poetry cover design

Native New Yorker Dr G relives his lived experience of 9/11 through his powerful second collection of poetry, 9/11 and the Aftermath.

I had already worked on his first publication, Losing An Accent, also available via Narnia Libraries and it was wonderful to catch up and create a new cover.

PROJECT DETAILS

BAPLA PHOTO LIBRARY RESEARCH

INDESIGN

KDP AND INGRAM SPARK TEMPLATES

“Thank you for the final cover and steering me through the copyright problems.”

— Dr G

What Hello Lovely did

Did you know that some events aren’t available as commercial photos because of sensitivity to the victims?

9/11 is one such tragic event, where photographic records are heavily guarded or only for restricted web access. Dr G is a survivor of this awful day and wanted to record his memories in poetry ahead of the 25th anniversary. As he pointed out, he can see the images in his mind, but camera phones were not readily available.

This meant being sensitive and still impactful for the cover, ensuring it was compliant with print platforms and still echoed the themes with respect. It took a while to find an image that meant something to both the author and his poetry, and we settled on the Brooklyn Bridge view as that’s Dr G’s birthplace.

From there, I adapted the image so that it worked across the full cover. I carried over the typography from the author's name on Losing an Accent as a subtle brand (the benefit of working with the same designer!) and chose a typeface that echoed the upright lines of the memorial lights.

You can buy your copy of both poetry collections via Narnia Libraries.