Proofing Your Book’s Cover: What You Need to Know

Congratulations, and welcome to the Proof Round! Your cover designer has completed your book’s cover and now it’s time for you to review the work and decide whether it’s ready for print, or if some changes need to be made.

If Everything Looks Good

If you approve your cover design, all you have to do is notify a representative by email. The cover design you approve is exactly what will be sent to print, so don’t send your approval until you’re completely satisfied with the cover. If you need to make changes to the cover after the book has gone to print, a resubmission fee will apply.

If Changes are Needed

Review your cover very carefully. If you find any errors or anything that you’d like to change, list them on our Cover Proof Form. Even if you email or talk with your representative about the changes, we will still need to have the changes listed on the Cover Proof Form. So please fill the form out as completely as possible and email it to your representative.

The Cover Proof Form

When listing changes or corrections on the cover proof form, the first thing you are asked is where the error is located.

1. Under the ‘area’ column, please indicate whether the change is on the book’s: front cover, back cover, or spine. If you have a hardcover book, you might also have changes to the frontorback dust jacket flaps.
2. If the change is a text error, use the ‘paragraph’ column to explain in which paragraph the error can be found.
3. Under the column ‘line # or graphic’, for text errors, give the line # where the error appears. For graphic errors, just type the word ‘graphic’.
4. In the next column, let us know what needs to be changed. If it’s a text change, type the text as it appears now. If it’s a one-word text correction, we ask that you also include the words before and after the error to help us locate it faster.
5. In the ‘new’ column, let us know how the error should be corrected. If you are making a change to a graphic or design element, explain what you don’t like about the specific graphic or design element. Be as specific as possible when describing how you would like the change to be made. Imprecise or vague cover corrections can lead to production delays or additional proof rounds, so it’s best to be as thorough as possible on the Cover Proof Form.
6. Use the ‘comment’ column for any additional explanation that might be required.
7. Finally, if it’s a publisher error, place an X in the last column.

When entering text corrections on the form, be aware that your designer does not proofread your cover’s content and will follow your list of corrections exactly. The text you type in the “old” column will be deleted and the text you type in the “new” column will be added exactly as you type it in the form.

If you are unhappy with the selection of one or more images used on your cover, you are welcome to browse our extensive stock image library for suitable replacements. Contact a representative for access to the image library.

When typing inside the Cover Proof Form, you can easily move from block to block by using the ‘tab’ key. The blocks are designed to expand to hold your text. So if you’re trying to type a long sentence, the block will expand to hold it. If you get to the last line and need to add more, simply click your ‘tab’ key and a new line will be added to the form.

Cover Correction Fees

Each time you submit cover corrections, it is called a “proof round”. Your first cover proof round is free of charge, no matter what changes are needed. There will be an additional charge if any additional rounds are required. Any time changes are made to your cover, we will send you a new cover proof for review.

Submitting Your Corrections

When you’re finished filling out the cover proof form, save it under a new name to your desk top. Then attach the new document to an email and send it to your representative. If you’re not sure who to send the document to, please call us and we’ll be happy to look this up for you. Once we receive your corrections and any payment that may be required, it will take 1 to 2 weeks for us to prepare and send a revised cover proof. Once you have approved both your cover and interior, we can submit your book to the printer.

If you have any questions or concerns about the corrections process, please contact a representative.