I had already published an ebook version of this children's book last year but thought about having a print version later. Because I already finished a painting for the book cover, I did not want to pay for a book designer to develop the cover. I also wondered how I could design a cover spread (back cover, spine, and front cover) myself. I scoured the internet for how-to's and concluded that InDesign was the best program available for it.
Well, InDesign is a very expensive program used by graphic designers in their work. Fortunately, a free 30-day trial software was available online, so in early November, I downloaded it and bravely set out to learn it. It was not easy and I made a lot of mistakes trying to form a cover spread. Finally, I had a graphic designer check to make sure that my design conformed to the printer's specs. I was soooo pleased that it did, but there was another step. My publisher and the printer had to approve it. Two days ago, it was! I expect to receive the galley in a few days. What a blessed relief!
