Bookish, mostly.

My name is Melissa Farris, and I’m a freelance book designer. Prior to that, I was the creative director of Union Square & Co., Barnes & Noble’s book publishing house. Yes, I did get discounts on books, which I did not need, but continued to buy. Prior to that, I was the creative director for the adult book publishing house of National Geographic, where I worked for over 20 years. Yes, it was exactly as cool as it sounds—I even got to hold a baby kangaroo at the office once. It was wearing diapers.

Before I was a book designer, I was a “professional” musician, which is just to say that I made a very poor living by making music with some of my friends. I lacked both talent and skill, which luckily were not in high demand in the 1990s. But this was where I got my start in graphic design—and from there, I made the bold and some might say prescient choice to jump from the sinking ship of the music industry to the famously stable ship of book publishing and print media.

Over the years I’ve had the privilege to design books by some of the best photographers in the business, worked with an award-winning group of illustrators, and collaborated with world-famous authors. Many of these people have become dear friends, and a few are now mortal enemies.

You know who you are.