You Won't BELIEVE This Cover Design Overhaul | Book Rescue

About this video

In this Book Rescue episode, Dale follows a Fiverr-challenged 90-day publishing effort for paranormal cozy mystery author Sarah Walday, described as a full-time homeschooling mother of two who has published over 13 books in five years without earning a full-time living from them. He ordered covers from Fiverr seller Olivia Pro Design — splitting seven covers across ebook, paperback, and audiobook rather than loading everything on one order — and called an emergency check-in with Sarah before approving the first two iterations, which she loved for capturing her character Penny as sassy, with her cat and raven in the backgrounds. Because Sarah previously could afford only Fiverr proofreading and beta reading rather than a professional editor, Dale brought in his writing coach Jeannie De Vita for developmental editing of Sarah’s upcoming release ‘Burned.’ Jeannie stresses an editor’s job is not to crush voice but to reduce reader friction: flagging where she was pulled out of the story, confused, or found world-building breaking down, so the author makes informed choices. The team then orders beta readers on Fiverr (from sellers named Decillus, Sarah May W, and Alvenicus), adds a final proofread by Sam Write Writes despite a further 10-day wait, and gives Sarah a launch-promotion homework task: mine lists from TCK Publishing, Kindlepreneur, Reedsy, and David Gaughran’s site plus The Book Reviewer Yellow Pages into a spreadsheet of free promo sites, costs, and lead times, spread across the launch window rather than loaded into one day.

Key takeaways

• Split a large multi-format cover order with a Fiverr designer and get the author’s approval on early iterations before proceeding
• A developmental editor’s role is to reduce reader friction and flag confusion points, not to change the author’s voice
• Layer beta readers and then proofreading even when it costs time — Dale frames rushed, unedited launches as a missed opportunity
• Build a reusable spreadsheet of free and premium book promo sites from TCK Publishing, Kindlepreneur, Reedsy, and David Gaughran’s lists
• Note each promo site’s lead time and spread promotions across the weeks around launch instead of stacking them in one day

Episode details: published November 8, 2022 · 14:51 long. Summary written by Self Growth Videos from the episode itself. Business results and any income figures mentioned are Dale L. Roberts’s own claims, shared for education — they are not typical or guaranteed.

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