HELP! insert info in sidebar & ebook covers

[tneduts]

I have been quietly reading others' questions and learning a lot. GREAT input. Thank you to everyone who posts assistance. You can't know how encouraging it is to get help when you only know you're a duffus (don't even know how to spell it...).

Well, here's my first questions:
1. How do you insert info into the WP blog sidebar? (or does one need a plugin? And if so, what plugin would that be?)

2. I've gotten blank ebook covers and then poorly added info on to them, but they look amateurish. Does anyone know of a relatively inexpensive book cover program where you can add an image and words to it yourself? I'd prefer to do it myself, but does anyone know someone they can recommend if it needs to be outsourced?
Thanks ahead for any direction!

[Blaine Moore]

1. It depends upon your theme. You could probably just create a text widget, or you could edit the theme files directly. My theme doesn't support widgets so I have to add everything manually.

2. I just use photoshop's free transform function to put my ebook cover over a PLR version of other ebook covers I have, and it looks good enough.