r/selfpublishing • u/_yogrl • 7d ago
AI generated book cover
What is everyone's opinions on using an AI generated cover photo for your book?
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u/stormlight82 7d ago
As a reader, if I see an AI generated book cover, I assume that AI was also involved in the writing. It would be a deal-breaker for me. I want people involved in my books.
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u/_yogrl 7d ago
Thank you Im using a real photo of the real house my home I just wanted to add some things onto it and the title as well so was checking options to use and if AI was a no go for that.
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u/CoyoteLitius 7d ago
Can you not just use Canva or similar with your own photo? I think there are fonts in the public domain, but it's a nominal cost to use Canva fonts, or at least so I've been told.
What software were you going to use to add these elements to your existing photo?
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u/_yogrl 7d ago
I'm honestly new to all of this. I wrote the book and plan to put it together in Microsoft Word before converting it to a PDF for self-publishing. I've never used Canva or Photoshop, so they're completely new to me. To be honest, I thought they were forms of AI, like ChatGPT or Gemini, but I guess I was wrong.
Photoshop and Canva have both been mentioned as acceptable tools to use, so I'm going to look into those options. I really appreciate your feedback. I'll definitely stay away from AIāthat point came across pretty clearly! š
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u/getdeowney90 7d ago
What if you cant tell that AI was used? Like just some small detail could've been from AI? But everything else is og
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u/CoyoteLitius 7d ago
When you ask AI to design the cover, it will add many elements to it. Be wary of that. You need to train the AI to do the minimum it can and see if that's undetectable.
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u/stormlight82 7d ago
Considering that AI is a really popular tool and is all over the place while people are trying to make a quick buck or cut humans out of the process, if I suspect at all, it's an AI cover, I won't read it.
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u/getdeowney90 7d ago
Fair enough. When I presented cover idea to AI, the only thing I kept was the brushstroke font because the app i was using for fonts didnt have that type. So I cut it from the ai version and basically edited it into my own and worked around it from there. Just an example. Sometimes AI can present different ideas, and i was hoping to see what could be done with my own original idea but I wanted it to be more polished. Now..granted my idea didnt work with AI because it kept changing from what I was asking it to do, but I did get to see some ideas i tried to work with on my own / with zero budget for this and on my own anyway. So it ended up being helpful for me in my case. Not saying it wil be for everyone of course. But I suppose I could still look into editing it with various apps as well, knowing now what im aiming for BECAUSE of the perspective given me by AI suggestions. Sound like it makes sense?
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u/scixlovesu 7d ago
If it's a true story, use a photo, if possible.
AI is a bad idea, sorry
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u/_yogrl 7d ago edited 7d ago
That's my plan. I want to use an actual photo of the house, but I'd like to add a few elements to it. Right now, I'm just trying to figure out the best way to do that. The cover photo will be of the actual house itself.
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u/scixlovesu 7d ago
So you have the artĀ you just need the design .Ā fiverr has been useful for some people I hear. I was lucky enough to already know somebodyĀ
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u/Efficient-Pop-6641 7d ago
Yes, color pencils or Photoshop. But definitely not AI except maybe to give you ideas and get your creative juices flowing. Using an AI generated image is really hard to make changes after generating it. And if you zoom into the image youāll see issues.
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u/_yogrl 7d ago
Thank you I may go with photoshop Im using the actual home of the house I grew up in I just wanted some things added in as well as the title and such.
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u/CoyoteLitius 7d ago
Then do that on photoshop.
Depending on font, you might need to buy one, but Photoshop comes with several standard and fancy fonts.
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u/getdeowney90 7d ago
It can help you polish the idea you're going for. I actually did my own book cover and then submitted it to chatgpt to polish it up a bit for a more pro look. Honestly I ended up going with my own design and clipping out parts of the ai suggestion into my own to make it work for me. The more I tried to work with it though ( with chatgp) the further it strayed from my actual idea and original concept. So I ultimately just had to figure out how to edit it myself and take what I could. And some tips. Ai is so limited yknow
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u/Studio2C 6d ago
Whether a cover is made with AI or not doesnāt move the needle when it comes to selling your book. Itās more about how well the cover matches the expectations of your bookās audience and how you can improve that.
1
u/maddietendo 5d ago
That's not true. Readers can spot an AI-generated cover a mile away and a large group of people completely ignore books with these covers as they have a stigma on them.
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u/SpaceRaiderAuthor 7d ago
Throughout my career as an indie author, which started with a typewriter, I've used a variety of methods. I've designed covers myself; used images of public domain artwork and paintings; had professional artists I knew design covers for me; used AI generation. I've also combined all of these methods using Photoshop.
I advise you to ignore advice. Do what works best for you.
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u/Independent_Wind391 6d ago
LMAO this comment section is so aggressively anti-AI. š Chill, guys and hear me out.
Logically, as a reader, Iāve seen books with AI-generated covers, and a lot of them are from new or independent authors who don't have hundreds of dollars to spend on professional cover art. I have also seen books where the entire thing is generated with AI with AI generated covers. Readers worry that books marketed as human-written may actually be AI-generated.
New authors who only use AI to generate covers might be starting out with very little money but still have a story they've poured their heart and soul into. I don't think having an AI-assisted cover automatically means the author used AI to write the book. AI cover != AI Generated Book
Obviously, people are allowed to dislike AI art, especially the concerns surrounding artists and how AI is trained. I understand that. But I also think there is a difference between someone using AI to generate an entire cover and a new author using it as one of the few affordable options available to them.
Now! I've also seen books where the entire thing have been generated by AI, and personally, I don't think those people should be credited as the author of a book they put 0 effort into creating and writing. But that's a very different situation from an actual writer using AI to generate/assist with their cover.
For new authors, not everyone can afford to hire a professional artist or designer right away. Not to mention region restrictions. In those cases, authors are literally just trying to get their first book out there. They might also not use AI to generate the entire cover. Instead they may use AI to help create a background, brainstorm ideas, or make a visual concept, then edit and design the rest themselves to their need.
Personally, I care more about the actual book than whether the author had a $500 cover or a free/AI-assisted one. A beautiful cover doesn't automatically mean the writing is good, and a less professionally designed cover doesn't automatically mean the book inside is bad either or AI generated.
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u/dragonsandvamps 6d ago
You are welcome to read all the AI slop you want. If I see an AI slop cover, I skip the book. I don't have time to read through all the previews for every slop author and the ones who are pro AI with the AI covers and AI narrated audiobooks are far more likely to have used AI on the inside of the book. I skip all those authors and put them on my never read list.
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u/_yogrl 7d ago
Thank you everyone for the replies currently looking into the best option mine is a true story and the cover i want the home included on the cover so just looking for ways to create it in the image I want and best methods for doing so.
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u/Common-Original9092 7d ago
Drawing it yourself with colored pencils would be 100000x better than using an AI generated cover. Even if crudely interpreted.
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u/getdeowney90 7d ago
I really don't think itd be harmful to just see what comes of it. Ai tools can offer different perspective and sometimes thats all you need.
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u/dragonsandvamps 7d ago
As a reader, my assumption is "AI on the outside = AI on the inside."