I want to preface this blog with the opinion that Canva does not replace graphic designers or the work they do. Throughout my many years in journalism and marketing, I have used the Adobe suite and worked alongside in-house graphic design teams and agencies.
Designers are incredibly skilled. Illustrator is the go-to for creating high-quality visual assets for a book or other publication. InDesign is then where you lay out those graphics with text.
That being said, Canva gets some flak for being a bit ‘samey’ or too low-res for ‘real’ designs. I disagree. I think it’s an extremely useful tool, especially for those in the publishing world – i.e., emerging authors who also strive to maintain an active social media presence and manage a website. Did I mention we also work day jobs, go to the gym, and do school runs?
Opinions on Canva itself aside, here are my top functions of the paid version. Note: the free version is great, and you can certainly make colourful and engaging designs for your website, social media, and even printed marketing materials. The below are simply functions I like with the upgraded version that I’m lucky enough to use as part of my day job.
- Access to stock imagery: The paid version of Canva gives you access to tonnes of premium stock imagery and videos. I’ve found that many of the photo options found in Canva Pro also appear on Shutterstock.
- Background remover: This is a really handy tool, especially when trying to create the flat lay look or style a product (book, candle, bookmark, clothing etc.). You can remove the background at the click of a button and insert onto a background of your choice. TIP: Adding a drop shadow or glow really elevates the design and makes it appear more realistic on the superimposed background.
- Projects: If you’re like me, you have designs and projects coming out of your ears. The ability to file these into different ‘projects’ (folders) is really handy.
- Templates: When writing is your end game (coming from an author’s perspective) you really should spend the bulk of your time…writing. So, if you’re on a deadline, or stuck on design ideas, there are a range of amazing templates to choose from. You can then customise these and make them your own. Templates cover everything from TikTok videos and business presentations to Facebook posts and DL flyers.
- Resize: The Pro version of Canva allows you to resize your designs into commonly-used formats. Wanted that design to be a LinkedIn banner rather than an Insta post? Easy! Resize, resave, rejig and you’re sorted. You can also create custom sizes.
- Premium video: You know the drill – reels and videos are where it’s at when it comes to social media likes, clicks, comments and general engagement. With Canva Pro, you can whip up a creative video in no time.
- Brand Kit: This allows you to build a brand from scratch or add to existing brand assets. Consistency is key, so being able to save your colour palette, fonts and logos is a real time saver.
- Transparent background: There is the option to download your images with a transparent background. This can be handy for web imagery (remember, whitespace is your friend!)
- Storage: Canva Pro includes unlimited storage for your images and designs. You may start off using the free version but find you quickly outgrow it.
- Ease of use: Finally, the drag-and-drop functionality teamed with customisable templates makes Canva a great option for writers, authors, creatives and time-poor small business owners. If you don’t have the budget (yet) for a designer, or need to do some in-house marketing in your spare time (ha!), Canva is perfect.
Once you’ve nailed the design element of your writing endeavours, side hustle, or small business, I would also highly recommend a scheduling platform like Hootsuite, Sprout, Later, Loomly, Zoho or Buffer. Again, there are free and paid versions of social media scheduling software out there – it’s about finding the best fit for your needs (and this is something that may evolve).
Happy writing – and designing!
Author tip: If I’m getting too deep in a plot hole, going cross-eyed from editing, or simply need to clear my head, I switch from my manuscript writing to designing for a little while. It’s all about being productive, without burning yourself out. Progress is progress.
Jayne McIntyre Author 