I'm a dabbler. And I'm not afraid to admit it.
One of the areas I've dabbled in is desktop publishing and graphic design. I'm not an expert. I'm not even a novice. I'm just someone who pays attention. So, when I published my first book online (let's be honest, it's a booklet - short - 30 pages, can hardly be called a book, but I will anyway), I didn't want to spend a bunch of money on paying for a book cover designer. I didn't know if the book would sell a single copy, so I wasn't willing to pay a lot upfront.
Alas, that led to me designing my own cover when I uploaded my ebook to Amazon. At first, I was so proud just to have it up there, but as time went on and I noticed the quality of other book covers, I realized I needed to make a change.
Advice from several podcasts and webinars that advised having a stellar cover affirmed my need for a change. It was time.
There are a lot of places to outsource work out on the interwebs. I haven't used them all, but I know of them.
Elance
Odesk
99 Designs
and others.
I'm sure they're good and offer fantastic service and value.
However, the site that caught my eye, and eventually earned a thank you from my pocketbook was Fiverr.com
For $5 you can get almost anything. It's amazing. My ebook cover cost only $5, and was done in less than a week. Awesomesauce!
And the quality is fantastic, as well. My designer did a fantastic job. Here's a link to his site on Fiverr in case you're interested: https://www.fiverr.com/jimmygibbs
Isn't his work amazing?!
I can't believe I ever thought that designing my own book cover was acceptable. Tonight I was listening to a podcast, and the very successful entrepreneur on the show espoused over and again the importance of focusing on your strengths, and not your weaknesses. Obviously, graphic design is not my strength. I've decided it's time for less dabbling, and more focused doing.
I hereby declare myself a doer, instead of a dabbler!
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