Claire,

I do this kind of thing for a living. Some simple, timeless rules are:

1) Remember that you're not selling to yourself. Try to think about how it will look to someone who's never heard you, or even of you. Don't try to sell to everyone, but don't be afraid to expand your graphic appeal to entice someone who might not have considered your genre before. Plenty of people have bought music because they liked the cover.

2) Photos are for grabbing attention. They work; use 'em when you can. Action photos get more attention than posed stills; don't use your studio photos for an CD cover.

3) Keep the front simple. Don't clutter it up with the titles of the songs. Put them on the back. The front cover should have one purpose, to get people to pick it up.A colorful piece of Celtic art will help attract people -- especially those always on the lookout for Celtic music, but again, don't get cluttered.

3) Type face is important! As important as the name of the CD, in fact, is the art that draws people in to look further. Get something that stands out on the cover, and name your CD something intriguing. Again, people sometimes buy on the strength of the title.

4) Inside, outside, but especially on liner notes, be careful about readability. While serif types are usually easier on the eyes, if you get too small with them, and use a thick-and-thin typeface, you're going to make your readers blind and they won't love you anymore. Also, and THIS IS IMPORTANT: if you're reversing type out of a dark background, use bold or demibold face type, either san serif or with small serifs and even strokes -- no thick-and-thin fonts. Those serifs and thin strokes can dissappear into the photo and be virtually unreadable.

5) If you know a commercial artist, use him/her shamelessly. He/She should know all of the above and a lot more. And most of us love doing album covers!

Sarah