Interview with Theresa M Evangelista

Theresa M Evangelista is a book cover designer based in New York, U.S. She designed the cover for the book series 'Matched' by Ally condre. She has also designed for other young adult novels like 'An Abundance of Katherine' by John Green and 'Gamer Girl' by Mari Mancusi.

Why did I chose to interview her?

I wanted to interview Theresa because her designs for the YA dystopian novel has been recognised and is appreciated by a lot of YA readers, she was feautured in many 'top YA dystopian book covers' or similar lists like that on the internet therefore I think that she can give me an insight on how to attract the YA audience. Furthermore, the book has gained a lot of attention and success. Everyone is familiar with the saying 'Don't judge a book by its cover', and it is true that the content of the book in itself is the main reason for a book's popularity. However, from what my survey has gathered, book covers are also very important. It is one of the main reasons why readers chose to pick up a certain book

Interviewing the designer

I really wanted to meet Ms Evangelista in person and have a chat with her about her works, her process, maybe even ask he if I can have a tour around her workplace and see for myself what its truly like deigning book covers in a professional environment. However, since she lives in America and I in ENgland, it would be very hard, expensive and time consuming to meet her in person. I resorted to sending her an email that I found on her website and asked her if she will be able to do an interview with me about designing for book covers. I was very happy with the reply that I got!

I sent her the questions as soon as I saw the email. It took long before I got her answers, I sent her a follow up email two days after I sent her my questions just to make sure! I was so glad to recieve an email from her with her answers (I was worried that she may not reply because she might've been too busy!)

The Interview

How did you get to where you are now? (education, jobs, experience?)

--I've always loved art-making, and I studied graphic communications at New York University with the intention to get a job in advertising. Actually, I wasn't aware that 'book cover designers' existed until I graduated college and began working as a graphic designer in the marketing department of a major publishing house. I did marketing design for 5 years and have been designing covers ever since!

This is something that I get confused with, do companies, like Penguin, hire designers like you and work for them in-house or do you work freelance?

--I do both.

What is the first thing that you do when you get given a project? (i.e. Do you read the book?)

--We usually receive a rough manuscript and 'art form' (plot, character summary with creative suggestions) from the book's editor. I read the manuscript until I get a good sense of the tone/characters, and understand the themes in the story.

Do you feel a connection with books that you design and do you work closely with the author?

--Yes, it's important to try to connect with the story and characters to come up with an appropriate cover. The book's editor generally relays the author's ideas and suggestions to the cover designer.

How do you know which element from the book you want to put on the cover?

--This is probably the most challenging part! I always highlight strong passages or evocative phrases that spark a strong mental image. It's also common to brainstorm cover ideas with a creative director, and the editor/author. When a story falls into a specific genre (romance, fantasy ...etc), that can also be used to guide the look.

How many drafts of design do you usually go through? How do you know which to pick for the final design?

--I usually present 3-5 initial cover concepts and (with some luck!) one of these will appeal to the team. Then I might go back and try a few variations (color, type...etc) to get things just right. Of course things don't always go that smoothly, so there are times when I'll have pitched up to 20 designs for one title!

Where do you get your ideas from?

--I always keep my eyes peeled for interesting design trends, new artists/illustrators, and photographers. These experts a constant source of inspiration. I also look to fashion and popular culture for inspiration.

Describe your process (it can just be in simple stages.)

--In the beginning, I usually create a mood board of visuals (random images and color swatches) and then I spend good deal of time choosing a typeface for the title (since letterforms can do so much to help set the tone). To make a cover comp, we generally purchase stock photography and do photo-manipulation or compositing to get the details right. Sometimes we arrange a photo shoot (both professional and in-house) to get the perfect image (or images for a series). Photo shoots are always fun (and a lot of work) because the cover designer might have to be responsible for hiring a photographer, models, AND sourcing wardrobe/props. But it's very rewarding to see the finished product: something that you conceived and brought to life from scratch! If a cover will be illustrated, I search for the right artist and collaborate with them. There are a variety of ways to get to the final image which keeps my job always interesting.

What materials and mediums do you use?

--I use Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign every day. I sometimes hand draw type and do very basic illustrations to scan in, but the majority of my elements are digitally rendered just because it's quicker for me personally.

Your covers are always voted on 'best-YA-dystopian-book-covers' lists (i.e. your book design for Matched is #2 on the site GoodReads), which shows that your designs for YA novels truly are popular amongst the young adult readers and even other audiences. In your opinion, what elements of a book cover/style do you think attracts the YA readers?

--The Matched series was one of my favorite (and most challenging) projects. I'm happy that it's been so well-received! I can't say for sure what attracts YA readers, but--in service to all readers--I try to make cover designs that are smart and conceptual, using imagery and symbols that immediately conjure up specific feelings and ideas, so a reader knows what to expect inside!

How do you know what certain books covers will attract a certain audience?

--I've read too many book cover blogs to answer this question with any certainty :o) I will assume that fans of a particular genre might gravitate toward covers that fit into that genre's look. And cover designs go through trends (stylized photo, hand-type driven, illustrated...) that make certain looks 'hot' for a period of time. As a designer, it's always exciting to think outside of the box, and--at the end of the day--do the story justice in an eye-catching and interesting way!

Reflecting on Her Answers

I found the interview with Theresa very useful. If I was being honest, I thought that desiging book covers were pretty easy. But this was a thought that quickly faded away when I was peroaring for my EPQ project. I read from book design blogs that designers usually submit several covers before it makes the cut, even then sometimes they still have to tweak some bits out like colour or composition. Theresa's answers really showed me that there is a LOT that goes on when designing books covers and, like most things in the world, it takes hard work to design the perfect one: "...there are times when I'll have pitched up to 20 designs for one title!".

The answers that she gave me about what her process is when designing book covers provides a guidance for me on what I should do when I start designing my own book cover altough, I will still research the process of desgining a book cover in more depth like how to use the programs that she uses like. I'm very familiar with Photoshop and I have been using the program confidently for many years now however, InDesign and Illustrator are the two programs that I'm not too familiar with and therefore I will need to look for tutorial on how to use them for designing book covers. So far, I have read the books and worked out its theme and the tone of the characters, based on her answer my next step will be creating a mood board for the books. I have already highlighted key words and visual imagery however, I think I will re-read some parts of the books that I have chosen just to make sure that I have got enough ideas. Since quotes are quite popular from my survey as well I think that I'll find some good ones from the books.

Theresa also included in her answers diffrent places where she gets her design ideas from and I find this very helpful because it gave me new places to search for ideas from and what to look out for (for examples, not only looking at book design blogs but also photography sites and illustrations). My plan now is that whenever I see something that inspires me, I will post them on this blog along with my progress entries.

With the interview, I plan on carrying out the 'to-do' steps that I have sated earlier. I also plan on using it as a guidance for my project. I have contacted the other desginers that I named in my earlier post. I think that it will be useful to have diffrent ideas and processes from diffrent designers. I still have no reply from them so I will send them a follow up email. I might look at new designers to contact so hopefully I can get another designer to answer my questions.

#research