There are so many things I want to share about my experience with becoming an author of a quilting book! In this blog I am going to share all the ins and outs, pros and cons, the good and the ugly! Maybe this blog will help some of you who are considering writing a book yourselves or perhaps you are just interested in what it took for me to accomplish this! So, let’s go back to the very beginning!
the idea
Perhaps the most important step in becoming an author of any kind is the “concept” or “idea”. This should be something in which you can claim to be an expert or professional. Your idea should be something you are passionate about and “on brand” for you.
Over the past 10+ years of quilting I have noticed that many quilters like to “stay in their lanes” when it comes to what they are comfortable with making. They find techniques they love or are good at and shy away from trying new things. So I had an idea for my first book to break down various techniques into bite size chunks that would make it easier for quilters of any level to understand and try. Thus, “The Modern Quilter“ was born.
My second book is a compilation of works from the magazine I founded and used to run called, “Modish Quilter”. When the magazine ended, I sold the rights to a chunk of content to my publisher. We create a really awesome book out of that content called, “Stylish Quilter”.
There are tons of ideas and topics that could be covered as an author of a book. You could be broad, or niche down to one topic. You can create something new or revamp something old/traditional in a new way. The list goes on and on! But the main thing you want to know and research is will your audience like it?
finding a publisher
This part of becoming an author can feel daunting! Putting your work out there to be judged feels like baring your soul to a stranger! But it just takes one of those strangers to believe in you and your idea to get the ball rolling!
Here’s what you need to do before you go looking for a publisher. First, have a concrete idea/plan for your book. Perhaps a skeleton of a manuscript, like a rough draft of a Table of Contents. This will help publishers who are reviewing your idea see that it is well thought out and has direction!
Second, you’ll want to put together a portfolio of your work. Include example blog posts and/or patterns you’ve written as well as photographs of your work! This will show publishers exactly what kind of work they can expect from you. It will also help them get a sense of your style as a quilter and an author.
Third, find a publisher! You can look through quilting books you own to find publishers that might be a good fit for you. You can also ask other quilting authors who their publishers are. Networking at events to find publishers is also a great idea! Sometimes it’s all about who you know!
The publishing house I used is Fox Chapel Publishing. I found them through a friend who used them as well. I had also submitted my work to other publishers, but Fox Chapel got back to me first and they were very excited about my ideas and my past work.
The grind of becoming an author
Here is the hard part of becoming an author- actually writing the book! Publishers will give you detailed contract of how they wan your content and what your deadlines will be. I had about 3-4 months from the time I signed the contract to my mid-point deadline. At this point, I had to provide enough work to show the publisher that I was actually working to complete my book! I had all of my patterns and excerpts written by this deadline.
Another 3-4 months later was my final deadline. During this time I worked on actually making all the patterns I had written. I must confess though that I didn’t make all of them myself! I did hire some help with some of the projects! Which I am so grateful for friends who were willing to pitch in!
My publisher was great to work with in regards to my deadlines. They were willing to adjust as needed when some family matters came up and I needed some extra time.
The supplies
Becoming an Author is very time intensive and can be fairly stressful trying to make deadlines and creating something you are proud of. When you sign your contract with a publisher, they will give you an advance payout. This amount varies, but ultimately is paid out in order to help you cover costs for supplies etc. when making your book. Here are a list of things you might need to pay for when becoming an author of a quilting book:
- Fabric
- Thread
- Batting
- Tech Editor to review your patterns
- Longarmer
- Photographer
- Props for photos
The rewards of becoming an author
So, what are the rewards of becoming an author of quilting book? Unless your book goes viral or you are already a renown quilter/author, it is really not a very lucrative path. However, there are some great benefits other than money!
Becoming an author brings you and your business some notoriety and professionalism that might otherwise take a long time to achieve. Having a published book proves that a publisher believed in you enough to adopt your idea and put it out into the world!
Another benefit, and perhaps the best part of becoming an author is the connections and opportunities that come because of your book. Publishers have tons of connections with distributors and big name brands. They work for you to get your books into their hands! This spreads your name brand around the quilting community faster than you probably could have on your own.
Since releasing my book I have done many lectures, presentations, and trunk shows for various quilt guilds both in person and virtually. I have also been on several podcasts and interviews!
Through these amazing opportunities, I have met so many amazing quilters, grown my business, and gained the notoriety that I wanted.
The downsideS of becoming an author
Like I said before, writing a book is not generally a very lucrative path to go down. And while it does have some really great benefits, I can’t leave this blog post without sharing some of the downsides!
Working under deadlines is not my favorite thing. It was really stressful trying to write and then make 18-21 quilting projects in 6-8 months. To give you some perspective, that’s about 3 projects written and made each month for 6-8 months in a row… no break. So I was completely burned out once I was all done. I didn’t make a single quilt for months afterwards.
I was also really disappointed in some of the decisions for my book being made by other people and not having the final say on some things like title and cover. They did take my opinions under consideration but ultimately the decision was not up to me. This can be good and bad. On the one hand, I wanted this book to reflect ME and MY brand- but that might not necessarily be the thing that will sell best. The publisher has years and years of experience with SEO and words and pictures sell best to their accounts.
And again, if you are in it for the money- you will be severely disappointed. You will make more money writing the patterns and releasing them one by one then by putting them all together in a book.
The waiting & Promoting
Once you have completed your book and turned everything in- the waiting begins. It will be another 6-8 months before you finally get to see all of your hard work come together. During this time there will be a lot of back and forth from the publisher/editor as they fine tune everything in your book and prepare for printing.
Then, finally, you will get a box in the mail that contains months of work in one shiny, beautiful, new-paper-smelling book! You might shed a tear or two as the waive of relief sets in as you realize it’s finally over!
But is it? Part of becoming an author is promoting your work! While the publisher does a lot of the heavy lifting and selling to the big companies- you can do a lot to create buzz and popularity for your book! I made videos, reels, blogs, and ran giveaways to help spread the word! And I continue to post about it or share patterns from it regularly to keep interest up.
Other publishing options for becoming an author
There are other routes for publishing books than the one I have just described. I have thought many times that if I were to write another book, I would write it all to completion before even submitting it to a publisher. This way I could make my own timeline and deadlines. The risk of doing it that way is that they may not take it and I will have done all that work for nothing.
Another option is the self-publishing route. I know very little of this route. I know that you have to foot the bill upfront yourself instead of receiving an advance. You also would have to purchase inventory or find a drop-ship company to do print on demand for you. But at least you would be on your own timeline and would have complete creative control over all decision making.
wrap it all up
So am I glad I became an author? 100%! I have had wonderful experiences and met amazing people because of my book. Would I do it again? I don’t know… I would have to be REALLY passionate about it and would want to set longer deadlines so that I don’t get so burned out.
Knowledge is power! Arm yourself with as much knowledge about the process as you can before deciding to become an author. Be sure to ask your publisher lots of questions and don’t hesitate to set your own boundaries and limitations. As with all good things- they take time… blood, sweat, and tears! So be prepared for the battle! But enjoy the rewards that come!
