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I love my studio. I never thought I would be lucky enough to have such a comprehensive collection of books and equipment, all of which are invaluable to me as an artist. It has all been carefully garnered over the years, mostly cheaply or for nothing. It is my nest, my solace, my friend. I've posted pictures of it before, and I don't think the Internet will break if I post a few more. As so many of us love looking at other people's books (I certainly do!) I have kept these pictures quite large, so if you want to click on an image, you can browse some of my thousands (really) of books.
This is my main notice board, with various cards from friends - artist and otherwise. The gorgeous dog print is 'Charlie', a superb wood engraving from my printer friend Sue Woollatt. Handy pile of sketchbooks, sewing basket, and that velvet embroidered church runner I found in a jumble sale for about 10p, circa 1985.
The right hand wall, a happy medley of nice books, boxes of paper treasures and toys. And two massive stacks of dvds (from the time before we caved in and aquired a TV). Madeline, a rag doll I made when I was about 18...she was supposed to have a dress. I planned to go into business and make lots of rag dolls, but that was way back in the mid 1980's, before universal internet and long before Etsy was born. It never happened.
Can one ever have enough picture books?
I don't think so...
My work table, just how I like it. I can't work in a mess. A few new needle felt toys sat waiting for...something. And the beginnings of an oil painting I keep trying to find time for.
The left hand corner...
...and my other 'best bookcase'...this one I rescued from a stone outhouse in a graveyard, where I was employed to mow the grass. It was in a damp corner and used for storing paint cans on. I rescued it (with the vicar's permission of course!) and with some cleaning and waxing, it came up lovely. A nice honest bit of handmade country furniture, all wood jointed, with a lovely patina.
The way out...goodbye!
The full set of twelve 'round the studio tour' is on my Flickr page, here, with detailed notes as to what everything is.
1. Facing the studio door, 2. Notice board, 3. Craft book collection, 4. Oak bookcase, 5. Right hand wall, 6. Picture books, 7. Vintage picture books and toys, 8. Work Table, 9. Left hand corner, 10. Best bookcase, 11. The way out
This falls under the heading of self-care for introverts. As in, I am needing some bad! I've had a blast these last few weeks with school visits, book signing, speaking at conferences, traveling, working, and writing. I am hugely grateful for each opportunity and all the great people I've met. This is what pro-motion looks like. Selling your next book one relationship at a time.
Each event generates a flurry of emails from kids or students, which I love, but it is depleting. I have one more school visit next week, and then I am signing off for a bit. Going to say no (Introversion 101) to a couple of new event requests. Time to refuel. I don't have a single, solitary toot left in me right now. Maybe one pathetic raspberry, but that's about it.
This week is going to be about napping, journaling, restorative yoga, an artist date or two, and I want to catch a few of the great movies that were awarded last night at the Oscars.
And then there is one of my favorite renewing activities-- tooting my horn about someone else!
Which brings us to National Independent Bookseller's Appreciation Month which is coming in May. Robin and I have begun making plans! For those of you that have been visiting us for a while, you will remember that last May, we dedicated the month to honoring our Indies. (For our new friends, check out some of the fun we had at this link.) We are going to do the same this year, only we'd like to expand the scope and reach. We are hoping to get into the Chase Book of Days so that May will be officially designated for Indie appreciation nation-wide and forevermore. They truly deserve that. Indies are to the book world what introverts are to the human race-- don't you think?
And, we absolutely can't make this happen without you. Yep, you. Will you help? It can be something as simple as visiting your Indie in May and thanking them for their great work. Or, you may want to do something a bit grander. Maybe sponsor a weekly book drawing of local authors? Or, run an add in a local paper thanking them for their work. Perhaps you will be inspired to bake the staff some cupcakes or muffins. Right now, we really could use some of your brainpower. What ideas might you have for actively supporting and expressing your appreciation?
Robin and I sent an email out to about eight of our favorite booksellers and asked them to give us some feedback about some of our ideas. If you have a connection with your local Indie, would you gather some intelligence for us from them as well?
Thanks, everyone. This is our opportunity to give something back to them. Let's put a strong think tank together on this, shall we?
And speaking of horn tooting, it's Monday and that's the day we love to celebrate milestones around here. Anyone have anything they'd like to share? Could be a milestone of any size from finishing a challenging scene to winning the National Book Award. We're open. :-) All entries will be entered into a random drawing to win a copy of Donna Gephart's As if Being 12 3/4 Isn't Bad Enough, My Mother is Running for President, which we blogged about last Thursday.
Hope you all have a renewing kind of week--
Mary Hershey
Dear Violets and Vinnies,
Successfully launching a new book isn't rocket science, but we're going to borrow the metaphor all the same. For the next six months we are going to be busy concocting some seriously combustible fuel, drilling the data, running control checks, and charting a specific, detailed course for the launching of a book by a big ol' introvert-- uh, that would be me.
My new book
Ten Lucky Things that Have Happened to Me Since I Nearly Got Hit by Lightning(Wendy Lamb Books) will be released the first week of July 2008. We are going to break this seemingly overwhelming process down into manageable weekly tasks and projects for me to do. Along the way, we hope you'll share your ideas, too. No introverts will be harmed during the launching of this book. We promise!
Time to load up our breast pockets with nerdy looking pens and mechanical pencils and grab some java. We're off to the control tower. C'mon along!
Mary
By:
Paintgranny,
on 1/4/2008
Blog:
Middle of Nowhere
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My studio, it has to be said, is full of many things - it is my creative nest, where I can surround myself with the treasures I have found and been given. Although I may not use many of them from day to day, they inspire and console me. Many tokens from blog and non-bloggy friends...spot the Lily Moon card from my friend Maya -
The old year ended with the little people in 'Cat's Cradle' journeying far away to their first job. It is always a wrench to know I will probably never see most of my paintings again, but good to know that they are watching over someone, somewhere.
The new year started with one of Rima's beautiful calendars. I cannot think of a nicer way of getting through the year - she still has one or two left I think, so if you hurry...
Entering January with some gorgeous letter blocks, with huge thanks to fellow illustrator Paula for her thoughtful gift...
...and my triple good luck charm, to keep bad things away from me this year, especially timewasters, as I had enough of them in 2007. White china heart from Tara, rosehip heart from Higgledy Piggledy, textile/embroidery heart from Border Tart - thank you my dears - I defy anything truly bad to happen with the combined love of these three friends.
A big red hand to point the way bravely forward to 2008 - there is something very commanding about this stern indicator. It arrived unexpectedly in the post this week, mysteriously unsigned...for a few minutes I felt like my all time hero, Tintin, receiving an anonymous signal summoning him to a new, exotic adventure. But then I remembered kind Alan Brignull of the Hedgehog Press, and his lovely picture on Flickr which I had fav'd. Thank you so much!
I am under the weather and feeling like this at the moment -
So I am going to retire for a few days, and bury myself in my sketchbook, as I seem to have got my drawing mojo back at last. Have a good weekend everyone!
That is the question most writers are faced with at some point in time. Should they invest the time and energy into a blog so they can connect with their readers? Or simply spend the time writing or pursuing other promotional activities.
For one, even though we’re introverts, we are comfortable writing (or so I’m guessing, otherwise we wouldn’t be you know--writers) so using the written word whenever possible to do our promoting for us is always smart. Even smarter, doing it from the relative “call your own shots” environment of the internet. Because, to restate one of our mottos around here, The internet is an introvert's best friend.
So how does one decide?
Do you like chatting? Do you have things to chat about, besides what you had for breakfast that morning and whether or not you were late dropping Petunia off at school? Because if you’re a writer who’s blogging, your blog will also be a professional representation of who you are, not just a personal diary.
Blogs are not about you, they're about what you can give your audience. The very best blogs inform as they entertain. What “takeaway” element are you giving your readers?
And speaking of audiences, who do you expect to read your blog? Fellow writers? Readers? Librarians? Kids? And whoever you’re intended audience, how do you plan to attract readers to your blog in the first place?
Remember, blogs aren’t always about promoting; they can be about building a community, sharing common interests, connecting with people, offering a service.
What will keep your readers coming back? What is your purpose in having them come back (besides having your site meter register high numbers)?
Even if your blog has a relatively small readership, don’t make a mistake of thinking it’s a place to say private things. Anything you say in any e-form can always find it’s way into the most unexpected hands! If you know that you don't tend to self-censor very well, then perhaps a public forum isn't your best choice.
While you really don’t have to blog every day, it helps to be consistent at least. Say, every Monday and Thursday, for example. (Don’t look at my personal blog because it is a very good example of NOT being consistent OR regular. Do what we say here at SVP, not necessarily what we do.)
Still not sure? Give it a try, but perhaps anonymously. Or simply practice in a word document and save your entries. See how that goes before you commit fully to a blog. You might just find yourself addicted.
Or not. And that's okay, too, because one of our other favorite mottos around here is "Know thyself."
By:
Jenny Turner,
on 5/31/2007
Blog:
Quake: Shakin' up Young Readers
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Marvelous Marketing Maneuvers for Mild-Mannered Authors:
So you want to be Nora Roberts (Pt. 4)
© Karen L. Syed
4. MySpace. You're never too old or too normal for MySpace. I am constantly hearing that MySpace is for teenagers and perverts. Who cares.
Let's start with the teens. These are the audience we need to be targeting for building a long-term reader/author relationship. They are the consumers of the future, and in many cases, they are the consumers of the now. Some teens I know have more cash on hand than I have had for decades. Few of them have bills to pay. Their money is theirs to spend. So why, as an author wouldn't you want to find a way to bring them into your reader base and nurture them? If you hook them young, you stand a considerably better chance of keeping them as you grow your career.
The declining numbers of teens graduating with well below acceptable reading skills are staggering. Most teens are not taking advantage of the opportunities to escape to exciting places and to be entertained while learning. Okay, so you write adult fiction. What's stopping you from using your adult fiction to educate the parents on how important it is to get their kids enjoying the written word? But I digress.
MySpace is not just about the teens. Sure, they are there, find something to put on your space to get them interested in you as an author. Read a young adult book each month and post your review in a "Teen Section" on your MySpace. The parents will thank you and then they might actually buy your books for themselves. You are also serving another purpose by encouraging families to read together. Not sure what to read? Ask teens for their tips on what to read. MySpace is a place to hook the kids and the parents into a world that has endless potential.
Now let's talk about the perverts. Someone recently said to me, I don't want to put my romance on MySpace because there are children in my book and I don't want the perverts getting any ideas. Again, who cares! You are not the moral police. You cannot stop anyone with less than pure motives from getting their hands on your books. The same perverts on MySpace are shopping in bookstores. You simply cannot worry about it. You will go insane. The bottom line is that you want EVERYONE to buy your book. What they do with it after they pay for it is not your problem or business. Bottom line is, most perverts have jobs and money to spend on books.
Enough preaching. How can MySpace really work for you? Anyone know how many people are on MySpace? A LOT! Did I mention it is FREE. You don't have to pay for it. You go in, set up an account, and promote to your hearts content. If someone is not interested, they will ignore your posts or delete you from their friend list. Big deal. There are plenty more to replace them.
What do you put on MySpace?
--Your cover
--You bio
--Your book blurb
--Your first chapter (or an excerpt)
--Links to you other web sites
--BUY NOW BUTTONS (this is a MUST)
If you take one hour to set up your MySpace and then you spend 15 minutes every other day increasing your friend base, you are reaching thousands of people. You can post bulletins within MySpace that go to all kinds of people, and that is marketing. Review announcements, events, new releases, awards, or all manner of things. You can even run contests. Speaking of events, MySpace has a calendar section where you can list your events and people you don't even know can see them and maybe want to meet you.
Use the Blog section in MySpace to post your articles, news, discussion ideas, and book reviews. This is also a great networking tool. Don't worry about whether anyone is reading it, someone is and maybe they'll tell a friend, who will tell a friend, and you might sell a book!
You don't have to spend a lot of time on MySpace. Put it up, change it once a month or when something happens, and let it do the work for you. But keep in mind, the more you do put into the more you stand to gain.
It's all about FREE and if you set it up and you aren’t careful, you might actually SELL SOME BOOKS!
Pt. 5 Coming Soon!
By:
Jenny Turner,
on 5/13/2007
Blog:
Quake: Shakin' up Young Readers
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Marvelous Marketing Maneuvers for Mild-Mannered Authors:
So you want to be Nora Roberts (Pt. 3)
© Karen L. Syed
3. The Buddy System! You remember, in elementary school when you went on field trips you always had to pick a buddy to do everything with. You were not to go anywhere, including the bathroom, without your buddy. Think of marketing as a field trip for writers. A giant adventure that could get a little scary and if you aren't careful YOU COULD GET LOST!
What is the biggest obstacle writers have with marketing? Okay, you can pick two, I know you will. Time and money. I know, I've been there. Consider this. You are on your own and you have to do a postcard mailing. You have a budget for 500 post cards, you have to decide where to send them. Now, let's say you live in Chicago. But you've already done a mailing in Chicago and sold very few books. Well, if you are paying attention you know that you need to do several more mailings to the same people to get them to pay attention. And, no, it is NOT a waste of money. Do the research, it takes multiple points of marketing to make an impression. So what do you do? Consider why they didn't buy the first time.
Too busy to pay attention
Too tired to pay attention
No immediate recognition of your name or title.
No point of credible reference.
There could be any number of reasons. Now, how do you overcome those obstacles? And sales is all about overcoming obstacles. Let's see, you could do another mailing. What will this accomplish?
You might catch them at a better time.
They might have just woken from a nap and be full of energy.
They remember seeing something with your name on it a month ago.
You have added a buddy and a little bit of a credible reference.
How does this buddy system work, you ask? Well, I'll tell you. You find another author who lives in another state. Not a neighbor. Your secondary goal here is to increase your target audience. So if you live in Chicago, find a buddy in San Francisco. You pool your budgets, design a post card that promotes both your books (with a catchy tag line tying them together), and each of you mail out half to your individual mailing lists.
This offers a repeat of the original information and some new and exciting additions (your buddy). You double your chances of getting their attention and increasing your national exposure. Don't be one of those authors who is satisfied with selling books to the 147 people closest to them. You want to reach the masses. The bigger your market, the bigger your potential for sales, and what do sales mean? ROYALTIES and NEW CONTRACTS! Don't be satisfied with reaching whoever you can, make a concentrated effort to reach everyone. Oh, I just had a wonderful thought. What if you had two buddies? You in Chicago, one in San Francisco, and another in…Tampa! Wow! You could triple your market and cut your costs in thirds.
Oh wait, you're worried about diluting your chances by offering two other books. Hmm, let's think about this one. You started with no possibility of selling in San Francisco or Tampa because you had no connection, but now you have a connection to someone there and you actually have a chance at selling books in that market. No chance vs. any chance. Sounds like another no-brainer to me.
So, before you click to another screen, consider selling 3 books vs. selling 0 books at a third of the cost. The best part about the buddy system is you get to save money and increase your marketing potential. And there are no limits to the number of buddies you can have. You simply have to get off your duff, do the networking, and SELL THOSE BOOKS!
Pt. 4 Coming Soon!
Marvelous Marketing Maneuvers for Mild-Mannered Authors:
So you want to be Nora Roberts (Pt. 2)
© Karen L. Syed2. Shameless! It's all about getting the word out. Let's assume you are a very shy and introverted person. My first suggestion, if you are a writer/author is to get therapy. You are in the wrong business if you are shy. I don't make friends with this, but when you go into business with a publisher, they are counting on you being their backup. If you are afraid or too shy to toot your own horn, it is a detriment to them and the others in the publishing house. At that point, your lack of sales support draws extra time and money away from other authors.
We all eat out. Right? What does this have to do with promoting? When you go through a drive-thru, you should always say "Thank You," before you drive away. Well, how about if after you've paid and they've given you your change, you hand them a bookmark, business card, flyer, etc. with your book info on it? You simply hand it to them and say, "Have a great day!" No embarrassing moment and no pressure to converse with strangers.
Beauty salons and barbershops? Hand a card with your tip. Sit down restaurants? Again, leave it with the tip. What if you pay with credit card? Oh, think about, get creative…
VistaPrint.com is always running special of some sort and I have accumulated a supply of small generic rubber stamps that say:
You can substitute your book title and ISBN or anything that tells them you have a book for them to read. Don't put price or where to order, forget the hard sell. This is a mini infomercial. You want them to be interested, not feel pressured.
Address labels? Again, VistaPrint.com offers them sometimes for 140 labels for FREE. Same message and stick them on everything. Traveling? When you stop at a Visitor's Center and sign their little guest book, you can stick a label next to your name and address. On any envelope you mail.
If you aren't willing to sing from the highest perch about your book, you had better be willing to take these little tips and make them work for you. THE MORE PEOPLE YOU TELL, THE MORE BOOKS YOU SELL!
Pt. 3 Coming Soon!
1. Facing the studio door, 2. Notice board, 3. Craft book collection, 4. Oak bookcase, 5. Right hand wall, 6. Picture books, 7. Vintage picture books and toys, 8. Work Table, 9. Left hand corner, 10. Best bookcase, 11. The way out 
I love looking at other people's work spaces.
Such wonderful numbers of books.
At least your desk has a lovely clear space on it.
Wow, it would be hard not to feel inspired and motivated in that lovely room. Thanks for sharing it Gretel, I needed cheering up today, and a kick in the seat to get me going :)
Kim x
What a great and wonderful space; inspiration at every turn. And great light!
I took your Flickr tour; I wish I could disappear inside. There are so many things now I'd like to pick up and look at in person!
I love looking at other people's creative spaces! Mine is a horrible mess at the moment.Now I feel inspired to clean it today :)
I wish I could teleport to your house. I think we would have a wonderful afternoon drinking tea and browsing through all your lovely books - we have a lot of the same ones, old and new :)
I think if I came round your house, you'd have to get me to empty my pockets before I left - so much lovely 'stuff'!! Well done on being so tidy too.
Hi, thanks for letting me have a good old nosey at your studio and books. An embroidered church runner for ten pence!!! That has to be the sale of the century, lucky you, its a treasure. Lovely,inspiring artwork, especially the woodblock print.
How are you getting on with the gocco?
It just crackles with creativity. Our bookshelves are very similar...jam-packed!
My husband has, what we call, his little figure shelf. He loves tiny toys, little oddities, etc, and keeps them all on a special shelf where they are often rearranged into strange and stranger vignettes. He would love your studio as much as I.
Fantastic space. It is so tailor made and full of inspiring corners, and colors, and light, and books, and projects underway. And, and, and.
Thank you for the photos.
Cheers!
Hello Gretel,
I just followed the path from silver apples of the moon and reached your lovely blog. :)
Wow! wonderful books! and loads of old ones. (I especially love the covers of old books)
You are lucky to have such an inspiring work space. Thanks for sharing it
Karen x
Your studio is wonderful and I love your book collection. Here in New England they have walking studio tours and you can visit each artist's studio. I love to see where people create, it is so inspirational. Karen
this so could be my studio, except that most of my books are in my living room and most of my studio houses piles of fabric now......
You inspire me to be brave and show more of my stash.......:)
I love your studio too - do you take interns ;-)
Cozy clutter... I love it! (And books make great insulation, no?) Thanks for sharing your space! :-)
Yes, comprehensive is the word and wow too. Thanks for your "Sticky Buns" vote ;~) It certainly is the top favorite......
Your lovely studio is cozy and inspiring and somehow soothing... I should like to sit in there for hours and hours, looking at books, dickering with a project, drawing up plans. I think you've got this work room just right -- no wonder you love it so.
Jenny
Oh my goodness me I can see why you love your studio! I found myself smiling and smiling looking at these pictures. Some of it looks shockingly familiar, do I have to leave? :(
Wow, you do have a lovely studio Gretel. I remember it well.. tho I think it has got a little fuller and acquired a snazzy new piece of computer since then! I like that church runner. I also spy a familiar postcard... and lots of familiar books... in fact I spy rather a lot of things! An EXCELLENT place all round I'd say :)
This is such a lovely, soothing and warming place. Were I an artist (sigh) I would be right at home here. There are so many things of beauty to look at and I especially love how you have collected such beauty over the years of financial hardship and struggle. All of these must mean so much more to you, at least I would think so. Thank you for sharing.
Nice post. Great seeing your library. Purchasing books and manuals is as addicting as buying art supplies.
Your studio is mesmerizing. Can I just come one day and sit and read and play with the toys? Looks like a wonderful-land to me.
For the first time in my life I have a sewing room and your studio is an inspiration to me!
Good to see someone else's mess ooops studio..... so similar to mine over here across the pond. Books, oh yes, they are a constant source of inspiration. And they do fill every corner eventually!
Lovely place. I could move in.
I so love your studio, Gretel!!! All those wonderful books!!!! I am drooling.... I would just sit there for hours if I could, devouring them all. .... Just touring your studio makes my hands itchy to get busy creating something!! Oh thank you!!
your studio reminds me of my own, up in the eaves of my attic, with one dormer window, and too many books! Yours are more neatly arranged however than mine!
This was fun to see the space where the genius happens. So much to look at - all those lovely books. I do have a question about something small....the white ceramic looking thing that your brushes rest on. Funny the things that catch ones eye...although MANY things caught my eye during the tour!
XOXO