E-Book (Indie) VS Physical Books; Writing and Illustrating E-Books

Indie books, E-Book and Physical Books, Which is better?

an e-book and a physical book Illustrated by Will TerrySince I’m a lover of both the physical and the e-book – I don’t have a favorite, but I think it’s always good to analyze them things for their advantages and disadvantages. So I have compiled a list of pros and cons below.

Pros & Cons for the consumer as well as the author/illustrator

I decided to list both pros and cons from the consumer point of view as well as the author and artist/illustrator point of view. As if I were to be working with a traditional publisher vs indie publishing an e-book. So if you like to purchase books, Illustrate or write children’s books, this list is for you. If I miss some points please help me by adding your insights as I know I’ll have a different list than some of you. So here we go…

Physical Books, Pros:

Having a tangible artifact; to hold and curl up with on a rainy day.
Larger format for illustrations; A nice illustration to look at, and more fun to paint.
Better legibility in strong light; Like out in the daylight.
Gift-ability; A tangible, 3-D present to give.
Developing a physical library; Looks good on a shelf.
Guaranteed advance against royalties; Cash is king.
Eligible for Caldecott and other medals; Like that’s going to happen to me.
Inclusion in school & public libraries; More sales and fame.
Can be signed; The fans love this, and it’s a pat on the back.
More prestigious; It’s a real book.
Edited by professionals; Fewer typos
Marketed by professionals; People that know what they are doing

Physical Books, Cons

Expensive to purchase
Expensive to print and to publish
Can get damaged and or lost
Hard to see in dim light
Heavy & unwieldy
Less Eco friendly
Limited to multiples of 4 page counts
Travel to purchase & wait for delivery
Can go out of print

E-Book, Pros:

Inexpensive to purchase
Inexpensive to publish
Disaster Proof; you download from your account
Reading in the dark
Light weight; Easy to carry thousands of titles; Moving day is a lot easier.
Eco friendly
Search-able
Adjustable font size
Interactivity
Unlimited page counts
Publishing freedom & autonomy
Update-able
Instant delivery
Quicker to market & royalties
Never goes out of print

E-Book, Cons;

No physical artifact
Comparatively small viewing area
Hard to view in strong light
Not as gift-able
Less pride of ownership
No guarantee of earnings
Not eligible for most book awards
Can’t be checked out at the library
Can’t be signed
Less prestigious
Self edited
Self programmed
Self marketed

Is the E-Book Better, or the Physical Book?

There you have it, a list of pros and cons but no definite right answer. I can only surmise, that both have their pros and both have their cons. E-Books are better for some occasions or personalities and real books are better for others. Like I said, I love them both. I do think it is cool that anyone can publish now with the invention of the e-book. See the process in a previous blog. You may also want to check out the blog where in my friend Kari Brimhall shares the how to create and publish your own e-book. See 4/22/16.

 

 

E-books, Now Anyone Can Publish, Even YOU

E-books, A fun easy way to get published

E-books cover art, Tickle Bugs

Tickle Bugs e-book. Now in E-Stores near you

“Publish or parish” They used to say. Maybe they still do. E-books make it so much more possible. And it can be fun.

In a recent post, I said that illustrators can either complain, or they can become authors, write AND illustrate. They can write, illustrate and publish now. Self Publish. They/we can still complain too if we want. There is always something to complain about right? Isn’t that what Facebook is for?

I have been so busy lately that I haven’t really been writing and illustrating, or publishing any e-books. But a few short years ago. Well back in 20011, I was all over it.

 

E-books success with Monkey & Croc

My first e-book, Monkey & Croc was a lot of fun to write and more fun to illustrate. It wasn’t fun to publish, that is left brain stuff I am sure. But I had a buddy. If you don’t have a buddy, you should get one, or hire one. And that buddy was a left brain kind a guy, that, for a fee, would get my story and artwork all published as an e-book for me. Monkey and Croc still hasn’t found it’s way to the New York Times best seller list, but it did pretty well. So I made another e-book. In doing that i was moonlighting as a second illustrator – the one that doesn’t sleep. Sometimes I think I need to see one of those mad scientists like Michael Keaton did in the movie “Multiplicity” – I could use a few extra me’s around to get everything done.

Cute e-books Illustration of a small bug eating a leafCute e-books Illustration of a small grub with feet

E-Books in a Simple Form and for kids

Tickle Bugs was an attempt to explore a much simpler form of e-books void of backgrounds and complete with very simple characters. The audience is extremely targeted to the teething ring and diaper crowd. If you’re wearing pull ups and sucking on a pacifier you just might like Tickle Bugs. So if that is you, stop reading this boring blog post and get yourself a copy of my e-books, especially Tickle Bugs and read like the wind.

I aimed it for the younger kids because there just weren’t that many e-books out there that were for children ages two and under.

Chalese Andreason, a young lady and friend of mine, wrote an e-book or two as well, and she is just a little girl.

How To Draw, Paint, and do Art

PS Learn how to draw and paint, and other fun art skills at FolioAcademy.com.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was so much fun to take an idea from concept to finished product and published!!! in less than a month!!!

 

Tickle bugs didn’t climb up the search ranking as fast as Monkey & Croc – I had a feeling that it would get progressively harder to get the same attention but I had to keep trying. The idea of author/illustrator as brand is way too exciting.

Tickle Bugs doesn’t wiggle but if the reader holding the toddler is on the ball the little tike will be giggling at the end. Tickle Bugs is available at Barnes and Noble – click here.

Submitting and sizing your art for children’s book publishing

Know about SCBWI. Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators.

If you are new to publishing Female artist at drawing boardand you want to get into it. And you don’t know much about it but you are willing to learn… “So you want to be a children’s author or book illustrator?” You really should look into SCBWI, Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators

http://www.scbwi.org/ It is the largest organization for children’s book writers and illustrators. It is a great connection for authors
and illustrators. If you are looking to do your own self publishing, they aren’t that helpful and they are just starting to get involved with e-publishing, but for the most part, SCBWI is the place to be if you are getting started or if you are already started in traditional publishing for picture book writers and illustrators. They have chapters in every major area in the US and they are abroad as well.

There are over 20,000 members, (I believe) and you should be a part of it for your own good. Just Google it for your area and start being a part of it and getting in touch with the group in your area and start attending their conferences and learning from them. That is the organization that you want to be a part of.

When it comes picture book illustrations, SIZE  MATTERS!

000 Stylus 05

What size or format should you create your art for submitting it to publishers.
If you are a writer illustrator or if you are just an illustrator and you want to submit some of your stuff to publishers to be considered, you may be asking yourself what size and shape should you make your artwork. I would say, follow standard guidelines. Your basic 8.5” x 11” format is fine. When you are hired or commissioned to do a book, the publisher will usually decide what proportion the book should be. Very few are square or odd shaped.

Don’t write and illustrate the whole book!

A lot of writer artists want to finish the whole book and submit that.
The publisher doesn’t care to receive the whole finished book, and that would be a waste of time and effort anyway. It doesn’t make any sense to fret over getting the whole thing right and perfected. They don’t want it all done, they would rather see a good “book dummy”. They have professional art directors and editors and people that know the science of making or helping that book succeed. So when they choose your book, they will want to set the parameters and THEN have you do what you do best, illustrate.
Many would say that there is a right way and a wrong way, but there are rarely any hard fast perfect, right way, rules. For example if you go to a SCBWI conference you may hear one editor say, “I prefer a mock up book in the mail” or “I like to get a PDF so I don’t have to worry about losing it or whatever, it’s quicker”, and others who like other stuff, etc”.

Put your best foot forward, Presentation matters.

Cow poke 7So you should make a book, DUMMY! I don’t mean to call you a dummy, I mean a “book dummy”. I may have said that there aren’t any right or wrong ways to submit your picture book but really there are a LOT of WRONG ways… For example, a sloppy demo would be a wrong way, presentation does matter. Let it show that you care, that you are creative. A nice, clean, clear presentation would be a RIGHT way. I personally like to use a PDF, It is fast, easy, clean, neat, accurate and inexpensive. If it gets lost in the (e)mail, send it again, it’s free and easy.
So send a book dummy with your sketches, and a few “finished” pieces. That way, they know what you are doing. They understand the idea and they can see from the one or two finished pieces convey your ability to paint and bring those sketches to a finished illustration.
Put your best foot foreword. You should spend some time on this mockup or book dummy, this is your sales pitch and it is a competitive world out there. You need to be willing to spend some time on that dummy so that it gets their attention and holds on to it.

Self Publishers should get the facts first.

For self publishers… Talk to the printer that you will be hiring, ask a few questions.
Paper costs money and it comes in certain sizes and when they print, there are better ways to lay it out to maximize your paper per book ratio. That is why there are tipically 32 pages long, it’s because they print it on the BIG paper, fold it, bind it and cut it. Multiples of four. So work with the printer to determine the best size and shape and number of pages so you can maximize your pages per dollar.

There is no Perfect answer to the size and lay out for apps and e-books question.

What about sizing for my apps and e-book? That is a GOOD question, the sad truth is, there is NO magic answer for that question. There are so many different sizes AND proportions for each different devise. So there will be extra space or you can stretch your image. All of these are bad solutions. So on one device the image will fit flush or a full bleed.

One universal solution could be to make your artwork big enough to crop for every other device BUT that will cost you a ton. That would be a programming night mare. You got kindle and nook, devised to be held vertically, not horizontal, not quite right for a picture book.

My advice would be to make it for the i-Pad.

The i-Pad is the nicest looking device and the most popular for digital picture books and apps. (at present) So it may be advantageous to just create for the i-Pad.

One more last plug for SCBWI.

You really should consider becoming a part of the SCBWI.

More SCBWI people are published than non SCBWI goers. If you were to poll 1000 people who attend SCBWI conference attenders who submit to publishers, and 1000 who don’t attend SCBWI, but submit, I believe you would discover that a lot more of the SCBWI goers are being chosen and published than the non SCBWI folk.
I feel like the artist’s rep is a dying bread. Because of the internet, and the immediacy and quick ability to look through your portfolio and see your style, the publisher and the artist, just doesn’t need the artist’s rep any more.
The Righter on the other hand, can still benefit by having an Agent, (the rep for the writer). The publisher can’t just glance through your work and get the jest of it where they can with your artwork.

 

Good luck and enjoy life. Relax, draw, paint, Life is good.