1. A method for automatically generating digital spine image areas for book covers that are originally separate front and back digital images, comprising; gathering information including: the height of the book; the thickness of the book; any text to be placed in the image areas; color, font and orientation of the text; background color; and location of cover file and book block file; creating the required spine image from electronic settings based on the information gathered; creating a single cover image by merging the back cover, spine, and front cover into a single image; and confirming that the produced cover image is correct.