Rosanne Dingli, a Chicken Scratchings reader wrote, “This is great Bill (referring to the previous post How to Lose a Book Sale in 2 Seconds Flat!) now tell us a bit about the actual graphics that go on the cover of a standard perfect bound.”

Good question.

You’ll think I’m copping out if I respond with, every publisher whether traditional or self wish they knew the answer to that. Wouldn’t it be great if there were an ABC design formula guaranteed to grab the reader’s attention? There isn’t one. At least not one that I know about. On the other hand, there are design faux pas that contribute to buyer indifference. Avoid them if you intend to sell books.

1.  They create cover art that misses the target. For example, and this would be an extreme example, you would not want a pulp romance style picture on the cover of your children’s book, nor would you want a children’s book illustration on a political expose’. The artist should be familiar enough with the content to design images that reflect the purpose of the book. To do otherwise is like dressing a member of the board of directors of a large financial firm in a clown costume and sending her into the most important meeting of the year.

2.  They attempt to design over their heads. A self-publishing author doesn’t have to spend top-dollar to hire the best graphic designer in the world, but employing anyone other than a professionally trained graphic designer is a mistake. Computers and design programs have come a long way. Owning a computer and buying a graphics program doesn’t make one a competent designer. Keep in mind that computers are just tools just the way a hammer and saw are tools. In the right hands, a hammer and saw can build the Empire State building. In the wrong hands, like mine, the best they can do is build an off-kilter birdhouse. Give your book a fighting chance by investing in a professional. It’s well worth the price.

3.  They play Hide and Seek with the title. Authors give a great deal of thought to their titles. The title is meant to reveal something about the book and intrigue the reader. If an artist, just to be artistic, buries the title in graphics, it is a big mistake.  What do I mean by bury it in graphics? If the title isn’t clearly visible because of poor font, graphics, or color choices then it is buried.For example, let’s say the cover has a beautiful but busy illustration. You can lose the title easily with a font that is too thin, the wrong color, or too small. Remember this rule–the title must be clearly readable from a distance of 10 feet.

Four examples of brilliant cover design.

4.  They practice TMI (too much information). Think of a book cover like a billboard. The most effective billboards are those who deliver their message to drivers going  freeway speeds. Books are just like that. Whether browsing at a bookstore, online, or looking through a catalog the buyer makes a decision based on precious little information. Do not ever try to give them more than they need to choose to buy the book. It won’t work.  The job of the cover is to attract attention and setup the sale. That’s all.

5. They capitulate to the author’s ego. Authors are proud of their accomplishment and they should be. They naturally want everyone to know that the book is theirs, but unless the author is a well-known celebrity, who cares what they look like? That sounds mean spirited, but really who cares, other than friends or family members? Do not put an author’s photo on the cover, front or back. Also, withhold most endorsements. Are you convinced to buy the  because a notable stranger is quoted as saying they like book? Either it stands on its own or it doesn’t. Now if someone you know, like a friend, or a teacher recommends the book, that’s an entirely different story.  What should go on the book besides the title, author’s name, ISBN and compelling graphics, maybe an excerpt from the book? That’s about it.

Before this post gets overly long, I think I’ll hold off on the other 5 Stupid Things and put them in my next post.

An artist's touch can make the mundane beautiful.

GIGO

If I sit you in front of a canvas and hand you a brush and tubes of oil paint you would probably say something like, “Oh no, I’m no artist,” but if I sit you in front of a computer all of a sudden you think you are Rembrandt. What’s the difference? The computer isn’t a magic wand, it’s a tool. A tool wielded by the capable can produce excellent results. A tool in the hands of a neophyte or worse will produce poor results. Guaranteed. The old software programmer’s saying GIGO (garbage in/garbage out) is still true.

An amateurish book in hand is not worth two in the bush.

Why does it matter? Isn’t a page a page? It’s constructed of sentences and paragraphs, right? That’s the kind of thinking that gets a self-publisher in trouble. And it’s the kind of thinking that is supported by any number of Internet Publishing Companies whom I won’t name but are associated with POD, Subsidy Publishing, etc. who will help you get a book out as cheaply as possible and generally looks like it too.

Font selection is an art in itself.

Let me tell you a little story. My brother, Dan Ruesch, is a prominent graphic designer. I spend most of my time in the printing business and so we find ourselves working together on projects from time-to-time. I rushed over to his office one day to find out the status of a print job that had an extremely tight deadline. I was expecting to pick up the art, but Dan was still selecting fonts. Argh! I found him by his table with two samples of type–one in each hand. He was holding them up and describing each as a connoisseur would talk about wine. “This one has the flavor of…” This other has a bouquet of…” “The first one has an undercurrent of…” I swear I watched as the clock’s hands spun and my hopes of meeting the deadline were rapidly sliding away.  It turned out that I was being prematurely negative. We did meet the deadline after all.

It’s all about harmony–not discord.

What does all of this have to do with designing a book? Communication is more than the writing. We as human beings judge things by their appearance. If you see someone dressed nicely in fashionable clothing you will make a determination about them, probably favorable. Take that same person put them in their work-in-the garden jeans and your evaluation will be different, maybe less favorable. Book design is the same thing. Before someone will lay down money to buy your book they need to have a favorable impression of it.

What a book designer does that you probably don’t know:

Some of the things a good book designer will do are:

• Makes sure the front matter, copyright page, table of contents, title page, acknowledgments etc. are set up correctly and are complete.
• Lays out the document so that odd numbered pages are on the right hand side; if a chapter ends on a right hand page the next is blank.
• Makes sure the chapter treatments, and other graphic touches are consistent throughout the book.
• Watches the leading (pronounced Ledding) is the space between lines must be adequate for comfortable reading, too tight and the eye will skip line, too distant and it becomes tiresome.
• Keeps an eye on kerning, the space between letters needs to be comfortable, not too tight, and not too distant.
• Chooses a style of type for page numbers and position.
• Decides whether or not to have headers or footers and what style should be used?
• Decide between serif fonts (those with feet) or san-serif (no feet). It is generally accepted that serif fonts are easier to read.
• Selects font and font size. Decides what font best reflects the purpose and meaning of the book.
• Chooses the right paper. Does it need to be heavier or lighter weight? Should it have a texture or be smooth? What about color? Should it be white, cream, or some other color?

This is only a partial list, and I haven’t even gotten to cover design which employs yet another set of questions and decisions to be made. The point being, don’t try to layout a book by yourself. Use the skills you have and let the people with other talents help you do it right. Good artists are worth their hire. Find the best you can afford, and let them help you create visual communication that is worthy of your writing. After all, ugly isn’t a crime, it’s a sin.

What good is a book without a reader? A book is worthless until it is read. Selling, or marketing if you prefer, is as important as writing. You have to get the books into reader’s hands. How do you do that? I recommend TAP (The Author Platform). It is custom made to teach the self-publishing author how to use Social Networking, Blogging, Amazon, Book Parties, and other means of marketing. You need it. Just click here.

What, you don’t believe it? According to my Webster’s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary the act of writing is all it takes to become an author. If you wrote something, you are an author.

To become a published author is another thing altogether. For most of us the ultimate goal is to see our books in print and distributed to readers everywhere.  After all, what is a writer without a reader? It’s Yin and Yang. Two halves of the whole. As far as I’m concerned a manuscript in a desk drawer defines you as an author, but something definitely is missing.

There are only two approaches you can take to get published. You can do it yourself (self-publish) or find someone else to publish it for you (traditional publish). How do the two choices compare?

At first blush it appears that the easiest path is to sell your rights and let someone else publish your book. Let’s face it this is what most of us think of when we talk about being published. The biggest hurdle with the traditional publishing model is that  4% or less of manuscripts will ever become a book. And for that 4% there are probably thousands that never even make it to a publisher’s desk. It’s pretty obvious that if your manuscript doesn’t get read, it will not be published. I’ve said it before, if you are unknown, getting a book published through traditional channels is like winning the lottery. The odds are that bad.

Let’s compare the two methods and help you decide which way is best for you:

weigh your decisions carefully

1.  Who accepts the financial risk? If self-publishing you pay for all the costs involved in producing the book including the editors, artists, and printers. In traditional publishing the publisher takes on that burden.

2.   Who has creative control over the look and presentation of the book? If you do it yourself, you retain the rights. If you sell those rights to the publisher they can do whatever they think is best. That doesn’t seem important to you? It will if the publisher changes the meaning of the text through their editing, or comes up with a cover design that would lead readers to a totally opposite idea from what you meant. It happens.  Your only remedy you have is whining.  Selling your rights will give you money, but it may not give you peace of mind. Which is more important to you?

3.  Who arranges for distribution? If self-published, the burden is all yours. No matter how good the book is, please keep in-mind that some channels, like national bookstore chains, may not be available to you. Many booksellers have a policy against accepting self-published books, but If  your book is traditionally published, and your publisher pays for distribution, many of those guarded gates will be opened. It doesn’t seem fair, but that’s the game.

4.  What about marketing? Marketing is doing all of the things needed to promote the book, making fliers, public relations, appearing on TV talk shows, and radio programs. Issuing press releases, teaching seminars, speaking at schools, clubs, and wherever you can find an audience. You’d think that if traditionally published your publisher would handle all of this. Wrong. Most book contracts today require the author’s active involvement in promoting the book. That involvement is much more than showing up for the occasional book signing.  So, whether self-published or traditionally published, you dear author, must by contract, be hawking your book, mostly at your own expense.  If you don’t drum up sales your book won’t move, except from the shelves inside the store into the discount bins outside. If that happens, your chances of ever being traditionally published again are astronomical.

5.  Profits, ah profits, who gets the money? The one who takes the risk takes the money. If you are lucky you’ll earn between $.50 -$1.00 per book in royalties. Sell ten thousand books and you get $5 to $10 thousand dollars. That same book, if self-published, could generate $150 thousand dollars.

The self-publishing model is heaven made for those authors who believe in their product and are sure that they can find a market. It is costly and difficult to self-publish, but if you are right and you can successfully reach your readers, the amount of money you could make is much greater. You can have financial freedom and personal freedom as well.

Which way is best? It all depends on you. Either way, it will take energy, money, and lots of effort. After putting everything you have into it, it may not be enough. If the traditional route is the one you choose, the odds are that you will never be published. If you self-publish and can’t find your audience, your garage full of books will hang like albatross around your neck. But remember, that even though the odds are notoriously poor, someone always hits the lottery eventually. Who knows, maybe this time it might be you.

I’m preparing a seminar to present at the District 15 Toastmasters conference mid-November. The title is Why Every Speaker Needs a Book. It’s a good subject perfectly designed for the needs of my audience. The problem? My book I am writing for public speakers is far from ready. I have been working on it regularly but it isn’t complete enough to add the final touches, get it to an editor, and print it.

Some of the points I intend to hammer home have to do with speakers using their books as a way to gain credibility, and to generate income through back of the room sales. I wanted to have my book there to demonstrate how it is done. Instead, I’m feeling somewhat hypocritical. Does this hypocrisy diminish the value of the information? I hope not. We’ll see.

Even a Professional Can Fool Himself

In fairness when I announced my intention to have a book ready for the Fall Conference, my wife said that I didn’t have enough time. “I can do it!” I said in the most convincing cartoon super-hero voice I could muster.

Most of us need deadlines or we will procrastinate forever. Setting an unrealistic deadline really doesn’t help, it hurts. Now my dream of walking in with a box of freshly printed books and smiling as the attendees lined up to have me sign their books and tell me how much they enjoyed the seminar has gone poof.

Start Backwards to Go Forward

What is my point? Book production takes time and before you set an unrealistic deadline work backwards on a time line starting with the last step which is shipping. Ha, you thought I was going to say printing, didn’t you? No, in your planning you have to figure in the time to get the books to you. For example, if you are using a local printer same day is realistic. If you are printing overseas, plan on at least three weeks by boat and another week to get through customs. Then no matter what your realistic time line is, add more buffer to each and every step. In book production things rarely go as planned. Below are some points you need to consider to build a realistic time frame:

1. Shipping. allow one day to four weeks or more.
2. Printing. Expect two to five weeks. A soft cover book takes less time than a hard cover. Discuss time frame with the printer.
3. Typesetting and Layout. Should take two to four weeks for this stage. Expect to be actively involved during this step. Authors and editors must check, and recheck to make sure everything is right before going to press. It is cheaper to fix problems during this phase than it is at press. Scrutinize everything.
4. Proof Reading. Some consider proofreading to be part of the editor’s job and it is, but in my experience, you can’t have too many eyes on it. I once read that a new edition of Webster’s Dictionary goes through 132 proofing steps and they still find errors. Find a good proofreader you won’t regret it, but if you go to press with typo’s I guarantee that they will become glaringly obvious the second you crack open the book. Then the mistakes will haunt you. The only thing you will be able think about are the errors. Cut yourself a little slack. We’ve all been there. Remember that you didn’t see the problems after reading, re-reading, and reading your manuscript time and time again, so it is likely that most of your readers won’t see them either.
5. Editing. Check with your editor to determine the amount of time they will need. The type of book and size will make a lot of difference to the time frame. A fictional book will go faster than a technical treatise. With fiction, grammar, sentence structure, and spelling corrections will pretty much do it, but with non-fiction a re-check of the facts and understanding the technical terms takes time. My best guess is that an editor could do the job in three to eight weeks.
6. Cover Design. Here’s a piece of good news. Cover design can begin at the same time your editor starts and probably won’t add more time, with one caveat; you will want the editor to check the copy. Your cover, despite the old saw that says, “Don’t judge a book by its cover” is your first impression. If the cover doesn’t draw the reader, it doesn’t matter how good the text is. Time spent on cover design is worth it.
7. Marketing. It isn’t too soon to consult with book marketing professionals. You may hire them to give you general advice or have them work closely with the editor and artists. I recommend them, but you have to consider the price tag. Hourly rates, just like hiring an attorney, can quickly spin out of control. It doesn’t take long to rack up thousands of dollars.
8. Writing and Research. I’ve seen Internet ads saying that a book can be written in 14 days or less and I’m sure that some people could do it, but most can’t. Some manuscripts take six to eight months others can take years. Whatever the amount of time you need to take for writing and research is the time you need. Period. Again, add extra buffer because we all tend to underestimate what we can achieve and when.

I’m not saying that a book couldn’t be done much faster than the time frames I’ve outlined, but in preparing a good book, a book that will make you proud takes time. If you want a book to hit the marketplace in one year from now, it isn’t too early to get started. That’s what I’m saying. Get going, author, get going.

You may not believe this but after you have birthed a book, and getting a book out has much in common with birthing babies, the hard work begins. Finding readers is a difficult task indeed. Check out The Author’s Platform it’s a low cost, easy to use, step-by-step program to teach you everything you need to know about Internet marketing. I personally recommend it.

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