The art of bookkeeping

It doesn't seem like much of an art to an artist, but I'm sure an accountant would be very proud of what I've accomplished today. I was stuck at home while my car was being serviced, so I decided to tackle my 2006 papers and records. I can't believe I got the whole thing done. I'm almost IRS-ready. This is a first. Usually I just box the 2006 records right after New Year's, then put them aside to sort when my husband says he's ready to go to the accountant. I do all the household bookkeeping and my studio books, as well. Everything has been tallied up to correspond to the computer records. You cannot believe what a relief this is. Oh, yes, you probably can. Now would be the time to shoot off the fireworks I heard on New Year's Eve!

The final task for The New Creative Artist

Closing the book on The Book, so to speak. North Light returned all the artwork for the book several weeks ago, but I was in the middle of an attack of shingles that seriously hampered my productivity for nearly a month. Meanwhile, everything else piled up, as well, including bills to pay, my student exhibit at Hithergreen and preparation for a creativity workshop coming up next week in Dallas. Everything seemed to pale in comparison to the job of returning the slides and transparencies to contributing artists. They have been so patient, not nagging me to return their slides. Even though I turned the book in to the editors in September of 2005, we were still juggling illustrations for space and suitability up until the book went to the printer in January or February, 2006. The production people needed the originals for comparison during production. But I finally decided last week to put everything else aside and get the slides returned. More than 400 slides were submitted by 65 artists. I had requested no more than five from each artist. Some artists sent as many as 38 and 29. My policy is to select five of those and ignore the rest. (Please remember, there isn't any advantage to overloading the author, in case you're asked to submit a specific number. It's just an extra burden for the author, who may not appreciate it.) I haven't counted how many were actually in the book, but every artist who submitted had at least one and several had two, three and four. I checked in every slide or transparency against the Art Log I had submitted with the manuscript. Then I sorted them and put them in my alphabetical files. I checked each artist's slides against the permission form they had signed to be sure all the slides were there. Then I printed an insert to place in every package. (I had too many left over, so I guess some didn't get into the packages.) I had already printed mailing labels, so I processed each envelope, selecting one of two sizes of envelope and cutting pieces of cardboard to protect the envelopes from folding in the mail. I stamped each one "Do Not Bend," put on a return address label, weighed it, applied postage and sealed it. Three from Canada and several oversize pieces had to be processed at the post office. The job took me two-and-a-half days of continuous work. It's nerve-wracking work. You might ask why I didn't get help to do this, but I did that once and a slide I had checked in personally turned up missing. I hate it when that happens. Well, it's done, now I hope the PO doesn't lose any of them!

Packing for a workshop

Yesterday I shipped two boxes of supplies and books for my color workshop in New Jersey by UPS. I dropped them off at Office Depot because I don't have a scale that will weigh packages over five pounds. I used my online UPS account and was delighted to find that the person I shipped to two years ago is still in my UPS address book. All I had to do was click here and there and the boxes were ready to go. It's easier to pack for a color or watercolor workshop than it is for collage and creativity, so it wasn't such a big deal this time. I used to ship only my books that I take for sale. I packed my supplies in one suitcase, my clothes in another, and used a carryon for things I couldn't risk losing, like the outline of the class and handouts. Since 9/11 I've been shipping as much as I can and taking just one suitcase and one carryon. This time I'm going to try to get by with checking one suitcase and carrying a large tote bag, instead of a purse and carryon. I haven't found check-ins to be that bad, but I try to think ahead and make it easier for myself and the security people. Travel isn't as much fun now as it was when I did my first workshop in 1986, but as long as I have a good book and a few sudoku puzzles I can kick back and endure whatever comes along.

I hope I haven't forgotten anything.

On mailing lists and art marketing

The Left Brain strikes again. On Saturday I described the three tasks I have to do and the order in which I expected to do them. My compulsive nature rose up and I began entering addresses into my Access database yesterday. I rationalized that the workshop shipment wouldn't go out until after Labor Day anyway, so it could wait another day. I convinced myself that the book outline is shaping up in my mind and will come pouring forth when it's ready (or on Tuesday, whichever comes first). So I typed and input, and input and typed, taking a break now and then to maintain my sanity. (Too late!)

But! I got all the records updated. I filed the stacks of addresses. I feel like a major cloud has passed that has been hanging over me for a long time. In fact, I don't even care if I use the database right away--just knowing it will be ready when I need it is a big relief. I didn't like struggling to gather addresses for the book-signing. Now it will be a piece of cake to sort a mailing list and print labels.

This seems like a ridiculous entry for an art and creativity blog, but the truth is that part of both is doing the marketing. Artists and writers who want to be successful must spend a significant part of their time spreading the word. One of my high-school teachers said, "You have to toot your own horn, because no one will do it for you." One artist on an art mailing list had been taught that she should let someone else toot her horn for her. You could wait a long time for someone else to do that. I've been observing artists on the Internet for over ten years now and the ones who are thriving are the ones who beep their own horns.

Studio Clean-up

Sort of. I've been moving piles of stuff around, pretending that I'm getting organized. My first task is to find all my notes for a new book project, outline needed early next week. They're here somewhere, but where? The new stack is growing higher, so maybe I've collected most of it. I'll be laboring on Labor Day on the outline.

My second task is to gather my materials for the New Jersey workshop and ship them off ASAP. I used to take them with me in a suitcase and a carryon, but I don't want to risk a hassle at the airport. I've been shipping ahead for a couple of years now and it has worked well so far. If my shipment goes out today, it probably won't ship until Tuesday, but it should still get there before the workshop starts on the following Tuesday. To be on the safe side I'll carry my class notes and copies of each handout with me.

My third task is to update my mailing list database. Ack! After almost four years of neglect, the stack of un-entered addresses has grown into a tower. While I haven't used the list for awhile, it is suddenly becoming necessary. It was hard to collect the names and addresses I needed for my book signing invitation (The New Creative Artist) and about a dozen were returned because I hadn't been updating the list. Yesterday I gritted my teeth and sorted through the stacks of receipts and class rosters to find the ones that need to be entered. My plan is to do a page or two each day. I've already made some headway--I'm up to 2004!

The Art of the Press Release

Years ago, when I was active in most of the area art orgs, I served on several boards as publicity chairman. Back then it was extremely difficult for a visual artist or local art group to get into the print media or on TV. It was partly because the arts editors back then had a bias toward the performing arts and didn't think local visual artists or groups had anything going for them. But also because the groups in question didn't do a very good job of PR. I helped to turn that around by working up a list of one hundred media outlets that covered the arts, including small weeklies from surrounding communities. I also established a press-release format to be used for all events. That seemed to help at the time. Now, our local papers are more involved in promoting visual arts, partly because of the interest of the editors themselves and partly because of the advocacy of the Dayton Visual Arts Center (DVAC).

My publisher has a PR person who was given my bio and information on The New Creative Artist. He told me he has an extensive media guide and there is a procedure for putting out publicity on a new book release. I have no idea what this means. So to be on the safe side, I decided to send out some publicity of my own regarding my book signing next Thursday, August 17. I reduced my original list to about forty newspapers and sent press releases on the signing, including a background of the book and a brief bio. I should have sent them out about a week sooner than I did, but couldn't get to it in time. Nevertheless, I'm hearing reports that notices are appearing here and there in the suburban and small-town papers. There was also a brief notice in the Dayton Daily News this morning. I targeted one arts writer in that paper with a more detailed package, but I haven't heard from her. The Shreveport artists have gotten more publicity than the author has in her own home town so far. Well, maybe there will be something over the weekend. Ya nevah know.

I'm getting excited about the event, working on a brief "audience participation" program that should be fun. Then I'll sign books and the artists will sign the pages their illustrations appear on. We did this with the original book and I frequently had students in my later workshops who treasured their books and took them to demos and workshops so artists in the book could add their signatures. So far, seventeen artists have said they'll be there and I expect a few more than that.

"Oh, Bother"

That's what Pooh Bear would say about my shenanigans this week. I allotted a certain amount of time to do promotion for my book signing, including mailing 140 postcard announcements to students and friends and about fifty press releases to area newspapers. I had it all worked out, cards designed, releases written and address labels printed. On Tuesday I mailed the postcards and this morning I mailed the media releases. When I got home from the post office today, I had a message in my voice mail: "Why does your postcard say the book-signing is July 17?" I don't know, why does it? Because I missed a typo. I must have read the stupid card twenty times. Now I know why they say we see what we expect to see. I saw "August 17" where it clearly said "July 17"--every time I looked at it. Oh, bother.

I quickly designed a correction notice and started printing it on 4-up postcards. Only this time the printer decided it didn't like the postcards. It took forever to get them printed. Oh, bother. But it only took a minute to print the labels. Fortunately I had saved the file I made for the first mailing. (Sing a song of bees & hunny.) I went to the post office late this afternoon, bought more stamps and mailed the correction notice.

I'm praying fervently that I didn't make any mistakes in the press releases. I'm afraid to look at the file. I sure wish I had taken my own advice, which is somewhere in my web site articles on marketing: Always have someone else proofread your copy.

Oh, bother.

Postal Blues

No wonder people freak out and "go postal." I've been having my share of problems getting my books shipped out, but it isn't entirely the fault of the local post office. Somewhere in the area there was a major blunder by a construction crew that has caused all kinds of problems with electrical and phone lines. This happened a few days before I started shipping my books last Saturday. There was a brief time when things worked properly and my first shipment went out okay. It's slow (media mail), but the deliveries are happening. In fact, to my great surprise, a couple of books that were shipped on Saturday arrived here in Dayton on Monday. The rare exception, unfortunately. I sent 25 on Saturday, 28 on Monday and about the same on Tuesday and Wednesday. Because of the outage, I can't get any information from delivery confirmation that they've been sent. I finally learned that they must go from Centerville (Dayton) to Cincinnati before they can come back to Dayton or go anywhere else in the country. I checked online and nothing was scanned in for three days in Cincinnati. I don't know whether the books were sitting around in the post office or on their way. It has been very frustrating. The people at my post office are so helpful that I don't complain, because it isn't their fault. But I sure felt sorry for them when I went in today with a few more packages and found that the air conditioning in the post office had been off all day--a very hot and humid one, at that. I asked Mary how she could keep smiling in that stifling heat, and she said, "Well, it's better than crying." Tomorrow morning I'll ship 20 books and on Monday I'll deliver the last 10 to my students. I'm still taking orders, but I'll be just as happy if folks buy from Amazon.com or their local book store!

Selling used art books

Last week was pretty intense, getting my studio ready for my open-house-and-used-art-book-sale. The studio needed a little shake-up anyway. So when we cleaned the garage the weekend before, I just brought in the crates of books I had stored out there when I stopped selling books on eBay. I had a nice little following for my books on eBay for quite awhile, but when they moved the category I couldn't seem to connect with my customers, so I gave it up. (Does anybody know a good category for used art books on eBay? Please comment!) It didn't help that I caught a cold from my daughter and somehow hurt my hip, maybe hoisting all those books. All better now. The sale and open house was a success. The invite list was small, just my two classes and a group of former students. I sold sixty books, but still have crates of them and I'm wondering what to do next. I used to have an "Adopt-a-Book" page on my web site, maybe I should revive it. I've given away many, many books in years past, but it helps to sell a few so I can afford to buy some more. Does that make sense? Probably not.

Updating web site links

I'm just about wiped out after adding dozens of art links to my web site. It's so easy to click the Favorites button when you see something you want to add later, but they sure do pile up. I also get a lot of emails from artists who want to be linked to my site. Those have been on hold, too, while I finished my book. I visit each site before linking to it and this takes a lot of time. I'm not wild about sites that feature hand-painted original van Goghs or your choice of Rembrandts and Vermeers. Then, there are the coupon sites, the marketing sites and the gallery sites where an artist can post work for a fee and hope to sell something without making a personal web site. I try to avoid those, but I've probably been suckered and have a couple on my links. I hope not. Let me know if you catch one. And speaking of being suckered, I hope you haven't fallen for the scams that are targeting artists now. You get an email that a guy just loves your art. Sometimes he names specific pieces. He sends you a money order, usually for a greater amount than the sale, and you're supposed to send him the balance when you ship the paintings. Of course, the money order bounces and if you've shipped the paintings, they're gone forever. One artist emailed a scammer to pay by PayPal and that made him disappear. I'm done ranting for now. Tomorrow I'm doing two lectures on color for a knitting guild in Dayton, always fun. I love fiber artists.

To market, to market

Marketing art is such a big subject. I love the quote below from Pat Chapin, an artist I've known through a couple of art mailing lists for several years. Her point is so clearly stated: you have to be proactive if you want to sell your art. There are many different ways of doing this, and maybe I'll talk about them another day, but it really does begin with you and what you do to bring the customers to you. The Internet makes it appallingly obvious how many artists are out there competing for sales, but it's less obvious how many customers there are and what they're buying. Another artist I met in my early days on the Web has risen to the challenge and is doing a good job marketing and selling her oils and acrylics. She now has five videos, a couple of books, a newsletter and lots of studio and plein air paintings moving quickly out of her web site and into people's homes. She teaches workshops, gives demos, exhibits in shows and conducts her art business in a professional manner. You need a plan and "ya gotta have art" if you want to succeed.

No matter how much we might wish for it, the world will not beat a path to your door until you have cleared the way, rolled out carpet and installed lighting. --Pat Chapin

Do you know where your art is?

I've always been pretty good at keeping records of all kinds. When I started painting 35 years ago, I recorded every painting I did, including all the student work and the losers. The details helped me remember what I needed to work on. Then I started noting the colors used, paper weight, finish and manufacturer. My record book also shows what source I used for the painting and which were started in workshops. Shows and awards. Purchasers. It has been useful more than once when I wanted to reprise a color scheme in a painting or find out where a painting was. Which is why this is on my mind. Last week my editor at North Light Books requested a 4x5 transparency of one of my paintings that's going to be in my new book. I went to my trusty record book, found the painting listed and discovered that a gallery, now closed, had sold it and I didn't have the name of the collector. What made this even more frustrating was that some months ago someone in one of my watercolor classes told me they owned that painting--and I couldn't remember who had said it. I took it for granted it was in my record book, so I didn't make a note of it. A good memory and a little detective work located the owner. I picked up the painting last night and took it to the photographer's today.

There are three morals to this story. One is to ask your galleries for the names of your collectors. The second is to get quality photos and transparencies made of your best work as soon as you finish it, so you'll have them when you need them for reproductions in books, magazines or giclees. If you're lucky, you'll sell the piece, but it isn't always easy to get a collector to allow you to take it back to have it photographed, no matter what your reason may be. And the third is to keep good records. This is all part of the business of art.