How to make a book Cover draft

HOORAY!  Just finished a mock-up cover for the second book in my Sweet T Tales series.   I'm over the moon that it took less than an hour.

Initially, I tried Create Space's cover generator tool, but its layout templates didn't work with my art.  And while my graphic artist will format to perfection and make the cover even better once her schedule opens, my mock-up is perfect for advance reviews AND I don't have to wait for finished cover art to start a review process that often takes several weeks.

Here's how you can create a mock-up cover, too:

Must-haves

• Powerpoint for PCs (Keynote for Macs)
  
• Color scanner  
• Camera-ready cover art photo

Directions

1. Scan that dynamite cover graphic into a high-resoution jpg file (I was lucky to have Irene Jahn's amazing watercolor art for my cover).
   
2. Insert the jpg art onto a plain Powerpoint template, using the "picture with caption layout" option. 
   
3. Now for the fun part ...
   Experiment with different combinations of word art, fonts, picture shapes, and theme colors for the best combination of graphic elements that make the cover pop.
4. Insert a text block, indicating the cover is a mock-up for advance reviews. 
   
5. Proof, edit, and save the PPT doc as a jpg file of 72-100 dpi for easy cyber-exchange; save as 300 dpi if reviewers request a hard copy.
   
6. That's it.  You're ready to send a book galley and cover mock-up to early reviewers.  Good luck!