Episode 29 Building a Quilt Book Proposal with Amanda Niederhauser

Amanda Niederhauser returns as our guest star on today’s episode of the Make + Design Podcast. She and Carina take a look at Amanda’s quilting book, “Playful Precut Quilts,” and take a deep dive into what Amanda did to get the book published. Playful Precut Quilts is a “how to” book that gives step-by-step instructions on how to make quilts with pre-cut fabrics. You’ll want to check out the YouTube video on this one so that you can see Amanda’s beautiful book! 

But first, here is the link to the YouTube exclusive Trunk Show that Carina and Amanda talk about at the beginning of the episode! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2b3cUMC-t9w 

During the discussion on getting the book published, Amanda talks about how important it is to be able to handle rejection. Prior to Playful Precut Quilts, she had submitted many book ideas to several publishers and was rejected every time. Amanda also walks us through the proposal process: for a quilting book, this meant that she had to design every quilt and include it in the proposal. The proposal also includes data on the author’s experience, their social media presence, and projections on the size of the potential target audience for the book. The proposal for Amanda’s book took several months. Her experience with prior proposals meant that the proposal for Playful Precut Quilts incorporated all she had learned from her prior attempts.

Amanda walks us through the busy schedule of making 13 full quilts in six months to meet her deadlines after her publisher accepted her proposal. Turns out that when you make a book about quilts, you have to make the quilts that are featured in it for photos and marketing! Not gonna lie. Carina is in awe of all that production. The publishing process also required her to write all of the patterns and design the illustrations for the book. We also hear about the back and forth between the various departments within the publisher (graphics, layouts, copy) and Amanda as they got the book ready for final publication. What a great behind-the-scenes look at publishing in the crafting industry!

 

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Download Carina’s free guide: The 7 Tips Nobody Will Tell You About Becoming a Surface Pattern Designer here: http://eepurl.com/dN2RcY 

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About Carina Gardner:

Carina Gardner is a fabric designer, paper designer, and design educator who is passionate about helping other designers fulfill their creative dreams by teaching them her strategies for making money as a designer. She has a Ph.D. in Design and taught design at the University of Minnesota before starting Carina Gardner, Inc.

 

Carina Gardner, Inc design brand has been featured in dish ware, holiday decor, sewing patterns, and more. Her exclusive Design Suite Program helps creatives make money designing as they learn to design. Her programs include Illustrator and Photoshop training, surface pattern design, paper design, Silhouette & Cricut file design, and running a design business. She started the Make and Design Podcast so that she could share inspiration, stories, and experiences about design and life with crafters and designers.