a Google search should help. I thinks it may be on Amazon as well.

Lambert

Found it:
http://www.makeebookcovers.com/

Just use eBook Cover Creator - eCover Design Online Free, they provide some free templates you can use, and you can buy individual templates for a really cheap price (something like $4).

It's both cheaper and faster than an outsourcer. It's very easy to make ecovers with it.

Outsource on Fiverr for $5 and you can get it in five different formats.

Look for the user: Sevgraph

He does GREAT work.

The hardest part is creating the front and side graphics, compiling the cover is not all that hard. Most and im not saying all e-cover designers using photoshop use those scripts that compile the cover for them. Now have you noticed how they all look alike. By using gimp you can create original looking covers.

I dont have a video on doing this yet but i am working on it currently working on it as i have a lot of projects going on at the moment. But if you are interested i do have one on creating a simple e-box cover. Use the link in my sign for free gimp help then go to admins tutorials 'videos'.

Hope it helps some what ebook are done in a similar fashion.

I make professional eCovers for only $17. And I include every size you want without any extra fees.

Yes, there are at least twenty eight (28) tutorials for GIMP on YouTube, several with running times extending beyond ten minutes.

Found this for you http://ezinearticles.com/?Free-EBook...f-2&id=1708699

How to Make an eBook Cover | GIMP Tutorials

Also if you dont have time or dont wanna waste time making them you can always outsource it.

I do ecover designing at pretty low rate and if there are bulk order I give special discounts on those one. Hit me a PM if you need to outsource any

I was going to suggest ecover design - design it yourself online like a lot of people have already done. I can create a reasonable looking ecover in about 2 mins.

Here's one I prepared earlier



Another alternative if you create the graphics in GIMP and want a method to generate the 3d cover, then you can try:

3D-box maker » 3d-box & package on-line for free

You can easily create ecovers using gimp using templates and the perspective tool.

Danny

I use Gimp with Ubuntu.

I downloaded ebook cover plugin:
Ebook Plugins | GIMP Plugin Registry

All Things GIMP: GIMP: How To Install Scripts & Plug-ins To Gimp (Beginners)

Then installed in my gimp plugin directory. The plugin shows up under filters.

Ya I would definitely suggest outsourcing on fiverr. Personally I hate editing images and it's not my strong suit at all so I outsource any graphics I need usually to Fiverr.

Yes i would also recommend Fiverr

How much is your time worth?

I'll bet that you believe you are worth at least $18.00 per hour right?

If you want an ecover that does not look like everyone elses that use the free ecover creators, then........

My best suggestion would be to hire a professional ecover designer... that way
you save lots of time and money, and they do a professional job for you, at a reasonable rate...

There are a small handful of very talented eCover designers on this forum.... take a look around, it may save you time and a headache.

Here's another quick link for doing the 3D bit:

3D-box maker » 3d-box & package on-line for free

I'm collecting links like this on my homepage: im.home-page.us - Home

Fiverr as mentioned above is a great option. I think I would ask one of my kids to do it. They will happily play for hours with graphics packages and some of their work can be really innovative. I'd rather give them $5 than a stranger!

You can make 3D eBook covers using this tool 3D-box maker » 3d-box & package on-line for free just upload the images for each side of the book then take a snapshot of the 3D model. It works great!

Alternatively, I am sure you can find someone who would be happy to design a eBook cover for you for a small fee. Check fiverr.

To be honest, I would rather pay somebody to create this for me.

You have spent all day trying to create something, and are now spending more time looking for solutions and software - and you have said yourself, you are no graphic designer.

I concentrate on the things I am good at, and can get done in an acceptable time - how much is your time worth?

Imagine if you had paid $5, $10, $17 (get mine done for £17 on warriors for hire), but then used the rest of the day to do something you can do, like get your sales page ready or whatever?

The other thing is this: I have tried the DIY eCover maker myself as well - yes it took me about an hour and still cost me $4 - but it looked nowhere near good enough - nowhere near what a pro could produce. If you are planning to sell the eBook, then eye candy IS important in making a site visitor want to buy your product. It has to be shiny. End of.

Part of IM is weighing up the time spent trying to achieve something VS benefits of paying someone else to do it.

Good luck with your project :-)

Gimp was always a little hard for me to pick up. It's free, sure, but it's powerful - maybe too powerful because there IS a learning curve.

I use Inkscape (also free) to make my covers. It's much easier to learn and does just as good at making covers. I've used Inkscape for ALL of my covers and I'm very happy with it.

You can't learn Gimp in one day especially if you are looking for a better result. Quality takes time.... and extra effort.... So do not hope for any shortcut..

One all day???

You can get good covers for $5 on Fiverr.

Always outsource stuff that you don't know how to do and can get for cheap

Cheers,

Gary

I guess it depends what type of book it is. If it's very high quality that you expect to make thousands of sales then spend some money but if not then maybe a simple wizard with some cool looking graphics will do the trick.