A few weeks ago a couple of boxes were delivered to me. The projects for my book had come back to me! Excitement! It was a bit like opening presents when the boxes came because it’s been almost a since I sent all the projects off to the publisher and I’d kinda forgotten what some of them looked like..
When I told a friend that the projects had come home she said “now you’ve written a book you must be rich!” Erm, no. Although she was joking I felt it was worth pointing out that unless you’re Martha Stewart or JK Rowling or Dan Brown, a book advance is not a lot of money. Considering that it’s basically your salary for your work on the book. Work which takes 1-2 years and in some periods it all but takes over every waking hour of your life. If you’re really lucky, the book will sell well enough that you will eventually earn a bit of royalties, but not all books do that.
It’s a bit like your favourite band – the record deal isn’t really what makes them money; that comes from playing concerts and selling tshirts etc. So if you want your favourite band to keep doing their thing, people have to keep going to the concerts. And if your favourite knitting designer or whatever is to be able to make things you love, she still needs the direct support of her fans (by buying patterns or yarn etc) even after she’s written a book.
Of course, buying stuff isn’t the only way you can support your favourite artist/band/crafter/blogger: mention them to your friends, write about them on your blog. Retweet links to their latest ‘thing’. Maybe you knitted a sweater using a pattern? Take a picture and share it on Instagram and mention the designer. The moral support of these things are really important – a simple mention on Twitter can sometimes make someone’s whole day. You can make a difference in someone else’s life. :-)
Yes, my friend got a bit more than she bargained for when she made that joke-y comment. ;-)
The special embroidery I made for the cover also came home to me. And I think it’s safe to show you that cover stitchery now since you can see it over on Amazon and other places! The motifs are all in the book. :-)
I think I’m going to frame it in some way and hang it on the wall. Maybe stitch in the cover text itself…
