My book will be aimed at those who are dreaming of starting their own design business, or who have already started and are looking for some help to take them to the next level. It’ll be the title I wish I’d read a few years ago (although I know I’m going to learn a lot writing it).

The title was going to be The Business of Design, but it’s already published. Then Nikki suggested Business Designed to tie-in with Identity Designed. Great idea, but someone’s sitting on the domain and my purchase request led to nowt.

Then Bernadette pitched in with these two ideas:

1. Working in Design
2. The Design Startup

—

Update: 10 February 2011
The chat in the comment thread has ruled out The Design Startup, and there’s now a third option in the mix: Work for Money — Design for Love.

—

I’ve registered both .coms, so it’s down to one of those, along with the likely subtitle of, “Answers to the Most Frequently Asked Questions About Starting and Running a Successful Design Business.”

I ran both names past Blair, who suggested that Working in Design may lead to confusion about the target market. It could imply design employment, as opposed to self-employment. Fair point. Nikki liked both, but thought The Design Startup could imply I had some unique product or service to sell, which wouldn’t be ideal. Another fair point. She said Peachpit’s salespeople would love Working in Design.

Which do you prefer?

Keep in mind they’ll appear alongside the provisional subtitle.

1/ Working in Design: Answers to the Most Frequently Asked Questions About Starting and Running a Successful Design Business

2/ The Design Startup: Answers to the Most Frequently Asked Questions About Starting and Running a Successful Design Business

—

Update:
So it’s down to number 1/ or number 3/ Work for Money — Design for Love.

—

Bernadette kindly pitched an alternative subtitle, too, with optional word in brackets: “Everything You Want to Know About Starting and Running a (Successful) Design Business.”

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I’ll not steal all of Seth’s content, but here’s a bit, with source-links beneath.

“If you’re doing it for the money, you’re going to be disappointed. On the other hand, a book gives you leverage to spread an idea and a brand far and wide.

“Don’t try to sell your book to everyone. First, consider this: “58% of the US adult population never reads another book after high school.” Then, consider the fact that among people even willing to buy a book, yours is just a tiny little needle in a very big haystack. Far better to obsess about a little subset of the market — that subset that you have permission to talk with, that subset where you have credibility, and most important, that subset where people just can’t live without your book.

“The best time to start promoting your book is three years before it comes out. Three years to build a reputation, build a permission asset, build a blog, build a following, build credibility and build the connections you’ll need later.

“Writing a book is a tremendous experience. It pays off intellectually. It clarifies your thinking. It builds credibility. It is a living engine of marketing and idea spreading, working every day to deliver your message with authority. You should write one.”

Advice for authors, Seth Godin, 21 July 2005
Advice for authors, Seth Godin, 02 August 2006

A must-read if you’ve ever had thoughts of becoming an author.

Further resources:
Book industry statistics
The Society of Authors

Image via Thinkstock

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No-one else sets you apart.

You’re what makes you different. Tell your story.

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It’s been around a year since my book became available. A few of you have asked how the year went, if there’s been any impact on business, and if I’ll write another.

For those new to my blog, here’s a “behind the scenes” of writing a design book.

Highlights

There was an initial print-run of 8,000. Today there are 18,000 copies in print, with more written in Polish, Chinese, and German (and Czech).

In one year, the Facebook page I started has grown into a fan-base of 36,000 and is now a useful way to highlight fresh content on the Logo Design Love website.

The book has an average rating of 5 stars on Amazon.com (from 50 reviews), Amazon.co.uk (from 28), and Amazon.ca (from 7 — reader reviews don’t seem to carry-over between national sites).

It reached #1 in both the graphic design and the brands & corporate identity bestsellers lists on Amazon.co.uk, ahead of the likes of Shaughnessy, Fletcher, Sagmeister, and Heller (the list’s updated hourly, so normal service has probably resumed).

Benefits

Although sales have been fairly successful, I’ve not received any more commission than what I’d earn from design clients. In fact, the figure’s considerably less. But even before starting the project, and on the sound advice of a few others, I never expected too much direct income.

Writing a design book isn’t about selling hundreds of thousands of copies. It’s about using the “published author” status as a springboard to what may follow, be it new clients, a new job, speaker invites, or just the knowledge that you’ve helped someone make a decision about what career path to follow. I’ve received many stories of thanks. That’s a huge bonus. Perhaps more so than any financial reward.

New business

It’s hard to say if any doors have opened, but generally, the calibre of client I’m attracting has steadily improved. I still get the occasional week where work inquiries are less than promising, and I wonder where the next client will come from, but maybe that’s just part of being a self-employed designer.

A second book?

My publisher wants me to write again, which is where those of you who have read LDL can hopefully help.

Although I’ve learned a great deal since the book was published, I’m still apprehensive that the knowledge gained during my fledgling career has been fairly spent. Because of which, a second publication might be more of a research study than speaking from experience. It’d definitely help to know there’s a want for any pending title.

Cue your good self.

Where identity design is concerned, what do you want to read about that wasn’t covered in Logo Design Love? (Here’s the table of contents — PDF download, 32k.) Were there topics included that you want written about in greater detail?

Thank you so much for the support.

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I wasn’t 100% sure about it when my publisher’s sales experts made the suggestion — I didn’t want to oversell the content — but a good case was made, and I happily took their advice.

My book is now available in a few different languages. One of those being Polish, courtesy of Helion.

What’s the subtitle?

Design an ingenious logotype!

Doesn’t quite have the same ring.

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Three weeks ago my acquisitions editor Nikki at Peachpit asked if I could find a well-known designer to write a quote for the back cover of my book. She said it would need to be someone with a great reputation, and that we didn’t have much time.

Finding a quote hadn’t crossed my mind, and it’s not like I’m out rubbing shoulders much with the cream of the design crop. I told Nikki it was unlikely, but to leave it with me and I’d see what I could do.

A few days later I was having an email chat with Chris Nutter, communications director at Chermayeff & Geismar in New York. He was helping to arrange an interview with Tom Geismar (the interview you kindly submitted questions for). I put two and two together and ran the quote idea past Chris.

It wasn’t long before I emailed him a PDF containing a large chunk of my book, saying that if Tom was able read it and offer a quote, that I’d need his words by the end of the week. That only gave Tom a few days, so needless to say, I wasn’t hopeful.

Friday passed, and I thought to myself that the book wasn’t something Tom would want to put his name on. That’s fair enough. I’d be equally critical of endorsing someone I knew nothing about on the back of an emailed PDF.

Then on Tuesday Chris got back to me saying, “Tom loved your work and gave what I think, as a book author myself, is a perfect blurb.”

Brilliant! But the deadline had passed.

I immediately emailed Nikki and Cory (Cory’s the production guru at Peachpit to whom I supplied my InDesign files). They said if I was quick, there was still a chance we could change the cover, but it needed to be that day, so some hours later — at 10pm — we signed-off on a new cover including Tom’s quote.

Brilliant!

Here’s what Tom said:

“There are a lot of books out there that show collections of logos. But David Airey’s Logo Design Love is something different: it’s a guide for designers (and clients) who want to understand what this mysterious business is all about. Written in reader-friendly, concise language, with a minimum of designer jargon, Airey gives a surprisingly clear explanation of the process, using a wide assortment of real-life examples to support his points.

“Anyone involved in creating visual identities, or wanting to learn how to go about it, will find this book invaluable.”
— TOM GEISMAR, CHERMAYEFF & GEISMAR

And here’s the new cover spread PDF (216kb)—updated from the one I shared with you a week ago. As well as adding the endorsement, I also removed the descriptive text about the “simple, modern-looking book” and improved the layout of the section with my photo—thanks very much for the feedback Ebi and Tara.

There are only a few names in the design profession that I’d want to add to my cover. I asked the first one that came to mind, no-one else, and couldn’t be happier with the result.

I guess that’s what they call the luck of the Irish.

The moral of the story? If you don’t ask, you don’t get.

As a side note, 1,700 of you have pre-ordered already. Thank you! I’m told the printed books will be warehoused on December 18th, so if you’ve bought a copy, you can expect to receive it a week or so after that date.

—

Update: 10 May 2011
Who would’ve thought there’d now be eight translations?

—

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Back in March I told you I signed a book deal with Peachpit. The copy deadline is October 23rd, which is scarily close, and the book is now available for pre-order. So no pressure, David.

How’s it going? It’s not easy, but I wasn’t expecting it to be. And while there’s still a bit to go with the content, I’m hopeful of hitting the deadline—thanks to some amazing help in the shape of Jill Marts Lodwig, Nikki McDonald, and Robin Drake.

You’d be forgiven for thinking that three years of blog authoring has taught me about writing. But when you’re scrutinized by three professional editors it’s a different ball game entirely. As Eric says, “Writing is easy. Editing is hard.”

Once the project’s wrapped up, I’ll share the steps involved here on my blog, from negotiating payment and forming a plan, to writing and designing a 200-page book.

In the meantime, the Logo Design Love book website gives a brief intro and lists some of the graphic designers who have kindly contributed.

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I’ve been asked to author the first logo design book from Peachpit Press.

We’re discussing possible topics, and the aim is to publish a book that’s different from any other in the logo design market. I thought it’d be a good idea to involve you.

It’s funny how these things come about. Nikki (my contact at Peachpit) has long admired my logo design for Miskeeto, and it turns out that Robert Hoekman, who runs Miskeeto, is also a Peachpit author and one of Nikki’s long-time colleagues.

The main reason I’m asking for your advice is on the book’s focus. Nikki suggested we call the publication, “Logo Design Love“, then add a descriptive subtitle e.g. “Logo Design Love: the sketchpad diaries”, or, “Logo Design Love: iconic logo designers”.

Great idea, I thought, and a nice way to promote my website offline.

Here are just a few of the topics we’ve considered.

Creating effective identities

An all-encompassing look at the journey of a logo, from initial design brief through to style-guide and contextual use. Nikki thought we could include a section showing how to use Adobe Illustrator for creating specific logos. I’m reluctant, however, to incorporate software screenshots, as this automatically dates the content. Besides, Peachpit already publish some excellent Illustrator handbooks (I own one).

Iconic logo designers

This idea revolves around the iconic logo designers website. When compiling that resource, I chatted with many of the featured designers. They may want to participate in a book that highlights their skills.

Conversations from the blog

Since October 2006, I’ve published more than 450 blog articles, with the main emphasis upon logo design and the business around it. You’ve helped create some compelling debates in the comment section of certain articles, and there’s no denying the mass of possible book content contained within.

Why write a book?

Personally, business is better than ever, so do I need the additional workload? As with anything, there are pros and cons.

The preparation involved will undoubtedly improve my knowledge of the industry, which is a big plus, and in a way, I’d consider it like return to education — spending long periods of time researching a personally chosen subject. I’ve also been contemplating writing a book, although on the other hand, sacrifices will obviously need made, and I won’t be able to focus as much on client projects.

Self-publishing

It’s no longer a requirement to use traditional publishers, and with the digital age comes the ability to self-publish your book. Cardiff-based designer, Mark Boulton, is doing just that in the form of an ebook, and recently shared how he’ll deliver his published works online.

Blurb and Lulu are two print-on-demand options, where I could always produce a small run of hard copies, for a memento more than anything.

Elliot Jay Stocks has recently finished writing a book, and although he used a traditional publisher to produce his writings, he’s now considering self-publishing for his next instalment.

One of the most appealing aspects of self-publishing, is that you create your own deadline, and aren’t working towards the schedule of a publisher. The last thing I want to do is cause anxieties when client projects may need precedence over looming book deadlines.

Your thoughts

Nikki and I both thought it’d be a good idea to gauge your opinion.

What content would compell you to buy a logo design book? If placed in my position, would you choose to run with an established publisher, or attempt to self-publish your book?

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Whether you publish a blog post three times per day, once every day, or even once per week, finding inspiration can prove troublesome. I’ve been able to keep a decent level of consistency up on my blog, posting on average every three days. I owe a lot to you, my readers.

When you ask questions via the blog comments, I’m always wondering if the answer deserves an individual post. More often than not I’ll answer your question within a paragraph or two, following on from your comment. Sometimes, however, it’s more appropriate to give the topic more attention, putting it out to a wider audience for different opinions.

When I read other blogs, and the post comments reach into the 20s or 30s, I’ll skim read to save time. It’s fair to say that most others would do the same (but correct me if you think I’m wrong), so next time you’re writing something in your blog comments that you think is of importance, ask yourself if it would be better to devote a fresh post to the topic.

Reader emails are another great source of blogging inspiration, and I’m very grateful for your inquisitive messages. If I haven’t yet had the opportunity to respond to a question you’ve emailed, please don’t think I’m ignoring you. In fact, I currently have a few draft posts I’m working on thanks to your contact. I’m receiving about 70 or 80 emails per day, and whilst that might be nothing compared to a certain expert copywriter or professional blogger, it means I can’t always give them the attention I’d like.

Do you have any particular questions that you’d like me to answer?

If there’s anything you’re curious about, no matter how trivial you think it might be, go ahead and ask. I’ll answer your questions in a following blog post. They could be personal or professional, or you might want my opinion on something (which reminds me, I have a couple of logos that were emailed I’ve been meaning to critique).

You’ll be helping me out by providing some ammunition for future topics, and at the very least you might get to know me a little better.

Other people talking about inspiration

• David at Pure Blogging recently published some nice sources of blogging inspiration.
• If you find motivation on the decline, Stephen at Daily Blog Tips has given some advice to reignite your passion for blogging.
• For the ultimate idea resource, check out Vivien’s 37 sources of inspiration group writing project.

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Blog comments are a fantastic source of article topics, and a recent comment on davidairey.com from Dustin Brewer reads:

I find that the best way to write a headline is before you start writing the article. This may not work for everyone, but I know I feel a lot better about the headline if I throw it out there in the beginning.

When planning a blog post, I normally begin with a headline in mind. However, that doesn’t mean I use that headline once the article is complete, and I’m curious how many of you keep the original headline you thought of.

I begin with a headline, write the article, then end up tweaking or changing the headline to match what I’ve written. This is because I can sometimes run off on a tangent, usually to add more depth and interest for you.

How do you match your headlines to your content?

Do you write first, then think of a headline? Do you have your headlines set in stone before writing the first sentence? Or do you write using a mix, similar to me? I’d love to know you think works best.

It’d also be interesting to read the thoughts of great writers such as Mike at Writing White Papers, Tom at The Copywriter Underground, Kirsten at Inkthinker, Matt at The Copywriter’s Crucible, and Dawud at dmiracle.com.

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