Crossway Titles Win ECPA Cover Awards

Earlier this week, the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA) announced its 2014 Top Shelf Book Cover Award winners. We’re pleased to announce that five Crossway titles were selected as winners.

ECPA President/CEO Mark Kuyper notes, “The Top Shelf program highlights book design excellence, intelligence and beauty, and we are grateful to all who participated in the program with their quality entries.”

In response to this recognition, Crossway’s Senior Vice President of Creative, Josh Dennis, said, “We’re grateful to have been recognized by the ECPA for excellence in cover design at the recent ECPA awards ceremony. At Crossway, we have the privilege of working with wonderful authors and are honored to be able to play a part in bringing their content to the world in book form.”

Dennis continued, “Cover design is an important part of this process. We work with many gifted designers and the work that was recognized would not have been possible without them. Thanks to everyone that we have the privilege to work alongside.”

Here are the titles that won, along with a few additional comments from Dennis:

Crazy Busy: A (Mercifully) Short Book about a (Really) Big Problem

Kevin DeYoung

Jeff Miller serves as art director at Faceout Studio in Bend, Oregon. Faceout is responsible for some of the best cover designs in the Christian and general book market, with Jeff personally leading on many of their designs. He is one of my favorite designers to work with. His work is always thoughtful and conceptual. I love when artists are able to express difficult concepts through typography in a simple way.

The cover he created for Crazy Busy is one of my favorite Crossway covers. The "Crazy Busy" character on the cover is so smart and iconic. We had fun building a brand around the little guy. The cover is fresh, enduring, simple, and bold.

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Against the Gods: The Polemical Theology of the Old Testament

John D. Currid

Tyler Deeb works as a freelance Graphic Designer in Louisville, Kentucky. He is the owner of Misc. Goods Co. and is the creator of a successful Kickstarter project. Tyler is a true craftsman. His work is illustrative, textured, and conceptual.

What sets Tyler apart is the incredible care and attention to detail in his work. He sees things that others do not. The idol shown on the cover was an original illustration and the type was customized.

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Disciplines of a Godly Woman

Barbara Hughes

Connie Gabbert is an amazingly gifted book designer. Her work holds up against some of the more famous book designers doing work in the general market. This cover is no exception, and I was glad to see it recognized.

The photo was taken at a friend's house, the chair belongs to my sister, and the Bible is actually an ESV. Props to our video team, Jon Marshall and Tim Kellner, for taking the photo. I love the strength of the imagery, the wallpaper, the peeling paint on the chair, the distressed wood flooring, and the sensitive type treatment.

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The Storytelling God: Seeing the Glory of Jesus in His Parables

Jared C. Wilson

Jeff Miller (Faceout Studio) is also responsible for this cover. The book is meant to be a companion to The Wonder-Working God, which also won an award. Jeff did a brilliant job tying the two covers together.

Each cover is distinct but the connection is clear. Both covers are wonderfully creative solutions and stand out in any market. These are the kind of designs I wish that I was able to put in my portfolio.

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The Wonder-Working God: Seeing the Glory of Jesus in His Miracles

Jared C. Wilson

Like the cover for The Storytelling God, this cover by Jeff Miller (Faceout Studio) uses creative typography to communicate a complex concept.

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Crossway is a not-for-profit Christian ministry that exists solely for the purpose of proclaiming the gospel through publishing gospel-centered, Bible-centered content. Learn more or donate today at crossway.org/about.