Book Cover Design Muster Call!


PROJECT BRIEF

Objective:
Create a compelling, attractive cover for the manuscript One Way to Ask.

Background:
Tough to admit, but I am not a designer. I have the desire, but not the chops. But you? You’re a designer. You've got the talent and the skillz. That's right—with a z. If you've also got the interest and bandwidth, you could gain a copy of the book and a donation of $25 in your name to the recipient of your choice.

Turnaround: FAST.
Immediately: email me at efflux at sonic.net to let me know you’re in. I’ll send you the copy and (if you’d like) the covers I’ve tried so far. I want to moderate how many entries there are. There shouldn’t be many, and I'd be thrilled with just one—just YOU.

Submit your design by Feb 27.

If chosen, your design will be used on the manuscript version of the book that I will submit to City Lights Publishing and possibly other presses. Your design may or may not be used on the book when it goes into print. At this point, it is impossible to say for sure. 

Either way, if you participate at this stage, you will be credited in the book and get a copy when published. If I use your design, and if you wish, I'll also donate $25 to a non-profit or charitable organization of your choice.

General Considerations:
Because this is fast turn, low pay, and for manuscript only (for now), don't spend a huge amount of time. Just use your graphic skillz to do something cooler than I could. Designs will be judged on readability, allure, completeness of information, and my wife Lauren's opinion. The final decision of the judges should not be taken personally :)
 
Creative Considerations:
Mandatories:
+ Black and white
+ Copy needs to includes One Way to Ask (could be set as all lowercase or all uppercase) “poems by Daniel Ari, art by”...  and the list of 58 artists. These could be in any order or arrangement. Linear, aligned, alphabetical—these are not necessary. Bonus points if you can give different weights to different names so that the most prominent artist pop—without seeming too “undemocratic.”

Not Mandatories:
+I feel like design should be text based. Maybe abstracted graphic elements… I can’t imagine photo-real images working, but I could be surprised.
+I like the superimposition of the letter Q and a ? as a logo, but am not married to the idea.

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