Calling All Black Cover Designers!
Cassava Republic is offering emerging and established Black designers from across the globe the opportunity to design the cover for our ground-breaking anthology amplifying Black voices on the most urgent question of our time: Echoes of the Earth: Black Voices Reclaiming Ecology and Justice.
This competition is part of our ongoing commitment to amplifying Black voices in the publishing industry. We especially welcome submissions from new and emerging designers .
The winning design will be featured as the book’s official cover, with full credit and compensation for the designer. Runners-up will be considered for future Cassava Republic covers.
Apply NowApplications Close October 10th 23:59 BST
Who Can Apply
The cover design competition is open to Black designers aged 18 and above based anywhere in the world. No previous book design experience is needed.
The Prize
The winning cover designer will win $750 and have their cover design used for Echoes of the Earth in all formats including a full back cover and spine design as well.*
Two runners-up will receive a cash prize of $200 each and will be considered by Cassava Republic Press for future design work.
*The final cover design may be subject to revisions ahead of publication in collaboration between the publisher and designer.
How to Apply
Submit your application via Google Form now. Applicants will need to submit:
- A maximum of 2 original front cover designs for Echoes of the Earth
- A portfolio showcasing previous design work
- A brief statement (max. 250 words) explaining the design concept
About Echoes of the Earth
Echoes of the Earth will bring together in a single volume African and Afro-Diasporic perspectives on climate, environmental repair, and ecological thought. It aims to reframe global ecological discourse by foregrounding Black people’s relationships with land, water, air, memory, and technology; relationships that have long been shaped by survival, resistance, and renewal. The collection foregrounds writers engaging with ecology in its fullest sense: from ancestral and spiritual traditions to political economy, urban ecologies, environmental grief, eco-anxiety, speculative visions, and more.
Echoes of the Earth is a work of non-fiction that will appeal to both general readers and the academic market.
Cassava Republic Cover Designs
Tips and Tricks
Make sure to:
- Submit a design that fits with the Cassava Republic list
- Think about how your design will look on a bookstore shelf
- Look at similar titles to get a sense of the market
- Avoid clichés and overused tropes (such as sunsets and trees to denote African/Black)
FAQs
Yes, the winning cover designer will sign a contract to design the full cover. The winner will receive $750 in exchange for designing a full cover for Echoes of the Earth subject to revisions in collaboration with the publishers. The cover design will be used for the book on all formats and territories.
Yes, as long as you have cleared the copyright for any images used and credit is given. The prize is for cover designers solely.
No, designs must be original and your own work without the use of generative AI.
Yes, the designs remain your own property and Cassava Republic will make no use of your designs. The designs for the 2 runners-up will be shared on our social media.