Brian wrote:
i forgot to compliment Steve on the
beautiful graphic design of his book jacket he
shared. it is great you are now self-publishing.
anything more on this process and what you are
doing is of interest. it is great to know that
these works of art/architecture are not going
to be dependent on the existing hierarchies.
Steve replies:
Thanks Brian, I was "relieved" that the cover came out OK myself. I mention my relief because: 1) I never designed a book cover before; 2) submitting the cover via ftp along with instructions/intent via email manifests some unsureness as to whether the end result will be satisfactory (or lead to a succession of fixes or not); 3) I wasn't sure if my design would "read" well or not.
Here's what happened:
With the publishing "package" I purchased there is a choice of 8 cover designs to choose from. I chose the cover design where a single image is the entire cover, front, spine and back. For the title and author name, I sent an email showing the size, color and location of the text on the cover. And then I hoped for the best--you can always make proof changes, but it will cost you if it's your mistake and all changes just prolong the process.
What the "design" staff at Xlibris (actually someone in the Philippines) did was slightly fade the image, which I think was done so that the plan graphics within the image would not conflict with the reading of the superimposed title, author name and book description texts. As a result, the final "design" evokes a sense of depth that wasn't an original part of my "imagination" of the cover. What I learned was that it is sometimes good not to be too picky or exact in ones intention, but rather work with a methodology where "play" and unforeseen "adjustings" can occur. You see, I could have been very picky (and upset) because not only was my image faded, but also slightly enlarged, and this was done without me giving instructions to do so. Perhaps I was only lucky that the "unauthorized changes" worked out well, but I also think a state of mind that will accept such unforeseen design events needs to be in place as well. Anyway, I'll be getting actually books proof in a week or two, so I see for sure what the cover will be like then.
I do indeed want to share what I'm experiencing and learning about (the design) of self publishing using a publishing service. So, if there are any specific questions, I'll be happy to entertain them. Just for starters, I'll say that the notion of working within a set of limits, ie, the offerings of the type of service package one purchases and doing everything via electronic communication (as opposed to face to face) is interesting because once one just accepts the limits (as opposed to somehow trying to get something "better" or even more "hip") a whole range of other unforeseen opportunities arise as one starts to see the book coming together, eg, the notion of sometimes leaving something ambiguous turns out to be the best design solution.
Here's the book and author description on the cover of A QUONDAM BANQUET OF VIRTUAL SACHLICHKEIT: PART I:
A Quondam Banquet of Virtual Sachlichkeit regards how symbolism in architecture comes to be and is hence perceived. Part I, written between 26 May 1998 and 8 April 2000, comprises "A Preprandial Aperitif," "Cucumber Slices, Caviar and 'Sociables' Crackers" and "Spinach and Mushroom Salad." This volume begins with, "An additional way to look at the "architecture" of cyberspace is as a kind of parallel existence to the real world," and ends with, "The heliocentric theory, therefore, successfully resolved a duality deeply rooted in human thinking, and, thus, instituted a new consciousness for humanity."
Stephen Lauf is an architect, artist and author. As a native Philadelphian still living in the same house since 1957, he conceived of The Timepiece of Humanity in 1981, learned computer-aided design in 1983, "constructed" a 3-dimensional computer model of downtown Philadelphia for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission in 1986, owned and operated Venue, an art gallery, in 1994, founded the first virtual museum of architecture -- www.quondam.com -- in 1996, discovered a long unnoticed etching by Giovanni Battista Piranesi in 1999, and is the first to recognize St. Helena as the progenitor of Christian architecture.
The dedication of QBVS1 is:
4. Otto
4. my quondam friends
4. all the errors that remain herein
i forgot to compliment Steve on the
beautiful graphic design of his book jacket he
shared. it is great you are now self-publishing.
anything more on this process and what you are
doing is of interest. it is great to know that
these works of art/architecture are not going
to be dependent on the existing hierarchies.
Steve replies:
Thanks Brian, I was "relieved" that the cover came out OK myself. I mention my relief because: 1) I never designed a book cover before; 2) submitting the cover via ftp along with instructions/intent via email manifests some unsureness as to whether the end result will be satisfactory (or lead to a succession of fixes or not); 3) I wasn't sure if my design would "read" well or not.
Here's what happened:
With the publishing "package" I purchased there is a choice of 8 cover designs to choose from. I chose the cover design where a single image is the entire cover, front, spine and back. For the title and author name, I sent an email showing the size, color and location of the text on the cover. And then I hoped for the best--you can always make proof changes, but it will cost you if it's your mistake and all changes just prolong the process.
What the "design" staff at Xlibris (actually someone in the Philippines) did was slightly fade the image, which I think was done so that the plan graphics within the image would not conflict with the reading of the superimposed title, author name and book description texts. As a result, the final "design" evokes a sense of depth that wasn't an original part of my "imagination" of the cover. What I learned was that it is sometimes good not to be too picky or exact in ones intention, but rather work with a methodology where "play" and unforeseen "adjustings" can occur. You see, I could have been very picky (and upset) because not only was my image faded, but also slightly enlarged, and this was done without me giving instructions to do so. Perhaps I was only lucky that the "unauthorized changes" worked out well, but I also think a state of mind that will accept such unforeseen design events needs to be in place as well. Anyway, I'll be getting actually books proof in a week or two, so I see for sure what the cover will be like then.
I do indeed want to share what I'm experiencing and learning about (the design) of self publishing using a publishing service. So, if there are any specific questions, I'll be happy to entertain them. Just for starters, I'll say that the notion of working within a set of limits, ie, the offerings of the type of service package one purchases and doing everything via electronic communication (as opposed to face to face) is interesting because once one just accepts the limits (as opposed to somehow trying to get something "better" or even more "hip") a whole range of other unforeseen opportunities arise as one starts to see the book coming together, eg, the notion of sometimes leaving something ambiguous turns out to be the best design solution.
Here's the book and author description on the cover of A QUONDAM BANQUET OF VIRTUAL SACHLICHKEIT: PART I:
A Quondam Banquet of Virtual Sachlichkeit regards how symbolism in architecture comes to be and is hence perceived. Part I, written between 26 May 1998 and 8 April 2000, comprises "A Preprandial Aperitif," "Cucumber Slices, Caviar and 'Sociables' Crackers" and "Spinach and Mushroom Salad." This volume begins with, "An additional way to look at the "architecture" of cyberspace is as a kind of parallel existence to the real world," and ends with, "The heliocentric theory, therefore, successfully resolved a duality deeply rooted in human thinking, and, thus, instituted a new consciousness for humanity."
Stephen Lauf is an architect, artist and author. As a native Philadelphian still living in the same house since 1957, he conceived of The Timepiece of Humanity in 1981, learned computer-aided design in 1983, "constructed" a 3-dimensional computer model of downtown Philadelphia for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission in 1986, owned and operated Venue, an art gallery, in 1994, founded the first virtual museum of architecture -- www.quondam.com -- in 1996, discovered a long unnoticed etching by Giovanni Battista Piranesi in 1999, and is the first to recognize St. Helena as the progenitor of Christian architecture.
The dedication of QBVS1 is:
4. Otto
4. my quondam friends
4. all the errors that remain herein