Design a cover for the book you invented

Choose an original premise before selecting the title and cover image. Together those elements should give a prospective reader a useful expectation, avoiding a striking picture that promises a different story from the one being imagined.

To hand: A blank cover outline.

Invent a premise. Choose a title and visual. Check their connection.

What kind of story does the cover promise?

A cover showing a missing bridge can suggest the story's central mystery.

Treat the cover as communication for an invented audience. The title and image should create expectations consistent with the original premise.

Do not copy an existing commercial cover.

What expectation does the cover create? Dictate the title.

Resources

• Free Elements of Art Worksheet for Kids – Shape, Line, Color, Value, Space, Form & Texture — Use the element vocabulary as a reference while children make their own visual choices.

Further reading

• National Gallery of Australia — learning resources

Read next

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