Categories
Publishing

2013 Children’s Product Trends

Cartoon of two men. One is disheveled and looks like a bum. The other says, “When your wife goes away on a business trip, you really let yourself go.”

One of my highlights las week was to hear Children’s Product Trends for 2013 by Dr. Mary Manz Simon. I took a few pages of sketch notes. You can see them here:

https://www.evernote.com/shard/s2/sh/066b3038-3e58-45f6-b9af-dba60afce353/6a780d060b4a2a636d8992223f2521e2

I was excited to see Warner Press‘ Fun Family Devotions highlighted as one of this year’s products.

Christian Elden has done a great job designing this and Wilson Williams Jr. did a fantastic job on illustrating the cover.

Here are some of the highlights from the seminar:

  • VeggieTales is celebrating its 20th anniversary.
  • Smart phones are continuing to affect children’s publishing as well as publishing in general
  •  Brick and mortar stores are still an important part of a shopper’s experience. Don’t assume everything is online!
  • Picture books were pronounced dead two years ago. Now they’re back (yes, it’s a cycle)
  • Books with pictures are receiving a resurgence.
    • Graphic novels are becoming mainstream in Christian publishing
    • Comic books for middle readers are also popular
    • Middle grade, illustrated books are trending up because we live in a visually oriented world.

I am excited that visually oriented books are seen as a trend once again. Let’s face it, nobody wants to read block after block of text, especially a fourth grader that is connected to the Internet. We like to see some pictures.

On the whole, I feel excited about children’s publishing. It is a good time for author/illustrators. Let’s get those products out there so the kids have something they want to read!

 

 

Categories
books

ICRS First Impressions

Before I begin, I must note that these are my personal opinions, not those of my employer.

The last two days have been a flurry of activity in preparing for the International Christian Retail Show. I haven’t been to one as an exhibitor for a while and I almost forgot the work and energy that goes into making something like this a reality.

One noticeable difference from ten years ago are the flood of flat-screen TV’s and monitors that are in each booth. Screens are so lightweight now, you can add them practically anywhere in a booth. Of course, that means a book trailer isn’t as impactful at one of these shows as they used to be. Now hundreds of TV screens will be competing for attention!

One thing I also almost forgot is the amount of work that goes into these shows. As an author, I’ve heard the many complaints about publishers not putting enough marketing effort into their books. But when you’re on the other end, you realize it takes an enormous amount of time and money to be at one of these shows.

This reminds me as an author to consider how much work an editor or marketer has to do to make any book get noticed. It takes creativity, elbow grease and a lot of vacuuming to even be noticed at a book expo. (The dust in a convention hall is incredible! There is also no heat or air-conditioning until the exhibits are fully installed. Eek!)

So if you get a chance, you may want to thank your publisher when they go to one of these expos. It may ease their sore muscles from toting those flat-screen TV’s, building and tearing down their area, and smiling for twelve-hours on end. Seriously, I never knew you could pull a muscle from smiling. It can be done!

Categories
sketch journal

Self portrait, June 19, 2013

It’s been a while since I just drew for no particular reason. I nearly forgot how good it felt to get in the zone and just let the pen do the work. Now that we have cameras in our cell phones and computers, we no longer have an excuse that we couldn’t hold a pose for very long. I just drew from a snapshot my Mac took.

I also wanted to test how to post from a WordPress app.

20130619-224515.jpg

Categories
Publishing writing

What authors can gain from trade shows

Cartoon of a guy at a bookstore. He says to a clerk, "I'll take the economy sized bookmark."

At the end of this week, I’ll be heading to the International Christian Retail Show in Saint Louis, Missouri.

I am looking forward to this event because it has been several years since I have been to this show and mingled with customers that use my products every day. While you may not be in my industry, there are several trade shows throughout the book industry that you would find interesting. There are events such as Book Expo America, SCBWI sponsored children’s book conferences, and  various writers’ conferences and Comic-cons.

Now I am as introverted as the next guy, but I’ve always found these events to benefit me. Here are a few of the reasons I would encourage authors and illustrators to go to a conference.

  • You can see what the current trends are in an industry.
    • That doesn’t mean you should copy them. After all, by the time you bring that “trendy” book to a publisher, the market will be tired of that topic. Still, it is good to see what the market is focused on now.
    • It may give you some insight on what is popular now and could lend itself to future topics. If you’re good at predicting the future, who knows, you may introduce the next big trend.
    • You will be able to see the technical innovations that are going on. The markets are changing and even expanding. You may discover your idea will work as well, or even better as an app, or e-book.
  • You meet people who know what it’s like to write and illustrate.
    • This is a solitary business. The Internet has made it easier to connect with others that share your interest, but there is nothing like talking one-on-one with someone who shares your passions and struggles with the same issues you face.
    • You can learn from your peers. It continues to amaze me how authors and illustrators are willing to share some of their tricks. A little suggestion here and a tip there can do wonders to keep you motivated.
  • You can see there is still a great market for great books.
    • The doomsayers may say print is dead, and it may be a different publishing world than the one that existed even five years ago. But print isn’t dead. There is a market for print and digital publishing.
    • You can get a feel for the direction publishers are going. Perhaps that will lead you to connect with a publisher that shares your passion and love the way you tell a story.

I’ll be writing on what I’ve learned at ICRS. One thing I am sure of, it will be a ton of information. I’m sharpening my pencil and ensuring I have plenty of blank pages in my sketchbook!

 

Categories
books webcomic

Why have a book without pictures?

Cartoon of a boy with a book and some popcorn. He says, A book without pictures is like popcorn without salt.

What can I say? Pictures make a book more interesting. And I bet you agree with me too. It’s sad that society reasons you must have nothing but text on a page. Don’t get me wrong. Book design is an art unto itself and takes a lot of work to make it look perfect. But still, books without pictures have always looked boring and inaccessible.

Continue reading “Why have a book without pictures?”