book design Archives

See the cover for Villains by Samantha Neugebauer

July 20, 2026July 20, 2026by AdamLeave a Comment

Villains, the debut short story collection by Samantha Neugebauer, follows characters searching for purpose, enchantment, and connection across the United States and around the world. Spanning thirteen stories, the collection explores the tensions of self-mythology, social hypocrisy, and shame—often through mother-daughter relationships—as its characters struggle to distinguish what is lasting from what is fleeting, and what is truly meaningful from what has simply become familiar.

Villains will be published on January 26, 2027, by Washington Writers’ Publishing House and is available for preorder now.

Samantha Neugebauer is a lecturer at NYU Washington, DC, and a senior editor at Painted Bride Quarterly. She holds an MFA from Johns Hopkins, an M.S.Ed. from the University of Pennsylvania, and a B.A. from NYU. Originally from Philadelphia, she spent nearly a decade working abroad and now lives in Washington, DC.

Debutiful is honored to reveal the cover of Villains, designed by Dave Ring, along with a Q&A with Neugebauer about its creation.

Continue reading →

News

See the cover for All This Want (and I Can’t Get None) by T Clark

March 8, 2026March 8, 2026by Adam1 Comment

T Clark is a writer whose short fiction have appeared in Joyland, The Kenyon Review, American Short Fiction, The Offing, and Fourteen Hills. They received their MFA from Indiana University and support from Omi International Arts Center in Ghent, New York; the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown; the Lambda Literary Foundation; the Elizabeth George Foundation; the Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing; and the Vermont Studio Center.

Their debut story collection All This Want (and I Can’t Get None) explores the feverish hunger and dizzying pleasure of girlhood and queer coming-of-age in a small town. It will be published by One World on June 23, 2026 and is available for pre-order now.

Debutiful is honored to reveal the cover, which was designed by Michael Morris, along with a Q&A with Clark about its creation below.

Continue reading →

News

See the cover for Her Kind by Sophie Lefens

January 26, 2026January 25, 2026by AdamLeave a Comment

Chicago-based writer Sophie Lefens has published her writing in Third Coast Magazine, Passengers Journal, The Christian Century, and Scary Sugar. A graduate of the Yale Divinity School, she is set to release her debut novel, Her Kind, on October 13, 2026, on Mariner Books. It is available for pre-order now.

Described as a novel about friendship and motherhood, it follows Ada, who is raising her son alone. When she is plagued by visions of being pulled away from Earth, Ada invites her three closest friends for a weekend to an old family cabin to see who might care for her son if she dies. What follows at the cabin is a series of events that opens deep wounds and reveals long-forgotten secrets.

Debutiful is honored to reveal the cover of Her Kind, which was designed by Mark Robinson, along with a Q&A with Lefens about its creation.

Continue reading →

News

See the cover for The Body Riddle by Sam K MacKinnon

January 12, 2026January 12, 2026by AdamLeave a Comment

In their debut novel, The Body Riddle, Sam K MacKinnon introduces readers to Lex, who finally receives top surgery, but nothing that comes after is what they imagined. Their partner finds a new flame, well within the boundaries of their non-monogamous relationship’s rules, but Lex starts to spiral. That is, until they meet a nonbinary coworker who helps Lex discover something new about themself. What follows is a meditation on queerness, the body, and belonging.

The Body Riddle will be published on May 19, 2026, by House of Anasi Press and is available for preorder now.

MacKinnon was previously nominated John Hirsch Emerging Manitoba Writer Award and has had their writing appear in Catapult, Prairie Fire, CBC, them., and elsewhere.

Debutiful is honored to reveal The Body Riddle‘s cover, designed by Alysia Sewchuk, along with a Q&A with MacKinnon about its creation.

Continue reading →

News

See the cover for Honey by Imani Thompson

October 2, 2025October 1, 2025by Adam1 Comment

Imani Thompson is a London-based writer of Scottish, Irish, and Jamaican heritage who studied Sociology at Cambridge University and worked as a bookseller at Daunt Books. Now, she’s set to release her debut novel, Honey, on April 21, 2026, from Random House.

The novel follows Yrsa, a disillusioned PhD student whose accidental role in a professor’s death sparks a killing spree against sexist, exploitative men. With each murder, the story dives into dark humor and explores feminism, rage, and the thin line between justice and obsession. It’s a sharp, satirical look at power, vengeance, and what it means to channel personal and political frustration.

Debutiful is excited to reveal the intoxicatingly stunning cover, designed by Michael Morris, along with a Q&A with Thompson about its creation.

Continue reading →

News

See the Cover for Entomology of the Pin-Up Girl by Lauren E. Osborn

September 16, 2025September 16, 2025by AdamLeave a Comment

Lauren E. Osborn‘s Entomology of the Pin-Up Girl is the winner of the 2024 Dzanc Short Story Collection Prize, and is set to be published by Dzanc on May 12, 2026. It is now available for pre-order.

Upon announcing the prize in December 2024, Dan Wickett, Dzanc’s co-founder and founder of the Emerging Writers Network said of the short story collection, “The title of Lauren Osborn’s collection leads you to the works inside Entomology of the Pin-Up Girl. Insects and girls and women drive every one of the stories in this exciting collection. Osborn utilizes each odd scenario to dig into the human condition. This collection nicely continues Dzanc’s publishing of story collections full of surprises and scenarios one rarely finds in stories today.”

Debutiful is honored to reveal the cover, which was designed by Jenny Eickbush, along with a Q&A with the author about how the picture-perfect cover was created.

Continue reading →

News

See the cover of What God in the Kingdom of Bastards by Brian Gyamfi

May 6, 2025May 5, 2025by AdamLeave a Comment

Brian Gyamfi’s debut poetry collection, What God in the Kingdom of Bastards, will be published by the University of Pittsburgh Press on September 9, 2025. The collection is available for pre-order.

Gyamfi is the recipient of a Pushcart Prize, a National Endowment for the Arts Literature Fellowship, the Zell Fellowship at the University of Michigan, two Hopwood Awards, the Helen S. and John Wagner Prize, and the Michael R. Gutterman Award. He has been a finalist for the Poetry International Prize, the Oxford Poetry Prize, the Agnes Lynch Starrett Poetry Prize, the Hopwood Drama Award, and the National Poetry Series.

Debutiful is honored to reveal the cover of Gyamfi’s debut, designed by Alex Wolf, alongside a Q&A with the poet, offering a behind-the-scenes look at how this powerful cover came to life.

Continue reading →

News

See the cover for Make Your Way Home by Carrie Moore

November 21, 2024January 14, 2025by Adam2 Comments

Carrie Moore‘s short stories have appeared in One Story, New England Review, The Sewanee Review, and Virginia Quarterly Review. Now, her debut short story collection Make Your Way Home is being published by Tin House on July 15, 2025! It is now available for pre-order.

The collection takes place across the American South and features Black men and women at different stages of age, happiness, and stability. From a pregnant young girl to a man grappling with a century-long curse, Moore invites readers into their lives with well-drawn portraits that don’t shy away from the complexity of their choices and emotions.

Debutiful is pleased to give a first look at the phenomenal cover of Make Your Way Home, which uses Higher Calling by Uzo Njoku as the centerpiece for the cover that was designed by Beth Steidle, Tin House’s Director of Design and Production. See the cover below and get a behind-the-scenes look at how it came to be.

Continue reading →

News

See the Cover for The Sleeping Land by Ella Alexander

October 3, 2024October 2, 2024by Adam2 Comments

Ella Alexander’s debut novel The Sleeping Land takes place in the wake of the collapse of the Soviet Union where a group of archeology students and their enigmatic professor are set to dig in a remote Siberian cave. Using a thrilling mystery as its backdrop, The Sleeping Land explores how the past still haunts us and can shape our future when we least expect it.

Alexander, who has had her work featured in LongReads and HuffPost, lives in Berlin and is originally from Los Angeles. Her debut novel is available for pre-order and will be published on February 4, 2025, from Unnamed Press.

Debutiful is proud to give readers a first look at the haunting cover for The Sleeping Land, designed by Jaya Nicely. See the cover below and get a behind-the-scenes look at how it was made from the author herself.

Continue reading →

News

See the cover of Maya & Natasha by Elyse Durham

August 1, 2024August 1, 2024by AdamLeave a Comment

In her debut novel Maya & Natasha, Elyse Durham follows the titular characters as they navigate the politics of Soviet era ballet while balancing their complicated relationship. The twins compete to make each other better while also wanting to outshine the other throughout their lives. When their Soviet ballet company goes on tour in America during the Cold War, their relationship is tested more than ever before as they must grapple with loyalty to their country, dreams of freedom, and their bond with each other.

An alum of the MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College, Durham has published work in Cimarron Review, Image Journal, and the Cincinnati Review. Durhan has also held residencies at the Vermont Studio Center, the Glen Arbor Arts Center, and The Mount. Her debut novel is available for pre-order and will be published on February 18, 2025, from Mariner Books.

Debutiful is proud to give readers a first look at Maya & Natasha‘s beautiful cover, designed by the brilliant Mumtaz Mustafa. See the cover below and get a behind-the-scenes look at how the cover came to be with a short Q&A with author Elysa Durham.

Continue reading →

Tag: book design

See the cover for Villains by Samantha Neugebauer

See the cover for All This Want (and I Can’t Get None) by T Clark

See the cover for Her Kind by Sophie Lefens

See the cover for The Body Riddle by Sam K MacKinnon

See the cover for Honey by Imani Thompson

See the Cover for Entomology of the Pin-Up Girl by Lauren E. Osborn

See the cover of What God in the Kingdom of Bastards by Brian Gyamfi

See the cover for Make Your Way Home by Carrie Moore

See the Cover for The Sleeping Land by Ella Alexander

See the cover of Maya & Natasha by Elyse Durham

Follow Us