Hello all!
Today I want to be totally open and honest with you guys. I want to have full transparency throughout this entire process, so here goes:
I'm struggling with three things currently and they're sort of paralyzing me. I feel like I can't continue until these things are taken care of so today I'm going to spell those three things out and research solutions. Perhaps you're struggling with some of the same things, so I hope to help you guys out.
1) Pictures!
Obviously, my book needs pictures. Nice pictures. But here's the problem: I don't have a nice camera. I have my iphone and that's about it. This needs to change, but I certainly don't have the money to buy a Canon Rebel.
I looked into this, and these are some solutions:
-Ask a friend! If you know a photographer friend, ask if you can use their camera in exchange for lunch or something.
-Buy a camera. I know I just said I didn't have the money for this right now, but I researched it and it looks like the Canon PowerShot SX520 is a fairly affordable entry-level camera. In the time it takes for me to make all the samples that I'll be photographing for my book, I think I'll save up for this one.
2) Designing my book pages.
When I was working on my introduction, which was the topic of my last post, I got to thinking about how exactly I'll be designing my book. I had planned on using Microsoft Word but three minutes in there made me realize that is not. going. to. work. So, I researched.
You've probably heard of Adobe Photoshop. But have you heard of Adobe InDesign? Evidently it's what all the cool kids use for book layouts.
It's $20 a month to use. But, as I've said, I'm on a tight budget. I don't want to start renting it now and not end up using it at first because I'm spending all my time trying to figure it out or because I don't have any pictures to design around. So, here's my plan:
I finish all the finished products for my book (this includes all the writing for the book as well as the knitted projects), photograph them (with the camera I'll have by then), and then start renting InDesign. Throughout the process of knitting my products, I'll listen to podcasts and watch youtube videos on how to use InDesign. That way I'll be ready by the time designing rolls around!
(Edited to add): A lovely group member informed me of Scribus. It's essentially a totally free layout software that looks pretty similar to InDesign. I've watched a few youtube videos on it and I think this is what I'll end up using!)
3) Publishing.
I've been saying I'll self-publish, but now that it's getting closer, I really need to nail down exactly how I'll do that. Do I start out just on Ravelry as an e-book? Do I put out the patterns separately or all together? Do I put it on Amazon? Do I even sell physical copies? Do I just sell them to you guys here on my site? Do I take physical copies to my LYS? How do I approach retailers about my book? What if no one even likes it???
Lotta questions there. Eek.
Ok--Here are the major ones broken down:
Do I start out just on Ravelry as an e-book?
This is a solid option. On Rav, you can upload multiple patterns and put them up as a collection, or e-book. But, would you guys consider this a cop-out? I mean it's not necessarily self-publishing.
Do I put it on Amazon?
Amazon has a program for self-publishing that I've heard about through friends who have published their own books. It's free to publish to Kindle, and in order to publish physical copies, you need to use CreateSpace. You earn 70% royalties for digital Kindle publishing and 80% royalties for physical copies. I need to look into this further, but I think Amazon would be my best option for self-publishing outside of Ravelry.
Do I even sell physical copies?
Honestly, I can't remember the last time I bought a physical knitting book. That's really sad, because I love them! I think they're super awesome! But the fact is, it's usually cheaper to buy the digital version. So, is this something you guys would want? Are physical copies still a thing?
How do I approach retailers?
I looked into this and it basically boils down to: Gaining an online following for your book. Prove to bookstores that your book is wanted and valued and GOOD. Demonstrate your reliability through a blog or social media account promoting your book. All of the little details like distribution/consignment are things I'll save for later. For right now, start thinking about how to build your audience. After all, when you launch your book, you want it to do well! This can only be done when people are watching you.
What if no one even likes it???
Well, we'll see about this one. I really think you guys are gonna like this though. ;)
All right, those were the 3 main things I'm currently struggling with. Well, I'm not struggling anymore, and I hope you aren't either! If there's anything YOU are dealing with right now, be sure to let me know in the "Get Help!" thread in my Ravelry group. There are a lot of knowledgeable people over there, so I'd highly recommend joining.
Until Friday,
Grace
