How to Print Book Cover Stickers for Your Reading Journal
Learn how to print book cover stickers and explore ideas for incorporating them into your reading journal!
4 min read
There's nothing quite like flipping back through a year of reading—seeing all the stories you traveled through, the characters you met, the worlds you explored. It's an accomplishment worth celebrating!
Why not track the books you’ve read in a full-color visual reading journal? It transforms a standard notebook into a personal library you can actually hold in your hands.
The secret to creating this kind of visual record? Printing mini book covers onto sticker labels using MyFastSnaps!
It's the perfect bridge between your digital Goodreads shelves and your physical journal. You can print them one at a time as you finish each book, or batch ’em for a monthly spread—either way, it's super fast and easy when you print on label sheets in your favorite size and paper type.
Best of all, it instantly upgrades your pages from a simple list into a work of art. Here's how to turn your reading list into a visual archive you'll genuinely love looking back on.
Why Keep a Visual Reading Journal?
If you're hunting for book journal ideas, adding images is one of the best upgrades you can make. Plus, a visual reading tracker lends the following:
Memory Retention: Visual cues are powerful. Seeing the book cover triggers memories of the plot and atmosphere way faster than just reading a title.
Creativity: It turns a solitary reading habit into a creative hobby. You don't need to be an artist to have a scrapbook-style reading journal—the book covers provide the art for you.
Satisfaction: There's something incredibly satisfying about watching a physical collection of covers grow over the year. It's like a trophy case for your mind.
Tutorial: How to Print Mini Book Covers with MyFastSnaps
A lot of readers get stuck on the "how-to" part. Do you need expensive software? Do you need to be a graphic designer? Nope, definitely not.
Here's the simple workflow using the MyFastSnaps tool. This is the easiest way to figure out how to print book covers for a reading journal without worrying about filling up a whole sheet or wrestling with printer settings.
Step 1: Open MyFastSnaps
First thing: select your label template. Just click the dropdown menu to find your specific label sheet’s brand and template number—this ensures your images will line up perfectly once they’re printed.
Step 2: Upload Your Covers
Once your template's loaded, it's time to add your book cover images. You can copy/paste images directly from the web, drag-and-drop files from your desktop, or upload book cover images you've saved.
If the book cover’s height and width ratio doesn’t exactly match your label size, scale down so the whole cover is visible within the template cell—you can always trim the sticker with scissors later.
Step 3: Rotate & Edit
Don't worry about manually resizing images. MyFastSnaps automatically resizes your images to fit the label template you chose.
Tip: The 1.5" x 1" (OL1000) size is a really popular choice for mini book cover stickers because it fits perfectly in the margins of standard dot-grid journals.
Step 4: Export to PDF and Print!
This is the magic moment. Once your images are set in the template, simply click "Export to PDF." Your perfectly formatted sheet will pop up in a new web tab. From there, just hit print—no software downloads or drivers needed!
Step 5: Stick It
Place your new stickers in your reading log. Since you're printing on adhesive-backed label paper, there's no need for glue sticks or messy tape runners.
Layout Ideas for Your Reading Journal
Looking for some fun new layouts to use your stickers in? Here are a few aesthetic reading journal spreads to try:
1. The "Bookshelf" Spread
Draw a simple outline of a display bookshelf on a fresh page. As you finish books throughout the year, stick your printed covers onto the "shelves." By December, you'll have a full library to show off!
2. The Review Page
This is the classic creative book log format. Dedicate one page (or a whole spread) to each book. Place the book cover sticker at the top left to anchor the page, then add:
Star rating (color them in!)
Start/finish dates
Favorite quote
Short summary or reaction
3. The "TBR" (To Be Read) Jar
Why wait until you finish a book? Print covers of the books you want to read. Draw a large jar or create a spread with empty boxes next to each sticker. You can check them off or color in the border as you complete them.
OR, print the books you’ve been planning on reading and cut the labels out individually, leaving the backing on. Keep them tucked in your “TBR Shelf” and only take the backing off when you’re ready to move them to their final spreads.
Pro-Tips for the Best Results
Batch Printing: If you don't want to print one by one, save the images of the books you plan to read this month. At the end of the month, print 4-5 covers at once for a "Monthly Wrap Up" spread.
Cleaner Lines: Using pre-cut label sheets means your stickers have perfect, straight edges every time—no scissors needed.
Don’t Be Afraid to Trim: If your labels don’t have the same width x height ratio as your book cover, size the image down to fit within the template and then trim down after it’s printed.
The advantage of printing on label sheets is that you never have to worry about filling up the whole sheet; you can print as many or as few labels as you wish at a time, and any blank labels left on the sheet will still be printable for future images.
What’re You Waiting For?!
Keeping a reading journal doesn't have to be a chore, and it doesn't have to be messy. With MyFastSnaps and your favorite label sheets, you can create a gorgeous record of your literary pursuits in no time.
Ready to start printing? Click here to print your own book cover stickers and turn your book list into a beautiful reading reference you’ll love reviewing over the years.