So I have this idea and this post is intended to test the waters of interest. A few years ago I published a PDF version of a coffee table book featuring my Eve art up to that point. You can download it HERE if you haven't already. And earlier in 2016 I also published a PDF book collecting Eve Fan Fiction and Art called the Empyrian Chronicles, which you can download HERE if you haven't already.
So the idea is simply this. A coffee table Art Book featuring my Eve Art alongside select articles and posts from the past seven years of Eveoganda. Not everything of course, but only the best stuff in a well-designed book worthy of being in your collection.
Such a project is a big one and would require the cooperation of CCP (which may not happen) and a mid-level fundraising effort (nothing like the Fountain War book or even Andrew's History Book project, but it could also potentially not happen) and considerable effort on my side as well. And the support of the community most importantly.
So this is the "testing the waters" post about the idea. I'm asking for feedback so please feel free to post your comments, thoughts and said feedback about the idea. Positive or negative, or somewhere in the middle. This is an idea that has been rattling around in my brain for awhile now and I want to know if the community supports it or if I should forget about it and move on.
Would you support such an idea and is the idea worthy of the amount of effort it would take to achieve? That is the essential question.
So, what do you think?
Comments
Assuming you get a go-ahead from CCP, if you decide to do a Kickstarter to fund the book, I believe that you would more successful offering a softcover version at a price point that many more of your typical EVE player could/would afford than starting off trying to create the illusion of value with an overpriced hardcover that (knowing the EVE community as we do) is likely to be supported by far fewer people. Make hardcover an upgrade if you get a ridiculously higher than expected response that will justify that...even if it is only adding a new reward tier at a much higher price. Many might make the switch.
But in my opinion, having self-published two books full of art through CreateSpace, you'd be better off buying an ISBN ($125 for one; $250 for 10; because you'll want to use your own, not a printing service's "freebie" due to potential restrictions on how you can publish your own book if you use an ISBN that you do not own) and self-publishing through CreateSpace.
For one thing, your author's cost is much lower than you might imagine, which means greater profit potential (if you're not doing this for profit, why bother?!). For another, automatic insertion into distribution channels that might be hard to get into otherwise are included or expanded distribution for a small ($25) fee. Furthermore, with Print on Demand as CreateSpace offers, you don't have to invest in a mountain of books. You run your KickStarter, see what demand is, and then only have to purchase enough books to fulfill rewards. Or maybe you get lucky and have such a good result that you can purchase a bunch of copies for inventory. (By the way, I don't know how it works in PA, but book inventory for a sole proprietorship biz is taxed as personal property in VA.)
I've been super-pleased with the color quality and responsiveness of CreateSpace. The two books I published through them have full color art on nearly every page; one was a book showcasing my own work and the other was a party book for a client. I used Scribus (like InDesign but free) to design and lay out both books. Both were full page bleeds. Scribus is richly featured and not terribly difficult to use once you learn its UI quirks and its full range of capabilities. Through CreateSpace, I able to get printed proofs for my author's cost per copy plus shipping. It is worth considering if you want a nice product, at an affordable price, with very little up-front investment required. It was a great solution when I did my KickStarter for my first book, because I was concerned about meeting my funding goal and I knew that I had to keep my book at a certain price point in order to attract enough supporters from the community that the book catered to.
Be happy to talk with you more about my experiences if you want to call me sometime. Voice comms on my internet makes conversation irksome.