You sell a book. You celebrate. Then, somewhere between copyedits and the publication date, it dawns on you: You need to market this thing. And marketing, in 2026, means graphics. A lot of them.
Your publisher might send you a cover image and a few social assets if you’re lucky. If you’re indie, you might have a cover and nothing else. Either way, you’re staring down a launch date with a growing list of visual materials you didn’t know you needed and no clear picture of what’s essential versus what’s nice to have.
So let’s sort it out. Here’s what you actually need, organized by when you need it, from the moment you have a cover to well after publication day.
Pre-Launch (3-6 Months Before Publication)
Your cover files—all the versions. This sounds obvious, but many authors don’t have the right versions of their cover. You need a high-resolution print file (300 DPI) for print use. For digital and social media use, a good working file should be at least 1200 pixels wide. You’ll also want the full wrap with spine and back cover: This is essential for creating 3D book mockup images, which are some of the most versatile assets in your marketing toolkit. If your publisher or designer didn’t provide all of these, ask.
An updated author photo. If your headshot is more than two years old, it’s time for a new one. Your author photo appears on your book jacket, your website, your social media profiles, your media kit, and every piece of press about your book. It needs to be current, at least 1500-2500 pixels wide, and reflective of your work’s tone. You don’t necessarily need a professional photographer—a friend with a good eye, a phone in portrait mode, and natural light near a window can produce excellent results. What you do need is multiple crops: square for social profiles, vertical for websites and press, horizontal for email headers and banners.
Cover reveal graphics. The cover reveal is one of your biggest pre-launch moments. At minimum, a cover reveal graphic includes the cover, the publication date, and your brand colors to create visual context. This is the graphic that gets shared across social media, sent to media outlets, and posted in reader groups. You can build anticipation by posting a teaser days before, creating more engagement than simply dropping the cover cold.
Pre-order announcement graphics. If you have pre-order links, you need graphics that make it easy and compelling for people to order. These should include the book cover, the pre-order date (or “available now for pre-order”), and a clear call to action. Create versions for each social media platform where you have an active presence .
Coming soon and countdown graphics. A series of countdown graphics (“3 months until launch,” “1 month to go,” “this week!”) keeps your book visible in people’s feeds over time. These should share a consistent design template so they’re immediately recognizable as part of the same campaign.
Building Momentum (1-2 Months Before)
Email newsletter graphics. If you have a mailing list (and you should!), your newsletter needs branded visual elements like a header banner with your name and book cover, styled in your brand colors. This isn’t just aesthetic; branded emails look more professional and get higher engagement than plain-text emails with a cover image dropped in.
ARC and review request graphics. If you’re sending advance reader copies or requesting reviews, create a dedicated graphic that looks polished and official. Include the book cover, a brief description, and clear instructions on how to request a copy. This graphic does double duty—you can share it on social media and use it in direct outreach to online reviewers.
A media kit. When you pitch podcasts, blogs, bookstores, or conferences, a one-page media kit makes it easy to say yes to you. The kit should include your professional photo, a brief bio, your book cover, a 2-3 sentence book description, 3-4 sample interview questions, and your contact information. Save it as a PDF. The sample interview questions are a nice touch—podcast hosts and interviewers can literally copy and paste them, which removes friction from booking you.
Social media post templates. You’re going to be posting a lot over the next few months. Creating 3-5 branded templates now—a quote graphic, a book announcement, a behind-the-scenes post, an event announcement, and a “thank you” graphic—saves you from starting from scratch every time. Use your brand colors and fonts consistently across all of them. Design them once, swap out the text as needed.
Launch Week
Launch day graphic. This is your biggest social media moment. The launch day graphic should feel like an event, with your book cover front and center. This isn’t the time for subtlety. Make it bold, branded, and shareable.
Buy link graphics. Create a graphic that makes it simple for someone to buy your book. Include the cover, messaging like “available now” or “order here,” and a clear link or QR code. You’ll use this in social media posts, email newsletters, and on your website.
Celebration and milestone posts. After launch day, don’t be shy about posting milestones and achievements—hitting a bestseller list, getting a great review, reaching a goal. These keep the momentum going and give your network reasons to keep sharing. A consistent celebration graphics template makes these quick to produce.
Post-Launch (Ongoing)
Review showcase graphics. When good reviews come in, turn them into shareable graphics. A pull-quote from a review, styled in your brand colors with your book cover, is one of the most effective ongoing marketing tools you have. These work on social media, in email newsletters, and on your website.
Event promotion graphics. If you’re doing readings, signings, panels, or festival appearances, each one needs a graphic. Include the event name, date, time, venue, and a brief hook about what you’ll discuss. Create a template and reuse it—just swap the details for each event.
Backlist and evergreen graphics. Your book doesn’t stop needing marketing after launch month. Seasonal tie-ins, thematic connections to current events, “if you liked X, try my book” posts—these keep your book visible long after the initial publicity push fades.
Updated banners and profile images. Your social media banners (Twitter/X, Facebook, LinkedIn) should feature your latest book. Update all of them at launch and keep them current. Your profile photo should be the same across every platform.
So, How Many Graphics Are We Talking About?
For a standard book launch, a reasonably thorough marketing effort requires somewhere between 30 and 75 individual graphics. That number surprises most authors. But let’s break it down.
Pre-launch: Cover reveal, pre-order announcements, countdown series, and social banners—that’s roughly 10-15 graphics.
Momentum phase: Newsletter graphics, ARC requests, media kit, and social templates—another 10-15.
Launch week: launch day posts, buy links, and celebration graphics—5-10.
Post-launch: review showcases, event promos, and evergreen content—10-25 and growing.
That’s a lot of graphics to coordinate—which is exactly why planning ahead matters. Each one needs to look professional, reflect your book’s tone, and feel consistent with the rest of your visual marketing. A cover reveal graphic that looks nothing like your launch week posts isn’t just a missed opportunity; it actively confuses readers about what your book is.
The Real Question
You’ve spent months, maybe years, writing your book. When it comes to promoting it, the question isn’t whether you can figure out Canva; it’s whether DIY graphics will do justice to the work you’ve already done—and whether the hours spent making those graphics would be hours better spent on your next book.
If you enjoy design work and have strong visual instincts, then doing it all yourself is totally do-able. But if you’d rather spend those hours writing—or if you’ve tried the DIY route and the results just don’t feel right—working with a designer makes sense.
Either way, the best thing you can do for your book launch is to have a plan and understand your timeline. And we’ve put one together for you!
Andi Buchanan is the founder of Novel Notion Creative and a New York Times bestselling author of 12 books. Novel Notion Creative creates strategic marketing graphics for authors, designed by humans, never AI. Book a free 30-minute consultation to discuss your launch needs!