Bookishness: The Future of Print & Digital Books

Cómo crear libros impresos extraordinarios

h d lThad McIlroyTheFutureofPublishing.comSan Francisco & Vancouver

Foros del Libro, BogotáApril 30, 2015

BookishnessThe Future of the Book

h d lThad McIlroyTheFutureofPublishing.comSan Francisco & Vancouver

Foros del Libro, BogotáApril 30, 2015

A bit about me...

I’m a book publisher (4 companies) I’m an author (15 books) I m an author (15 books) I’m a technologist (30 years)

TheFutureofPublishing.com

My New 2015 Books

Bookishness on my Blog

Outline

Thinking about “AND” How to make a print book and an How to make a print book and an

ebook complement each other “Bookishness” is about MAGIC Bookishness is about MAGIC A whole bunch of examples How to be a Bookish publisher

Proviso

Three types of publishing: trade, professional, textbook

This session is focused on trade books for a broad readershipfor a broad readership

Professional books are presumed to be immune to beauty: wrongbe immune to beauty: wrong

Textbooks do follow a different code

The Future of PublishingThe 9th LawThe 9 LawBlack + white thinking is anathema to appreciating change.

Change is not either/or. It’s and.

See my “Laws of the Future of Publishing”: http://thefutureofpublishing.com/the-laws-of-the-future-of-publishing/

The Book Battle is Over:Two WinnersTwo Winners

Ebooks are going to co-exist with printed books for the foreseeable future

How do you make the most of each opportunity?pp y

This session concerns making the most of the print opportunitymost of the print opportunity

Why Print?

The Print Tradition is Still Strong

Fernando Botero, detail

Bookishness is all About Manufacturing Magic in PrintManufacturing Magic in Print

Let’s Look at Some ExamplesLet s Look at Some Examples

Covers that Jump

The Yellow WorldAlbert Espinosa, 2012

Tartamudo, Animal Extinto Editorial

Storybooksy

The Invention of Hugo Cabret is a 550-page book that is not a exactly a novel, not quite a picture book not really apicture book, not really a graphic novel, or a flip book or a movie, but abook or a movie, but a combination of all these things.

FromThe Invention ofHugo CabretHugo Cabretby Brian Selznick

Miss Peregrine’s Home

TypographyTypography

1968

Trim & BindTrim & Bind

Trim Size

Trim: Deckled Edges

Trim: Coloring

“Those of you who have seen my book, whatever you think of its contents, will probably agree that it is a beautiful object.”

li h S f di—Julian Barnes: The Sense of an Ending

Beauty is its Own Reward

I Wonder by Marian BantjesI Wonder by Marian Bantjes

Tree of Codes

Jonathan Safran Foer, Tree of Codes, 2010, ,

Educational Titles

The Autobiography of Mark Twain Published by the University of Published by the University of

California Press Now in its Third Volume Now in its Third Volume Availalable online for free, but from

the archi esthe archives An enormous bestseller

Biblioteca Nacional de Colombia

What are the most beautiful books in your collection?books in your collection?

How were they printed?How were they printed?

H ld d d hHow would you reproduced them today?

Print Interactivity?

P d ti S ifi tiProduction Specifications:A Taxonomy of Bookishness

Binding• Cover material – cloth, paper

Paper• Paper – Interior – Weight

• Paper covers – weight, laminate• Embossing and stamping• End sheets

g• Paper – Interior – Style, i.e. rag,

spotted, etc.• Paper – Interior – Color • End sheets

• Binding – Side sewn, Smyth Sewn, Double Fan adhesive, Oversewn

Paper Interior Color• Paper – Interior – Inks• Glossy stock for photographs

Folded sheet for maps etc Oversewn• Folded sheet for maps, etc.

The difficulty for book publishers

Book production is a specialty• The largest publishers have full-time g p

print buyers

But you can be trainedy The printer is your friend, not your

over-priced supplierover priced supplier

The Economics of Print

Since desktop publishingThe cost of creative -75%The cost of creative 75%The cost of prepress -85%

Since on-press automationThe cost of print -30%

Summary

Don’t leave print on auto-pilot Planning starts with the author Planning starts with the author The physical & digital must interact

with one anotherwith one another If you can dream it, China can produce it Supercharge print production

Thank youythad@thefutureofpublishing.com

Resources

Bookmaking: Editing, Design, Production, Marshall Lee, Norton, 2004

The All New Print Production Handbook David Bann The All New Print Production Handbook, David Bann, RotoVision SA, 2006

Book Production, Adrian Bullock, Routledge, 2012g XBITS (Book Manufacturing User Group)

The Case of Textbook Publishing

Well-established design rules The student is not the customer, it is The student is not the customer, it is

the teacher/professor, the school or the governmentthe government

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