Illustrated covers, for serious books.
Original cover illustration for novels, memoirs and middle-grade — two concepts, three revisions, full source files. Drawn by a working illustrator, never composited from stock.
Key facts
- Service
- Illustrated book cover artwork for novels, memoirs and middle-grade titles.
- Starting price
- From $480 per cover.
- Typical turnaround
- 3 to 5 weeks from brief to print-ready files.
- Output
- Two illustrated concepts, three revisions, full source files.
- Specialty
- Drawn by a working illustrator from start to finish — never composited from stock.
- Revisions
- Three revision rounds plus thirty days of corrections after sign-off.
A whole cover, not a deliverable list.
Everything you need to publish in your name on KDP, IngramSpark, Apple Books and through a printer of your choice.
- Two illustrated concepts. Two distinct visual directions developed to a polished sketch — not three mood-board collages.
- Three revision rounds. Three formal rounds on the chosen direction, plus light polish before sign-off.
- Hand-drawn key art. Drawn in Procreate, Photoshop or traditional media — no AI generation in any stage.
- Title & author typesetting. Display lettering or considered type pairing, kerned and proofed at thumbnail size.
- Layered source files. PSD and Procreate masters handed over, so any future studio can pick the file up.
- Retailer-ready exports. Kindle, Apple Books and Kobo sizes, plus a print-ready CMYK PDF with bleed if you take the wraparound option.
- Full copyright transfer. Worldwide rights to artwork and lettering pass to you on final payment.
- Two weeks of post-launch support. Tweaks for retailer rejections, ad creative re-crops, audiobook square — included.
Five steps, signed off by you.
The brief.
Discovery call, comparable titles, written proposal in 48 hours.
Mood & references.
Visual deck, palette study and lettering direction — signed off before any drawing.
Two concepts.
Two illustrated sketches taken to a colour rough, reviewed side-by-side at thumbnail.
The chosen path.
One direction selected, three revision rounds on illustration and type.
Final art & production.
Source files, retailer exports, print-ready CMYK, rights transfer document.
Covers we have shipped recently.
Six from the last eighteen months. The full portfolio sits on the bookshelf — six hundred more sit in our archive.
What authors say after delivery.
Verified clients from the last twelve months. Names changed on request, never quotes.
Three editions, fixed price.
No hourly rates, no revision-creep invoices. You agree the edition, we agree the cover.
Front only
- Ebook front cover, illustrated
- Two concepts, three revisions
- Layered PSD & flattened masters
- Kindle, Apple, Kobo exports
Front & wraparound
- Everything in Edition I
- Spine, back cover, blurb typesetting
- Print-ready CMYK PDF with bleed
- KDP & IngramSpark templates fitted
- Ad-creative re-crops included
Full series identity
- Three matching covers in one engagement
- Series style guide & type system
- Reserved illustrator for 12 months
- Reissue support for backlist
Bespoke briefs welcome. Tell us about your book and we'll write back with a fixed quote in 48 hours.
Four promises, written in.
You receive the layered PSD or Procreate master alongside the flattened deliverables — no locked files, no agency vault.
Worldwide copyright in artwork and lettering transfers on final payment. We keep only a portfolio sample.
You see two distinct directions taken to colour rough — not three thumbnails we already favour one of.
Three formal rounds on the chosen concept, plus the small polish round nobody bills for at the end.
More about our illustrated book cover design work.
Our illustrated book cover design work sits between cover design and bookbound illustration — an original cover illustration painted, drawn or built specifically for one title rather than pulled from a stock library. We work with novelists, memoirists and children's authors who want a jacket that reads as art, not as a template. Most covers take four to seven weeks from brief to final artwork.
How a novel cover art commission actually runs
The brief comes first — genre, comp titles, mood, the scene or motif you want hinted at. We read the manuscript or a representative chunk of it before quoting. Two concept directions are sketched in greyscale, you choose one, three rounds of revision follow on the chosen direction. Novel cover art prices reflect the work; full painted illustration on a literary novel is a different job from a graphic spot illustration on a thriller.
Memoir cover illustration is the quietest of the four. Memoir readers don't want a portrait of the author on the front; they want an image that holds the book's emotional weather. Middle-grade cover art runs the other direction — bold, character-led, designed to compete on a shop shelf among other middle-grade books. We treat each genre on its own terms.
When a painted book cover is worth it
A painted book cover takes longer and costs more than a vector or photographic one. It's worth it when the book is positioned literary or premium, when the illustration will be reused across hardback, paperback and ebook formats, or when the author plans a series and wants a recognisable visual world. For most thrillers and most non-fiction, a different cover approach is cheaper and works better — we'll say so.
Deliverables: high-resolution print files (CMYK), separate ebook files (RGB), spine and back-cover artwork if commissioned, and full copyright assignment to you on final payment.
Questions we are asked.
Short, honest answers. Anything else, send to contact@ebookwriting.ai.
What does the starting figure include?
At ebookwriting.ai, the starting illustrated cover fee of $480 covers an original illustrated cover for ebook use — front only — with three initial concept directions, two rounds of revision on the chosen concept, and final delivery at full resolution.
How long does an illustrated cover take?
Three to five weeks for ebook-only covers, depending on illustration density. Wraparound print covers add another week. The schedule is written into your proposal.
What if none of the first concepts feel right?
If none of the three directions land, we run a second concept round at no extra charge — we'd rather rework the brief than push forward on a cover you'll quietly regret. Subsequent revisions on the chosen concept are included.
Do I own the artwork?
Yes. On final payment, full copyright and reproduction rights transfer to you for both digital and print use. We retain only the right to show the work in our portfolio, and we'll remove it on request.
What files do I receive?
A layered source file (PSD or Procreate), a flattened high-resolution PNG and JPEG, ebook-store-sized exports, and a print-ready CMYK file if you've commissioned the wraparound version.
How many concept directions do I get?
Three distinct directions at the first stage — usually one safe, one stretch, and one that gives you something to react against. From your feedback we develop a single concept through two formal revision rounds plus light polish before delivery.
Often paired with this.
One cover, drawn properly.
A 15-minute discovery call, a written proposal in 48 hours, a fixed-price quote that includes every revision in scope.