Before I get into some of the tips for how to create a book cover, I want to mention that this regards my published books on Amazon since my covers on Wattpad and Quotev feature artwork that is not mine and belongs to the respectful owners. As for the published versions on Amazon, the cover pictures belong to me. With that being said, here are a few tips for making a cover.
First, it helps to plan the cover out a few months to a month ahead of time before you publish your novel. This way, you can determine what tools you'll need, and you won't have to rush at the last minute to collect all of them. It also lets you plan your cover around what you have available, so you don't buy extra or end up purchasing things that are expensive and you'll never use again. For example, the cover for "An Eternal Seal" features a mask and black background. The mask I had in storage from a tenth grade masquerade party, and the black background came from a black cape I had for Halloween back in the eighth grade. I also used my phone camera to take the picture. This worked out since the story centers around the three mask pieces to form one final mask. So if you plan ahead, you can save yourself some money by using items already around your house and not spend more by accidentally purchasing something you have.
Second, you don't require a fancy camera. Yes, the picture probably will turn out better with one, but a phone camera will work just as well as long as you meet the pixel requirement set out by the publisher. Even then, you sometimes can ignore the pixel count, and the picture will still turn out looking great on the final product. But if you do have a cover with a pixel count lower or higher than the guidelines, I would recommend buying/ordering/receiving a copy first for yourself to make sure that the cover picture came out fine. That way, you can adjust it if need be before anyone else buys it.
Third, use the medium that works best for you. I'm terrible at digital art, so I often stick with photography or some form of non-digital art. You also can combine the mediums for the cover as well if you think that will suit the book more. It just depends on your preferences, but don't feel like you need to go outside of the box and try watercolor when you've never worked with watercolor paints before. This is where planning helps too. Create a design that works around your strengths and that won't stress you out too much. And if you want to experiment, that's good too; just don't feel like you have to in order to have a pleasant cover. Anyway, I hope that this helps!
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