Studio Musings

Wednesday, January 1, 2014

New Year's Plans - a New Take on Freeform Peyote Beading

It's time to write the sequel to Freeform Peyote Beading!

My first book, Freeform Peyote Beading was totally a labor of love, born out of the belief that there must be others, somewhere, interested in the same crazy beading that I was.  When I began that project there were no other books out in the field.  Writing Freeform Peyote Beading I worked in largely uncharted territory, deciding what were the most essential elements necessary to be successful in this medium.  I know there have been comments that my book could have been more.  I have to agree - even then there was so much more I wanted to add.  But in the interest of actually completing the project, I decided it was 'enough to be getting on with' as one of my friends would say. 

In the past four years, my comfort and skills with the entire writing/editing and publishing process have grown tremendously.  Better yet, I'm now part of a community of individuals from around the world interested in beadweaving in general and freeform beading in specific.  And I know I'm not totally bonkers thinking that someone, somewhere might also be interested in my finished book.

So, after much thinking and plotting and planning through the second half of last year, I decided that 2014 is the time to create a new and improved version of Freeform Peyote Beading.  I committed to that first project on January 1 of 2010, so it seems only fitting that I announce my intentions to create it's sequel here on my blog on the first day of 2014.  Some of you may have seen my comment in the Freeform Peyote Beading group, but here's the formal (at least as formal as I tend to get) announcement:

The new book will be:

Larger and Longer  The new book will be a full 8 1/2 x 11” paperback topping out at 150 pages - nearly twice the length of my original!

Full-bleed photography  The full-color interior layout will include full-bleed photographs allowing me to expand the images all the way to the edges of the page. 

More Designs, More Artwork, New Projects Most of the additional pages will be devoted to more and expanded beading examples and more in-depth tutorials with new designs.

Works by Other Artists  I am in awe of the wonderfully vibrant community of artists working in this medium and hope to include and promote other artists through the medium of my book.  As such, I am and will be actively soliciting participation through a Call for Artists.   While I plan to post a Call for Artists here on my blog, let me know if you’d like to receive an email notification when it goes live.  

Not Just Jewelry  I'm adding a completely new chapter entitled “Beyond Jewelry” which will focus on freeform beading as a sculptural medium, including beading over ready made forms such as glass bottles and free-standing sculptures.

Index Amongst other things, I'm currently at work developing a list of keywords and phrases for a comprehensive index to make finding information even easier. 

Digital Publishing I am also hoping to publish in both Kindle and PDF digital versions as well.

Expected publication date: December 2014.  My plan is to have it available on Amazon by or before December 1st.

It's a long journey between here and there, with many, many steps.  To help guide me on my way, I have my detailed outline along with my somewhat daunting production plan with deadlines for each element of writing, beading, photography, illustration, editing, page layout and more.  And I'm ready to start.  Excited, a little scared, part of me wondering what in the world I'm doing, but excited to dig in.

Is there something in particular you'd really love to see in the book?  Now's the time to let me know!  I'd love to hear your suggestions.  

On January 15th, I'll be launching a Kickstarter campaign to continue building a community of supporters and to help me fund this project.  In a project of this scale, community is so important.  I want to continue to show the world what Freeform Peyote is all about and share some of the best and brightest from our community in the pages of my book.  It will also be great to have that financial support while I work on a project of this size. 

With this great new book project and my first Kickstarter, 2014 looks like it will be a fantastic year and here's wishing that yours will be just as wonderful!

Happy New Year!

15 comments:

  1. Sounds fantastic! Freeform is my favorite, as I abhor structure and rules! Looking forward to the book!

    Happy New Year!

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    1. Thank you, and I know what you mean! I abhor having to count while I'm trying to create. The two halves of my brain don't work together that way. Freeform is a wonderfully abstract art form where I'm guided by color, texture and line rather than a specific pattern.

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  2. How exciting Karen! No doubt it will be amazing!! Let me know if you'd like to do an interview in Bead Chat Magazine for the launch of your book? We can coordinate with with your timing

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    1. That sounds fantastic! I've a long way to go between now and publication, but I will definitely be in touch!

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  3. It is always good to have a goal and it sounds like you even have a plan. Good luck to you and have a great 2014 Karen.

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  4. Good luck, Karen! Let me know when your call for artists goes out. I love freeform. Happy New Year!

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    1. Will do! I'm working on the details of the Call for Artist right now, trying to create as win-win a setup as I can for everyone involved and will let you know as soon as I have it posted.

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  5. Awesome Karen! I know your book will be fabulous and I will be right here if you need anything :)

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  6. Karen, that is fabulous. It will be an awesome book. I love kick starter and it is a great way to get funding. Count me in as a backer. :)

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    1. Thanks Tanya! This will be my first Kickstarter campaign and I'm really excited. Joe's going to help me with my video next weekend. :)

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  7. Karen, you call this a sequel to your first book - will it be a companion? Or one that should replace the first one?

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    1. I'm seeing this more as a companion. There will be some overlap between the two in terms of the basics of freeform peyote, but all of my featured designs will be different. Because this book will be so much longer, I'll be able to go into more depth in several areas and include some entirely new topics (such as sculptural works). That also means this book will likely cost a bit more due to increased printing costs.

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  8. What fantastic news!! This has made my day - heck, it's made my week! You know I love your work and the way you help others follow their creative vision...can't wait to see this come to life!

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  9. Great news, Karen! I loved the first iteration and I'm sure will love the second even more...best of luck with it!!

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