The Witch Collector #Bookstagram

Man, I almost missed today's post! I've been under the weather and writing, so my mind isn't on point. And I would've hated to have missed today because I love love love Bookstagram! I'm a photography fanatic and have even done headshots, graduation pics, and engagement photos for various people. Graphics are a fun pastime for me, and having a book coming out soon that I can showcase makes that hobby even better. 

If you follow me on Instagram, all those graphics you see are made by me, unless I share a Bookstagram photo created by someone else. Canva is my go-to for this, although I've also used Bookbrush. There are all sorts of ways to do your own mock-ups and flat lays--free. For instance, this is just a Canva stock photo with my book image on top. I used a shadowing effect to give it a more 'real' appearance since I don't have paperbacks yet.

Here are a few more I made on Canva:

**For an easy, free book mockup tool, check this out. This is how I made the paperback image above. Below, I used the digital cover + shadowing again.

Even cooler?? When other people Bookstagram your book!

I have mad respect for Bookstagrammers. Just trying to curate my own little baby Insta is a grand task. I can't imagine the time and work they put into some of their images. I mean, hello, @myfriendsarefiction built a BOOK THRONE for The Witch Collector. That's WILD. I still can't get over it. And there will be more images to come in September from various book bloggers on Insta. We won't even talk about BookTok yet. I'm struggling in that department. One social media platform conquer party at a time ;)

Do you have a favorite bookish Insta account??

XOXO,

Bookstagram The Mars Strain!

 This week's topic is right up my alley. If you follow me on Instagram you know I love photography, and bookstagram falls right into that category! 

I had a lot of fun finding a NASA shirt. And naturally I had some old test tubes laying around—bookstagram fun! 

Crystal at Reading Between the Wines Book Club does a fabulous job with all of her bookish picks. @ginandtolkein have also swayed my next reads with their shots. 

Tell me, do you have a favorite Bookstagrammer? 

Jeffe the Bookstagrammer?

Our topic at the SFF Seven is "Bookstagrammer for a day!" We're making our own "amazing" cover shots. I'm putting "amazing" in quotes because I'm not at all sure mine qualify. 

This was a crazy time-suck, people! And I have renewed respect for all those Bookstagrammers who produce such gorgeous images. Finding a background that sets off the book cover without overwhelming it takes a lot of trial and error. Also, if you have long hair like I do and you're taking a photo from above? Yeah, you have to tie it up. 

I think the above is my best shot. What do you think?

Also, here are some of the others. (By far not all.) If you know what I'm doing rong, please let me know!