First Word

I saw an ad: How to publish your book for free. I found this annoying. I would imagine that it's how many graphic artists might feel when someone says I can color therefore I am a professional artist. We all run into those people who devalue your profession and think "anybody can do it" and then add to insult to it by suggesting it can be done FREE. I will just say one thing: free is as free does. Ever heard there is no such thing as a free lunch? There is no such thing as a free publishing service. Let me debunk some myths and then you'll see why it's never free if you want it done right. Anybody can write . Yes, it's true we're all taught in grammar school how to write. In every writing profession (and yes many different levels of writing exist, from technical to journalistic) there are specific rules and structures to follow. Do you know what are those rules? I always like this one (it's true): you can't break the rules unless you know the rul...

When writers go to self-publish and they don't have experience with actual publishing, I see so many common mistakes. I always encourage writers to use professional services vs. do-it-yourself attempts that visibly fail and make their products -- whether books or brochures -- look unprofessional. The following are some common mistakes I see with self-published books, brochures or anything that requires professional service to get it right. Poorly Trimmed Children's Books or Graphics --while an author may not be overly bothered about his or her illustration being cut off because of misaligned template specifications, this mistake jumps out every time. I will casually thumb through one of these children's books or graphic-intensive flyers, brochures, business cards, etc. and notice the graphics are cutoff. I've seen many children's books with these problems. Illustrations cutoff right along the edges. Print alignment is math. You need a graphic artist who knows prod...

Yesterday I reviewed what to look for to protect your own interests when it comes to self-publishing on the editorial side. Today we're going to address graphic services and production. The funny comments I have heard from misinformed people who don't know what they are talking about goes like this: How hard can it be to push graphics around on a page? My answer: it's harder than you think and it takes education, knowledge and skills. Graphic artist is a true profession not a kindergarten class where you learn to draw squares, which is what that comment suggests. Further, production is a whole other part of the process, and it requires respect for the capabilities of the graphics person. Graphic art is an entire degree program at college. So, the misunderstanding that it's pushing pictures around on a page is very ill informed. When it comes to graphic design, what I'm going to do is share information that will help you as you move through the publishing process...