Hi! We design marketable books.
Cover design.
Cover design.
Cover design.
We design book covers that stand out, and help refine titles and subtitles to speak clearer and sell better. Bespoke art, illustration and custom lettering all done in-house to create unique, bold, genre-appropriate designs that pop.
Typesetting.
Cover design.
Cover design.
Good typesetting (and professional eBook formatting) should get out of the way, and work invisibly to keep readers in the experience. We do everything the way a traditional publisher would, so readers can't tell the difference.
Expertise.
Cover design.
Expertise.
We have decades of hands-on experience, from our own books with traditional publishers, to helping hundreds of indie authors self-publish with confidence. You can trust us to give your book the credibility it deserves.
A stronger brand.
A clearer message.
A clearer message.
The job of a cover is to catch the reader's eye, grab their attention in a crowded marketplace, and communicate the key message (and genre) at a glance. It should quickly convey what it is, and who it's for.
A clearer message.
A clearer message.
A clearer message.
We work with you to refine titles, subtitles, copy and overall marketing propositions, so everything pulls together as one clear, coherent conceptual package. This work makes marketing easier (and cheaper).
A bolder book.
A clearer message.
A bolder book.
An impactful cover conveys a core idea or argument quickly, with simplicity and confidence, and pulls readers towards the blurb. We've helped hundreds of authors make, brand and launch marketable books.
Get noticed.
Provoke intrigue.
Provoke intrigue.
We specialise in bright, bold, eye-catching covers that jump off the page. Whether on a bookstore shelf or as a one-inch thumbnail against the all-white backdrops of Amazon and Apple Books, bolder books stand out in a crowded market.
Provoke intrigue.
Provoke intrigue.
Provoke intrigue.
To sell online, a book's title, concept and artwork must remain legible and "getable" at the size buyers first encounter it, in category listings, search results and ads. A cover has one job: to intrigue readers enough to entice a click. A little cleverness helps.
Win readers.
Provoke intrigue.
Win readers.
We've learnt that every element added reduces the importance of the others. Each element taken away raises the visibility and importance of what’s left. At BOLDER, we guide focus and highlight what matters most. We emphasise more with less.
Testimonials.
“Next level.”
“Selling much better.”
“A peer and partner.”
“Helped me think through target audience and other considerations that took my book to the next level. It's clear that he really enjoys helping new authors. The final product was what I was hoping for, and more. I couldn't recommend more highly.” Chris (Sid Ishun)
“A peer and partner.”
“Selling much better.”
“A peer and partner.”
“To say helped me would be an understatement; he was instrumental in every step. I learned a great deal from Paul, and I blame him for making my first experience self-publishing a book much easier and more enjoyable than I suspect it should be.” Luis Roman
“Selling much better.”
“Selling much better.”
“Selling much better.”
“Paul is great. He understood my book. He understands Amazon. He is unflappable: while I dithered and putzed around like a massive imbecile, he responded as though all this was fine. My books are now selling much better.” Christopher Shevlin
“Extraordinary.”
“Extraordinary.”
“Selling much better.”
“Engaged, responsive, came back with excellent suggestions and variations. The final product is extraordinary: just a beautiful, genre-appropriate, eye-catching design. I'll be calling on them for future books!” Doug Sinclair
“Insight.”
“Extraordinary.”
“Delighted.”
“A true partner I could really trust and collaborate with. No question was ever stupid. Went above and beyond what I would’ve expected from a designer, in creative vision, support, and insights about the industry.” Fraser Green
“Delighted.”
“Extraordinary.”
“Delighted.”
“Took time to really understand what I wanted, then added extensive industry knowledge and unique creative flair. To say I'm delighted is an understatement.” Jacqueline Lambert
“Wealth of experience.”
“Wealth of experience.”
“Wealth of experience.”
“Definitely a hidden gem. Incredibly knowledgeable, professional, creative, kind, patient, easy to communicate with, and such a wealth of experience to draw from. Went above and beyond every step of the way.” Marianne Jennings
“Invaluable.”
“Wealth of experience.”
“Wealth of experience.”
“Invaluable advice about self-publishing made everything so much easier. As a first time author, I was incredibly nervous about everything, but Paul and Linn guided me throughout. I was blown away with my (now award-winning!) cover.” Martina Gruppo
“A great sales letter.”
“Wealth of experience.”
“A great sales letter.”
“Paul's idea for a new title was dramatically different... and perfect. He rewrote the subtitle (beat mine hands down), the blurb (made it ten times better), and then there's the cover. Paul nailed it: he found the perfect concept: a work of art, but also a great sales letter.” Emmanuel Maggiori
About us.
We are Paul Hawkins and Linn Alice Hart, a Berlin-based husband and wife creative team, with a background in art and publishing. As well as writing, illustrating, designing, typesetting and marketing our own books, we help other authors do the same at BOLDER.
Together, we've had 12+ books (five co-authored together) published with traditional publishers like Goldman (Penguin Random House), Ullstein (Hachette group), C. H. Beck, Langenscheidt, PONS, Donkey, as well as audiobooks with the #1 audiobook publisher W. F. Howes. We know traditional publishing and the self-publishing model inside-out, with a wealth of hard-won insight gleaned from a network of successful, self-publishing, full-time indie author friends. Mostly, we know the challenges writers face at every stage of the journey, especially when it comes to online marketing. (We learned everything the hard way, so you don't have to.)
Check out our bestseller The Bloody British if you want to see one of our books "in the wild"; the title, subtitle, cover, blurb copy and Amazon A+ marketing content all working together as one inseparable conceptual package. That's what we'd love to do for you.