"I wanted my cover to look sort of like chick-lit. Something a young woman wouldn’t be embarrassed to be seen reading on the subway or on the beach. When I was reading self-help books to get over my eating disorder, I remember hating the idea that anyone could tell the kind of book I was reading. I didn’t have an exact visual in mind, but I knew I wanted it to look happy, fresh, and spring-like. Because, in spite of the fact that it’s about a serious subject, disordered eating, it’s really a hopeful story. It’s about how to feel happy, healthy, and free around food and your body.

 

"When they started having early discussions about design, my editor looped me in and asked me what feel I wanted. They were looking at what other self-help books about food had been doing, and also what young women’s literature was doing. I knew I didn’t want food to be too much of a focus on the cover—you know, no big piece of cake or something, and I didn’t want a picture of a girl or woman, because I felt like that would be alienating if the person didn’t look like the reader who was standing in front of the cover at the bookstore or her computer. I told them about my chick-lit idea and sent some covers that I liked (see below).

 

   

 

"The first one didn’t hit exactly the right note, but I did instantly feel an affinity for it. With the second, although I didn’t want food to be a big deal on the cover, I did like the simple, small use of food on this cover. And I loved the look and simplicity of the third."

 

"When I saw the design for my own cover, I liked it instantly! And then I thought, wait, aren’t I supposed to hate the first cover they send my way? I had heard from other author friends that the cover design process can be very difficult, so I thought maybe I was wrong to like it! I sent it to my agent, told her I liked it and asked her if I was being too easy to please. But she loved it, too!

 

"The cover didn’t change much at all, except for the addition of blurbs, and some punctuation tweaks. The design and fonts in the final cover are the same ones in the initial designs I saw. The woman who designed it, Lesley Worrell, really just nailed it on the first try. Or at least the first try I saw!

 

"It was a stock photo, and it worked perfectly. The martini glass filled with jellybeans really captures the idea that people can use food just like they do alcohol. And it looked friendly, not scary or sloppy. Not off-putting or triggering for people with food issues. I think it’s really friendly, approachable, and positive, which is exactly what I was looking for."

 

Thanks, Sunny! I really like this cover too. It's clean and colorful and inviting, I think. The trailer is also great. Watch it here.

 

What do you guys think?