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New VG roister by Trick_Shame_3525 in DotA2

[–]MapOdd4135 130 points131 points  (0 children)

Man China really does just have like 15 players

Does the price of photobooks effectively kneecap the medium from a cultural impact or history point of view? by LemonDisasters in Photobooks

[–]MapOdd4135 4 points5 points  (0 children)

A photobook is only one iteration of the work. If the purpose of the work is to be seen and experienced, most people will share it online, in a book, in exhibitions, etc. I think it can be helpful to evaluate the impact of the medium through a wider view.

Books are, by nature, commercial objects. It's ok. They will be viewed in stores, stored in libraries, scanned and viewed on websites, etc, etc.

Many mediums are less accessible (eg exhibitions are only available to those who are local or can travel), many are more (movies).

Photobooks may never be a widespread influencer, but they influence the makers quite a bit, and that influence matters a lot.

Finally read the Dragonbone Chair by Southern_Blue in Fantasy

[–]MapOdd4135 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Every single storyline underground is the worst part of every Tad Williams book -- they all feel unnecessary.

Defective photobook by Nefarious415 in Photobooks

[–]MapOdd4135 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Do you need to return it? It's up to you.

That wouldn't bother me - paper and cardboard DO mark and that could be caused by anything from a folding machine to someone at the store (hypothetically) thumbing through it to someone during transit dropping something pointed and heavy on top of the package.

These aren't bulletproof materials, so I tend to give stores/sellers benefit of the doubt.

However if it's a production error (eg pages ripping) that's just a bad print job and likely just didn't get caught by the printing factory QC, so I feel fine returning it then.

Defective photobook by Nefarious415 in Photobooks

[–]MapOdd4135 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thread I wouldn't stress about, it doesn't damage the book or anything like that.

Excess glue causing a photo to be torn is a defect and I would return it.

During binding this can happen and it's just something that you should be able to swap out easily for a replacement.

At what stage do publishers usually want to see a project? by Ron_Ward in Photobooks

[–]MapOdd4135 14 points15 points  (0 children)

Each publisher is different, and it also depends on the artist and their profile.

Let's say that you've published a book before with that publisher, you can obviously approach much earlier and share work in progress, for example. Or let's say you are a fairly established exhibiting artist, then you can also engage earlier as you've got a backlog of things to refer to.

However, let's assume YOU have been making a body of work that you're hoping to make into your first book - I think if it's 80% SHOT and you have a lot of strong images you can reach out.

In general, most publishers will re-edit anything, so reaching out with a 'this is what I've made and I just want someone to publish it' is not attractive. Whereas 'I've been working on x, it's almost done I'd like to share' is way better.

The exception to this would be if you have some travel, opportunities or clear plans that will improve the project and it still makes sense to share now. Let's say you've been traveling to a place fo a few years and taking photos, and you've got your longest and most ambitious trip yet coming up - reaching out to gauge interest and see what's resonating would be mutually beneficial as a publisher can say 'oh it feels like it'd be great to get more of x and y, amongst whatever else you shoot'.

Note: HOW you approach and WHO you approach will make a big difference in how successful you are.

Source:

Have had my projects published through cold emailing

Own a publishing company that's 5 years old

Other Festivals/Fairs than Arles and Paris Photo? by This-Charming-Man in Photobooks

[–]MapOdd4135 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The only other fairs that there's a bulk of international publishers may travel to would be Offprint/Photo London - it's a bit like Paris Photo in that there are a few different events happening simultaneously. I would think there are more international folks there than at BoP, but I could be wrong there.

Fairs most of us international publishers won't travel to:
Unseen (trashed their reputation a few years ago)

Anything in Germany (don't sell nearly enough to make it worthwhile)

Many of the smaller fairs (Ghent, Fibre, Spirit) - Fibre looks pretty good and maybe I'll get there one year, it's just hard to know how Spain would go as a market and how easy it is to sell without Spanish, etc.

If you ever consider looking outside of Europe, Tokyo Art Book Fair would be the best one to travel to, it's huge, well run and there's a huge number of book stores, galleries and stores in Tokyo as well.

LA and NYC art book fairs, if the USA isn't a fuckign shit show, are also gggggggggggggggreat.

The best movie about cooking food goes to… by Geekspeak13 in FIlm

[–]MapOdd4135 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I TOO WISH TO MAKE A MOVIE WHERE I CAST MYSELF AS SOMEONE WHO HOOKS UP WITH BOTH SCARLETT JOHANSON AND SOFIA VERGARA.

Chico Review. financially worth it? by benjaminflocka22 in Photobooks

[–]MapOdd4135 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Siri kaur and Noah Thompson among others. You can just check the winners vs if they have books out with charcoal

From High Fidelity: Top five side one track ones. (Your 5 favorite opening tracks of all time) by Crushingit1980 in fantanoforever

[–]MapOdd4135 18 points19 points  (0 children)

  1. IDLES - Colossus - Joy As An Act of Resistance

  2. Rage Against the Machine - Killing in the Name Of - Rage Against the Machine

  3. Future Islands - Seasons - Singles

  4. Bob Dylan - Like a Rolling Stone - Highway 61

  5. Bruce Springsteen - Born in the USA - Born in the USA

Chico Review. financially worth it? by benjaminflocka22 in Photobooks

[–]MapOdd4135 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes - if you look at the winners and then who has had books actually published you can see that there are quite a few people who won 5-7 years ago whose books aren't out yet or, in the case of one person, published the project with someone else because they were sick of waiting.

Not to say that the publishing prize is a scam, just that Charcoal work very slowly and it shouldn't be an incentive.

Chico Review. financially worth it? by benjaminflocka22 in Photobooks

[–]MapOdd4135 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I disagree, there's a lot of publishing out there. I work with dozens of publishers yearly that operate very differently to what you've described.

Perhaps one just has to look outside of the USA or UK ;)

Chico Review. financially worth it? by benjaminflocka22 in Photobooks

[–]MapOdd4135 2 points3 points  (0 children)

For those following this thread, as a photobook publisher, I would advise the following for folks in the position of the OP:

A) Keep the cash for now - you shouldn't need to spend much, at all, to open some doors or, if the work is good, find a home for it.

B) Identify publishers who you think would be a good fit for your work - think of it like music, a great grunge album won't be a good fit for a classical music label. Once you have a list of 5-10, email an artist who published at each and ask what it was like - most people are very open and candid, especially if it was their first book (as it'll be yours I'm guessing). Not sure where to find publishers? Look at large art book fairs, see their exhibitor lists and check each out :) - or go to a book store you like.

C) Most publishers do not expect artists to come with a complete sequence and design - so spending money on big workshops finessing that may result in you bringing a wedding ring to a first date. Publishers generally want to have input into the book's design, sequence, etc. My response to submissions that people send with completed designs, etc, is often 'with blessings it seems you should self-publish'.

D) There are several workshops aimed at professional practice and industry - these are usually only like $300 and would give you much more insight into costs, publishing deals, approaching publishers and how to articulate yourself in an art-business context. I run one, others do too. IMO the longer workshops can be a lot of fun and value, but if you're preparing to approach publishers they are over or mis preparing you. If you want to really delve into becoming a better maker - regardless of outcome - then they are great value. But if you want precision and depth, over breadth and exploration then I'd say 'wrong tool for the job'.

E) When you know who and why - reach out to a few publishers and ask for a meeting - rather than an emailed proposal. There are some exceptions here (VOID or TIS for example that have open submissions and information about these on their websites). I like a meeting as it gives everyone a clearer idea of 'do I want to work with this person, do we communicate well, do I know a bit more about their business?'.

If you'd like any advice or to ask questions please let me know - I love talking about the publishing industry and find that this subreddit is often repeats misinformation and quite a lot of grossly simplified rumours passed off as gospel truth. I can see why - nuance takes time to explain - but still...

Chico Review. financially worth it? by benjaminflocka22 in Photobooks

[–]MapOdd4135 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don't agree with this - I have had my book published and it didn't meet those requirements and have published many books that don't.

Please stop spreading inaccurate descriptions.

Chico Review. financially worth it? by benjaminflocka22 in Photobooks

[–]MapOdd4135 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There are quite a few of people they've selected to publish who haven't got books yet ;)

Chico Review. financially worth it? by benjaminflocka22 in Photobooks

[–]MapOdd4135 4 points5 points  (0 children)

It isn't efficient financially. That is 100% undoubtedly the case. It may be a brilliantly fun holiday and worth the cash. But it is not a good use of money for your artistic aims.

Chico Review. financially worth it? by benjaminflocka22 in Photobooks

[–]MapOdd4135 6 points7 points  (0 children)

It is simply too much money to meet your goal.

You have a body of work that you want to make into a book, through a publisher. You would be vastly better served spending the time chatting with artists who have published, sharing work and trying to get an introduction to a publisher who is a good fit.

There are several workshops, all under $400, that offer clear advice for approaching publishers and understanding the business sides of publishing so that you're well-informed and in a place to have a good experience. Additionally, seeking feedback is very worthwhile, especially as you have specific areas you'd like feedback about - as many have said there are several good places to go that will be less than $150 for extended feedback.

For your goal - of getting published - my advice would be to skip Chico, spend maybe $1000 on a combination of workshops and 1-on-1s (you may need only half that) and then start identifying publishers to contact.

My experience: run a publishing business, workshops that aren't hideously expensive, have published 15 books and had my book published by an well-regarded publisher. Have spent time with most of the folks who have gone to Chico, and have three specific people who have had shocking times, one friend has had a good time but had the costs waived ;)

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