Hi! In this chapter I'll be showing y'all things you can add to your dark covers to make them better!

I won't be going into too much detail since I don't want to give away all of the things I do since it has taken me lots of time to get to where I am right now! I hope y'all understand!

Requested by  @pinkie_glimmer

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Before I give y'all the tips, here are some examples of some dark covers I've already made:

Face manip as well⬇️

Okay now to the tips:

1.Backgrounds

For dark covers (mystery/horror/etc) what I do is choose a background that's dark but not TOO dark. So for example, I always choose grey and black instead of just black. I do that because I always add filters and other things to make the whole thing darker and not just the background.

So, for the first example I showed, the background is mostly dark but here's what it looked like originally:

So try choosing backgrounds like those^ if you want to add other things like filters and stickers.

2. Stickers

You can never go wrong with picsart stickers. You can get almost anything you want if you search it up correctly! Here are some things I search up most of the time while making dark covers:

- smoke (black/grey/purple/white): adding smoke makes the overall cover darker and look more mysterious!

- lightning: lighting just gives it a more intimidating look, I really like adding it!

- papers flying: papers flying in the background makes empty spaces look nice and more interesting.

- blood/bruises: I add these when I want to make a person look more scary. I add blood and bruises, it just makes it look more manipulated and better!

- anything dark: search up random things on the stickers that are dark! The best way you can gain more experience is by playing with picsart yourself! Most people don't think picsart is good but it's because they don't really explore all of it. Make time to search up things that you think will make the cover look better!

Those are the main things I search up on picsart stickers!

3. Effects (filters)

Picsart effects are so good. As I said before, give yourself time to look through the effects, there's many different ones that help put your covers together! Here's a couple of good effects that'll give your covers a darker/mysterious vibe:

- Film: Film can make your graphic darker or lighter! Mess around with the output, input and opacity to get the result you want! Here's an example:

- Film 2: Film 2 makes your graphics darker + it also gives it a cooler tone, kinda blueish almost. Here's an example:

- VIN 2: VIN 2 is very similar to film 2, here's an example:

-Vignette: Vignette makes the edges of a picture darker! You can also switch colors so you can make the edges white,red,pink,etc. here's an example:

Those are the basic effects for dark covers!

4. Extras

Always think outside the box! Want to make your cover look more mysterious or scary? Don't just add smoke and leave it like that, think of more stuff you can add! What I usually do is imagine the setting and what's going on. So for example, let's say you have to make a cover for a book about a serial killer girl. Don't just add a girl to a dark background and some smoke.

Think of what the book is about. Since the girl is a serial killer, maybe add a knife to her hand or a gun. What does the girl do? She kills, so add blood. What's the setting? Let's say it's an abandoned house. Add tree branches, dirt, shadows,etc. just think about everything and I swear you will get more ideas!

5. Fonts

When making a dark cover, don't choose cute and bubbly fonts! Choose either bold, cursive, scary or messy fonts. The font pulls it together, whichever font you choose is fine but just make sure it's not something cute or something that reflects the opposite vibe of the cover.

Here's an example:

Yeah, the font/colors on the left are cute but they don't fit the cover! I personally really like simple fonts but it really depends on the person. Just make sure the font and color fits the cover in some way, like the font on the right.

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Those are all my tips! I hope these were helpful!

If you have a request make sure to comment!

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Thank y'all!