Hello! Today I have something pretty special, author Catherine Ryan Howard is joining us on the blog today to celebrate the release of Self-Printed: The Sane Person’s Guide to Self-Publishing (3rd edition) by answering one of my own questions! I hope this answer helps you as well, check it out!
Question: How do you decide on a font (for branding purposes)? Do you use more than one or pick one and stick with it? Does your cover designer help you with that? Do you use the same font from your cover on your website and social media channels?
Answer: I didn’t consciously decide on a font; I got lucky. Back when I was putting together a mock-up to send to my cover design for Mousetrapped, the first book I self-published, I just took a shine to Impact in all caps and that’s how it ended up on the cover. Then I discovered, when it came time to set up my blog, that WordPress had a theme I liked – Bueno – that also used Impact (or at least a font that was incredibly similar to it). Then, when Self-Printed came along, I decided to keep the white “band” design just because I like things to match and be cohesive.
Your cover designer can absolutely help you with choosing a font, but I wouldn’t over think it. Also while it would be nice and it would satisfy my coordinating loving soul, it doesn’t HAVE to be the same on your social media channels as it is on your book covers. Just find something you like that you think is a reflection of you, and stick with it. If you need to choose an entirely different font to reflect your book, that’s okay. I always think it’s a good idea to find examples that are already out there that you like – other author’s blogs/branding schemes in this case – and use them as a jumping off point. But it’s a small decision in the scheme of things, so don’t fret too much!
Thank you so much Catherine for your great answer! In my case my graphic designer Mallory Rock helped me pick a font to brand my social media and website but I also use a few additional fonts for individual blog posts (which is kind of like a mini book if you think of it). So there you have it authors! When picking a font make it something that represents you!
About Catherine Ryan Howard:
Catherine Ryan Howard is a writer, self-publisher and caffeine enthusiast from Cork, Ireland. SELF-PRINTED: THE SANE PERSON’S GUIDE TO SELF-PUBLISHING (3rd edition) is out now in paperback and e-book and available from Amazon. Follow the #selfprintedsplash on Twitter and/or visit www.catherineryanhoward.com for chance to win an amazing prize that will get your self-publishing adventure started!
“SELF-PRINTED is my self-publishing bible. It taught me how to format, create and upload my e-books and print-on-demand paperbacks. It showed me practical things such as how to build a website/blog and how to promote my books. More importantly, it taught me how to compete with the professionals. Just look at the results – The Estate Series has sold nearly 100,000 copies and following that I got a traditional book deal with Thomas & Mercer too, so I’m now a hybrid author. Jam-packed full of hints and tips all in one place, I’m always referring back to it. In a word, it’s priceless.” – Mel Sherratt, author of The Estate Series and DS Allie Shenton Series
Impact is such a great font. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve used it. I think even Entertainment Weekly uses it for its cover.
Yes! Impact is a really cool font. It is interesting to see how different brands use fonts and how authors can apply that to their own branding and marketing.