Choose bright colors. Traditional poetry book covers are plain, with color used uniformly in dull shades of green, blue, brown and red. Avoid this; be bold and experimental with color. Instead of using one bright color, incorporate several. Take an abstract approach to how the color is used to create contrast and form. Consider layering color to create random, abstract effects, or include texture to add detail and a tactile quality to entice a buyer.
Create exciting patterns. Avoid geometric symmetry and the highly ornate designs of traditional book covers. Read the poetry collection and pick out themes or motifs that are reflective of the poems. Create quirky, contemporary patterns. For example, Andy Warhol used repetition to create funky patterns of iconic images, such as Marilyn Monroe or soda bottles. If designing a cover for war poems, predominant motifs such as bullets, weapons or poppies would be visually effective if arranged in a similar way to Warhol's pop art.
Patterns do not have to be repetitive or uniform. Jackson Pollack created random pattern effects by splashing paint on the canvas. Use embossing to create tactile patterns. Pattern design can be minimal, simplistic and irregular, and composed of basic blocks of line and color. Use words derived from poetry to provide playful word patterns.
Find expressive images. Images should be emotive, emblematic and match the ambiance of the poetry collection. The image needs to represent what is inside the cover. Poetry is rich with images; choosing one image will be difficult, so it might be an interesting idea to create a dream like fusion of images on the cover. Select images based on the general theme of the collection. If your collection has a specific theme, such as war, love, loss, melancholy, anger, anarchy or joy, focus on associated symbols, human expressions or images that best capture the mood of the collection. If it is a general collection without a specific theme, present a collage of images or a provocative emblem that will stir the buyer's curiosity.
Choose a font. Decide what font will be representative of the collection. The title and author headings are the focal point of the cover design; considerable arrangement is needed to make them stand out from the overall design of the cover. The visual design should not detract from the titles but serve as a framework for it.