To Hire or Not to Hire: That's the BIG Question. (Pg. 2)

Hiring an Editor

Whew!  This is a complicated subject.  I've realized that most people don't understand a thing about editing a manuscript .  Of course spelling, grammatical, and punctuation errors must be corrected.  But, other mistakes can easily occur during the book-writing process. Among these are mixing up the characters' names,  

Hiring Someone to Design Your Book

The layout of your book is very important.  Your readers will stay focused on each page if they are aesthetically pleasing to the eye.   

Getting Your Book Published

The first thing you need to determine is how much control you want to have over your book. Do you want the content of your book to stay the way you created it or are you willing to have the words, theme, layout, or images altered to the point where it no longer seems like the book you made? 

Hiring an Illustrator

I've had personal experience trying to hire artists.  I've learned that they can be quite fickle. They'll agree to complete the project at the price you offered, tell you how happy they are that you hired them, get your specific instructions, then you don't hear from them.  Granted, as an unsigned author, the fee that an artist thinks his or her work is worth may not be in your budget.  You may offer $200 for four illustrations.  Your offer might be accepted, yet your artist may really be expecting $800.  Sometimes artists see your offer as just a retainer. Maybe they feel if they stall long enough you'll start offering more money for them to produce quicker.  I went through 4 potential artists before I decided to just do the illustrations myself.  I frankly got tired of waiting.  Of course, this is only my personal experience.  Yours may be different.  

But, there are some necessary steps you should take if you decide to hire an illustrator.  Id applicable, be sure to ask the following questions:

1)    May I see your portfolio or some of your work? 

2)   Do you require a retainer before starting the project? 

3)   What is your usual rate?  

4)   What interested you about my project?  

5)   Why did they accept your offer.    

If the artist's answers please you, take the time to draw up a written contract (typed or hand-written) which both of you shall sign.  If applicable, include your book's title, the date of both signatures, your deadline, the full amount the artist is being paid, the artist's retainer fee, whether the illustrations should be in color or in black and white, and how you expect them to be delivered to you (e.g., hand-delivered, Fedex, messenger, USPS, you pick them up, etc.)

                                                                                             

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