BEHIND THE SCENE: MAKING MY OWN BOOK
I have always loved telling stories and illustrating them, which propelled me into making my own book.
In early 2017 i made a book of short horror stories consisiting of three chapters.
All of the artworks were drawn using drawing pen 0.05 - 03 on paper.
The artworks were scanned into Photoshop for further editing.
Here i am going to share my experience. Enjoy!
It was my first time making a book,
and the thing i learned from self-publishing a book is: it's a lot of work.
I had to invest a lot of time to do the research, choosing papers, test prints, going back and forth to the print shop. On top of that i had to draw, make stories, and do the layouting all by myself.
It would be even trickier if you're a perfectionist, because you want every single thing to be perfect. The good side of being a perfectionist is, because of the (ridiculously) high standards you set upon your works, even if you think the final result isn't up to your standards, it will still be good. The bad side though, you'll stress yourself out over petty things.
So relax, nothing is perfect.
The first prints!
Perhaps some of you are wondering,
"In this digital era, why not make it into PDF instead? It's less work, more economical, etc."
To me, when it comes to art, it's more satisfying to have its physical form.
And from the start i wanted this book to be not just a story book, but a collectible art.
I produced it in limited amount and it won't be reproduced in any way in the future.
The packaging.
Some tips regarding making your own book:
- Do a research on which kind of paper you want to use. Make sure the type of paper you're using isn't a limited kind of paper, usually good textured papers are limited and takes time to be re-stocked.
- Usually there will be a defect on the prints so you'd want to do a quick QC on all the prints before they're bound.
- Pay more attention to the packaging, personalized packaging makes good impression. Also if it's possible and within budget, it's good to include a thin medium-density fiberboard or cardboard to protect your book so it won't be crumpled during shipping.
One of the most exciting thing, a friend of mine actually made a short movie based on my story.
That's a wrap! I hope you find this useful.
I believe that an accomplishment is still an accomplishment, no matter how small or trivial it may seem to other people. Don't be afraid to take that first step, if you want to make something then make it. You'll get better and better along the way.
Thank you!
