The Indie Authors’ Guide To Designing An Affordable Book Cover

I am nearly done revising my second novel, Once Upon An Anxious Mom, and now my baby needs a cover. This will be my fourth published book, and I feel comfortable designing my cover.

For my first book, Adventures With Postpartum Depression, I hired a cover designer on Reedsy. This was 2018, and I paid $805 for this design:

I love this cover! It perfectly expresses the vibe of my memoir, and it was totally worth the expense. At the time, I had a two-year-old and five-year-old and lacked the bandwidth to attempt my own design.

But for my second book, The Distance Learning Activity Book For Parents Just Barely Holding On To Their Last Shred of Sanity, I didn’t want to spend $805 for a cover. I played around on Canva and posted my designs on Facebook; hated everything; tried again but this time only sent my designs to a trusted friend; and hit upon the winner.

I love this cover! And it was free, except for the cost of my monthly subscription to Canva Pro. (And really, I could have designed the cover without Canva Pro, but I used the premium subscription to create the book’s content.)

For my first novel, Confessions of an Imposter Room Mom, I debated whether I would hire a cover designer through Reedsy or use Canva to design something myself. Ultimately, I decided I didn’t want to shell out big bucks for a cover until I’ve published several books in my series. Then, I can hire a professional to design covers for the entire series in one swoop for a cohesive look.

But I didn’t trust myself to design a novel’s cover! So I compromised and hired someone on Fiverr. I paid someone about $25 and three days later, I had several shitty designs. Lesson learned. You get what you pay for, and $25 gets about five minutes attention from a book cover designer.

I returned to Canva and with the advice of my one trusted friend, I designed my own cover again.

And you know what? I love it! It completely captures the feeling of that novel and it’s good enough for now.

Now it’s nearly time to publish the second book in that series, so I’m rolling up my sleeves and diving back into Canva, but this time, I’m leveling up my game with AI.

That’s right. I’ll be enlisting our robot overloads to help me design a bitching cover. I might not use AI-generated images, but when I go on writing break, I plan to play around with Midjourney and hopefully create some images that I can incorporate into the cover. I’ll probably design the final product on Canva and bounce ideas off my trusted friend. Stay tuned!

10 Reasons I Hate The Homework Gods

  1. My kids always come home with excessive amounts of homework on days they have soccer practice.
  2. Both my kids want my help and it’s a real bitch flip-flopping between second grade math and fifth grade social studies.
  3. Plus they changed math.
  4. How do we go through so many pencils?
  5. The neighbors across the street are homeschooling, so while my kids trudge through the homework grind, the kids across the street are frolicking and laughing loudly.
  6. I cannot empathize how much I hate second grade math.
  7. My son’s teacher sends home a weekly packet and so help me god, there are always extra pages during a four-day week.
  8. Research shows that elementary school homework has no academic benefit to kids. So that’s great.
  9. Kids need downtime, not busywork.
  10. I think my second grader learns more from Minecraft than he does from the shitty math worksheets created by the shitty math textbook our district uses.

It’s Tempting To Rush Novel Revisions

For the past two weeks, I’ve been working on my “tightening up” pass, rereading every chapter closely and snipping away excessive details and commentary. I’ve reduced my novel so far by 5,223 words, with only four more chapters left for this pass.

Next week, I’ll go through the Novel Editing Workbook, which has an excellent checklist for microediting. Then, I’ll run my book through ProWriting Aid and see what suggestions it makes, paying close attention to my syntax. (My editor thinks my sentences need a little more variety.) Once I’m done with ProWriting Aid, I’ll reread the memo from my editor to make sure I didn’t miss anything big, and then I’ll take a break.

After a break of at least two weeks, I’ll reread the manuscript aloud, do some final proofreading, format, design a cover, and then phew, it’s time to publish.

This is going to take time but IT IS SO TEMPTING TO RUSH THESE FINAL STAGES OF REVISIONS. I started the first draft of this novel in July 2022 and thought I’d be done by now, but the 2022-23 school year kicked my ass and sucked up a lot of my writing time. After spending so much time in the hospital after my dad’s emergency brain surgery last February, I’m proud of myself for getting this far. Still, I’d love to publish my second novel, Once Upon An Anxious Mom, before the end of 2023.

But am I rushing myself? Or am I just cracking the whip to keep up motivation and momentum because I know there’s only so much time and energy I can invest in a novel?

if I finish my ProWriting Aid pass by October 15, I can take a break for three weeks and return to work on November 6 (after my personal motherhood Olympics of Halloween, Julian’s 8th birthday, and the school carnival). Then I can finish proofreading the manuscript by December 10 and have it published by December 15. This would be an ideal timetable, because then I can go on a nice long break for the Christmas holiday and after the kids go back to school, I can either record my first audiobook or write the first draft of my third novel.

But I don’t want to rush just for the satisfaction of hitting publish and sharing the news on social media. And I have to remember my buffer! Shit happens. The kids will get sick at some point. I’ll get sick. If I impose an artificial deadline for publishing this novel by December 15, I’ll drive myself bat shit crazy.

Yet the temptation is so strong to push through and be done.

I’m going to have to pay attention the next few months and balance my desire to FINISH THIS BOOK ALREADY with the realities of motherhood. As eager as I am to be done, I don’t want to publish a book that I’d only give a B+.

What’s Working For Me In The Wellness Department

This blog post is a big dump of all the things currently working for me in the wellness department:

50 Mg Zoloft: Every morning. I am paying attention to my PMS and might chat with my psychiatrist about increasing my Zoloft toward the end of my cycle.

30 Mg of Mirtazipane: At bedtime

Morning Supplements: Vitamin D, Vitamin B, and Fish Oil (and I need to get better about taking my Vitamin B. I have a “genetic mutation” that decreases my brain’s ability to process Vitamin B, so I should be taking my vitamin B also after lunch and dinner.)

Evening Supplement: Calm. I mix a half teaspoon of the powder with a little hot water and drink it before bedtime.

Weaning off Caffeine: I’m down to 32 ounces of Coke Zero in the morning. This is a huge reduction from where I was two months ago. I’m reducing slowly, one ounce every day or two, to avoid the crankiness of caffeine withdrawal.

Very Little Refined Sugar: Basically, sugar fucks with me. When I told a friend that I’ve basically given up refined sugar, she said I have tremendous willpower. I don’t. I just know how lousy it makes me feel, and I don’t like the sugar hangover or sugar insomnia.

Almost Zero Alcohol: I have never been a big drinker. These days, if I drink, it’s wine, probably white, and I can go weeks or even months between a glass. Alcohol makes me sleepy but also interferes with my sleep, so as much as I love a good glass of wine, the effects are too rough for me.

Hot Yoga: 2-3x a week.

Tennis lessons: Once a week, and so much fun. It’s great cardio.

Walking: I aim for 12,000 steps on the days I don’t do hot yoga.

Journaling: Almost every morning. Occasionally I skip on the weekend.

Tracking: I’m using the Lose It app to track what I eat. Not always. But often enough so I eat consciously and intentionally.

Crochet and Cross Stitch: One or both, every day.

Blogging: Yep! Blogging counts as a self-care tool if it boosts your overall wellness.

A monthly massage: I’m so privileged to have the time and money to do this. In fact, I’m getting a massage in one hour!

And a monthly facial: I get my massages and facials at Massage Envy, but damn, gas and food are so expensive. I might switch to a bimonthly or quarterly facial.

Slowing Down and Volunteering Less: No PTA. No room mom’ing. No AYSO coaching. It’s sublime.

Duolingo: Motherhood can be slow and boring. Where’s the intellectual challenge in chauffeuring your kids to school and activities? Learning French keeps my neurons firing!

Revising a novel: I’m a writer, so if I don’t write, I feel bat shit crazy.

Cleaning our house: There’s something very satisfying about cleaning a room.

Decluttering: Slowly but surely, I’m reclaiming our house.

Fresh air and time in nature: Of vital importance to my soul.

Reading: I’m a bookworm! I was reading a lot more audiobooks than actual book-books, but recently, I’ve been taking the time to read, and only read, in the late afternoon or evening. Audiobooks are great, but I feel compelled to do chores and clean when I’m listening to one. Sitting with a book is so relaxing.

Bullet Journaling: My weekly bullet journal spread keeps me sane and organized.

I’m sure I’ll think of ten more things to add to this list as soon as I hit publish, but this is enough for now!

Fifty Days of Blogging–What Now?

In mid-July, I challenged myself to write fifty weekday blog posts in a row to see what happened. I wrote the first post on July 18, 2023. Now it’s September 26, and I’m writing my fiftieth weekday blog post in a row – woot woot! I did it!

So what next?

First, I few observations about the past fifty blog posts:

  • It’s much easier to do something every day than occasionally. At the beginning of the year, I challenged myself to write 23 blog posts in ’23. Between January 1 and July 17, I wrote FIVE measly posts, and it felt like a struggle to write that many. Now I’ve written fifty-five posts, and the last fifty felt easy.
  • When I do something every day, I build MOMENTUM and it takes less energy to get started. But when I only write a blog post every month or two, it takes a lot of mental effort to sign into my website, think of an idea, etc.
  • I like blogging!
  • It doesn’t really matter to me if anyone is reading this blog or not. This is a practice that I do for myself.

Going forward, I’d like to continue blogging every weekday–so long as it works for me. If it starts to feel boring or stressful, I’ll take a sabbatical (maybe forever!) But right now, I’m enjoying this practice and it’s fun to see what topics my muse gravitates toward for posts.

This blog and website is a tool for me to get really comfortable with being my authentic self. Yesterday, I added a page for Bucket Lists. I thought about that for a loooooong time. I wanted to add the Bucket Lists page, but felt self-conscious about putting my schemes and dreams out into the world for anyone to read. Now the page is started, and I feel like I can really dig into my love of projects and lists and see where it takes me.

I have a lot of ideas for regular posts:

  • A monthly roundup of books I’ve read
  • Updates on my upcoming novel
  • Progress on my 23 in ’23 projects
  • More bucket lists (sooo many bucket lists)

But I’m still figuring this out! After blogging for fifty days in a row, I thought I’d be out of ideas, but no, the more I blog, the more ideas I have for future posts.

I’m also contemplating tackling something else for 50 days in a row. Maybe 50 days of TikTok videos or Instagram posts? But I don’t want to stretch myself too thin on the creative front. And having finished 50 days of weekday blog posts, I’m going to take at least a few days to enjoy the achievement before I jump into the next one.

It’s 2023 and I’m 44 years old. Yes, I’m a little late to the blogging game, but who cares? I’m learning to trust my muse, and right now, she wants me to keep on blogging.

Movies I Want To Show My Kids

In no particular order, these are movies I want to eventually show my kids:

  1. The Matrix
  2. The Goonies
  3. Superman
  4. Jurassic Park
  5. The Sandlot
  6. The Sound of Music
  7. Freaky Friday
  8. The Muppets
  9. The Secret of NIMH
  10. An American Tail
  11. Charlotte’s Web
  12. Up (I think they already saw this with my parents, but I want to watch it with them, too!)
  13. The Dark Crystal
  14. The Parent Trap
  15. The Wizard of Oz (we’ve seen a stage version but seriously, my kids need to see this)
  16. The Neverending Story
  17. Shrek
  18. The Gnome Mobile
  19. Popeye
  20. Short Circuit
  21. Mrs. Doubtfire
  22. Pee Wee’s Big Adventure
  23. A Christmas Story
  24. Men in Black
  25. Independence Day
  26. Singing in the Rain
  27. March of the Penguins
  28. Who Framed Roger Rabbit
  29. Westside Story
  30. Edward Scissorhands
  31. Beetlejuice
  32. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy
  33. Big
  34. Raiders of the Lost Ark
  35. Swiss Family Robinson
  36. Megamind
  37. A League of Their Own
  38. The Karate Kid
  39. Bend It Like Beckham
  40. Hocus Pocus

And I’ll keep adding to this list as I think of more movies that I want to share with Pippa and Julian.

Descanso Gardens On the First Day of Autumn

It’s the first day of fall, and the kids don’t have school, so we took a walk at Descanso Gardens and reveled in the change of seasons.

It’s the perfect place for rambling with kids. There are lots of paths through wooded areas, and the kids felt like adventurers, wandering down unmarked paths–and I didn’t have to worry about getting lost in the woods and becoming a story on the evening news. (Area Mom and two children last seen in Angeles Forest; hope wanes as rescuers call off their search for the night.)

(I would not do well if I ever got lost in the forest and had to spend the night sheltering beneath a tree with my kids.)

The leaves have not yet changed color, but I spotted early signs of summer’s decay. I renewed our membership at Descanso, which was a good choice, because within two minutes of our arrival, they were both begging to come back soon.

World’s most adorable acorn.

I have a pocket full of acorns, and my heart is full from our time in nature. Our walk at Descanso was the perfect way to welcome the first day of autumn and methinks this will become a lovely annual tradition.

After lunch, I read the kids a couple of fall poems. They humored me, and actually seemed to enjoy the poems; but after two, they were DONE. But I sat and quietly read one more poem by Keats, and man, I forgot how much I enjoy poetry. I loved it when I was in elementary school, but my high school teachers beat the joy out of it, and then my college creative writing professor took the mangled remains of my joy out into a dark alley and shot it in the head.

Okaaaaaay, maybe I’ve been listening to an unhealthy amount of true crime podcasts.

But to recap: nature is magical, and poetry is too, and I’m so glad we intentionally and consciously marked the autumn equinox. My inner Druid is satisfied.

Ep. 38: It’s Fall Y’All!

Autumn is here! First, I reflect on ways to welcome the change of seasons. This is what I’m planning to try tomorrow:

  • Take the kids on a nature walk and look for signs of summer leaving and autumn arriving. Hopefully we can find some acorns and pinecones. Update: we went to Descanso and found acorns!
  • Bust out my pumpkin scrub and pumpkin body butter from Trader Joes and enjoy the fall aromas during my shower while scrubbing away that dead summer skin.
  • Read a few autumn poems.

Then, since it’s autumn, of course I need a new bucket list:

Finally, the book I keep mentioning is Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle by Emily Nagoski and Amelia Nagoski. It is soooo freaking good. I’m nearly done and excited to reread all the passages I highlighted.

Have a lovely Autumn Equinox!

10 Things That Did Not Make My Fall Bucket List

Yesterday I shared my 2023 Fall Bucket List. Today, I’d like to share the things that are NOT going on the list this year.

  1. Any pumpkin-spiced drinks at Starbucks. I’m cutting back on refined sugar and caffeine, so I I’m just not craving these drinks. (Sacrilege, I know.)
  2. Any of the Halloween events at Disneyland.Too damn crowded, and too freaking expensive.
  3. Apple picking at an orchard. We have our own apple tree.
  4. Go on a hayride. Waaaaaay too itchy, thank you very much.

5. Go to a football game. I don’t need to cheer while men batter each other and damage their brains.

6. Bake pumpkin seeds. The kids have made me try this so many times, and they never taste good.

7. Read a spooky ghost story. My tolerance for ghost stories is very, very low. I can basically handle Casper. Anything else keeps me up all night.

8. Diffuse fall oils. Essential oils are not my jam.

9. Gorge myself on candy corn. I’m too old to handle that much sweetness.

10. Visit a haunted house. My kids are just a little too young. My 7-year-old especially. We’ll save this for when they are teenagers (and by then, they won’t want to do things with me, but I can always force my husband to go.)

It’s Fall Y’All, And This Girl Wants A Bucket List

Ok, technically it’s a few more days until autumn officially starts, but the temps have been dropping and neighbors are setting up their Halloween decorations, so I’m ready for my 2023 Fall Bucket List.

  1. Visit Universal Studios. The kids and I have passes and we are slightly obsessed, so of course we need to see Hogwarts decked for the holidays. We went on Friday, October 13 and had an amazing time BUT HOGWARTS WAS NOT DECORATED FOR HALLOWEEN. NO EXTRA PUMPKINS, NO COBWEBS, NADA. There were some Halloween decorations up for their Horror Nights, but the Halloween vibes were very low-key. Oh well, we still adore the park and can’t wait to return.
  2. Underwood Family Farms Harvest Festival. I’ve been taking the kids for several years and it’s one of our favorite traditions. We pick pumpkins, wander the corn maze, make crafts, and of course, watch the pig race. Another important tradition? Leaving Nathan at home. There’s almost no shade, and the man is part-vampire, plus he grew up in rural Nebraska. His dad’s a farmer. This event just drains him, so he stays home and does whatever, and we cavort with pumpkins. We went Sunday, October 1 and had a grand festive time. We started with face painting, ended with making scarecrows, and did just about everything else in between.
  3. Trick-or-treating. Pippa already has her Mockingjay costume, and we are working on getting Julian a “black Spiderman” costume. How many more years will both kids want to harass neighbors for candy?
  4. Visit the houses on Algeria in Sierra Madre BEFORE Halloween. The city of Sierra Madre takes Halloween very seriously, and this particular street takes it to a new level. We went there on Halloween 2021 and the kids were overwhelmed by the crowds. I still have a little PTSD. This year, we are going after school and wandering the street to admire the decorations before the big day.
  5. Carve pumpkins.
  6. Let the kids “blow up” the pumpkins with baking soda and vinegar after Halloween.
  7. Take the kids to see The Nightmare Before Christmas at the El Capitan theater. (This is a reach. It’s only there for a short time and we have soccer, but maybe I can make it happen.)
  8. Carved at Descanso.
  9. Bake with pumpkin.
  10. Decorate the house for Halloween. Done! We have a couple extra decorations I ordered from Amazon that are yet to go up because it’s been over 90 every day and I just can’t. But the house is festive and the kids had a blast helping me set everything up. They are Jedi Masters at covering our hedge with fake cobwebs.
  11. Attend our elementary school’s carnival.
  12. Go to Nebraska for Thanksgiving. (Flights have been reserved. Very excited to make this happen and create more memories with our kids.)
  13. Bake a pie from scratch.
  14. Take photos of fall foliage.
  15. Pick apples from our tree and make apple muffins and applesauce.
  16. Rake leaves. I made my first assault against the leaves on 10/15, but our trees are still full of leaves. There are many more raking sessions in my future.
  17. Go on a family hike.
  18. Give the kids an amigurumi ghost. (These are 99% finished. Just need to attach the bows and then give them on October 1. Pippa spotted me working on these and knows something is up, but I really want to wait for October 1.) I did this and the kids LOVE their ghosts. They sleep with them and over two weeks later, they are still thanking me for them. Talk about ultimate crafting satisfaction.

That’s plenty for now! I’m sure my Pinterest obsession will give me more ideas as Halloween and Thanksgiving approach.