I really am cheap, I could try and dress it up as frugal, but that would be wrong. If I can do something myself, write, edit and design, whatever, instead of pay someone else then I’m going to have a crack at it. But they’re professionals you say, they’ve got more experience and talent. Well, I say that they got there by practicing and working on their craft. Which is what I can do too.

I write in my spare time as both a form of entertainment and low expense hobby. I’ve been doing it seriously for at least five years now.

I edit all on my own stories. I have yet to hire a professional to do what I can do for free. And for the record, I’m a pretty decent self-editor. Turns out that editors are not some mystical being that all writers absolutely need. I’m also full of a crippling fear that drives me to be a bit of a perfectionist.

I source all my cover photos from stock websites. I spend hours mulling over what image I should buy because for the last few years I’ve been living with the aftereffects of having a budget and sticking to it. I die a little when I waste money now.

I do all the photoshopping/editing when it comes to my book covers. Here is where I admit that I do not have much experience with that skill. That is why I keep things simple. I pick an image that I think represents the story as a whole and I keep the text over it simple.