We are always looking for new talent – to keep our look and our list fresh. On the third Monday of every month, we have a Design Review where we review design, illustration, and photography portfolios for use in our books. Even if the work isn’t a match for a project that we are currently working on, there might be another project that calls for a specific style or sensibility, so we keep files of the artists’ tear sheets. Designers, illustrators, or photographers should look at the submission guidelines on the website for more info. Alternately, if a designer or editor sees an illustrator or designer’s work out in the world that they really like, they contact them directly for a specific project or will keep their tear sheet on file.

In fact, very few books have illustrators/photographers already on board. For example, let’s suppose someone pitches us an idea for a cookbook—they just pitch us the text component. They aren’t usually a chef AND a photographer. So, that means that the designer for the book is responsible for finding an artist whose sensibility matches that of the project. I find this to be one of the most interesting parts of working at Chronicle—we work with so many talented designers, illustrators, and photographers. The synergy can be really surprising and amazing.

To submit your portfolio, the best thing to do is to follow the submission guidelines on Chronicle’s website. (See link above.) Also, it’s a good idea to really look at a publisher’s website before sending off your proposal. Look and see what in your portfolio has the same aesthetic as the books that they are already producing. Think about how you might be a match for them. And only send your best stuff! It’s tiring (and not usually effective for the artist) for publishers to look through their mediocre work. More is not always better. So, send in a portfolio that’s neat, well-organized, interesting, and “Chronicle” in style. And send tear sheets so that we have something to remember your work with!

A great, innovative idea is the best way to get noticed. When I’m reading a pitch, I like it when I can tell that the author/artist understands the Chronicle aesthetic. (Chronicle products are often quirky, well-designed, and smart.) Can they compare it to something on our list? Has it already been done before? Why is this appealing at this point in time? Basically, the more research the author has put into it, the better. Now, aesthetically speaking, a well-organized, nicely wrapped package is my favorite kind to receive. If it’s a submission for a Gift product (journal, kit, postcard book, etc.), then show a mock-up. The more that you can make it look like it’s already a published, professional object, the easier it will be for the editors to convince others that it should be published!

It totally depends. Depends on how you turn it in, how good of a writer you are, how much text there is, and what the editor/designer wants the project to be. Our final goal is to make sure that each project has integrity. Contractually speaking, the publisher generally has final say on how the finished product comes out (which includes the text and design). However, publishing a book is a collaborative process – at Chronicle, the editor, author, and designer will work together to get it right.

Postcards, journals (of all sizes), kits (many different varieties), calendars (dailies, engagements, and wall), notecards, label boxes, etc. And the great thing about Gift is that we’re always willing to try new formats—once we did Trading Card Stickers. So, if it’s not yet a format, that’s okay—we’re interested in considering it.

Hmmm. Crafts have always been popular, but I think that they are now popular in a different way. Crafty-type projects are becoming more mainstream, more likely to be featured in Vogue. (Can you believe that they have a Vogue Knitting magazine?) I think that craft books/crafty gift products (like the Knit Knack Kit, Knitting Pretty, Stitch-It Embroidery Kit, etc.) will have a long lifespan because there is a new appreciation for craft. Young people are excited to learn how to make stuff themselves. I don’t know though — will people get tired of crafting? Will they want to just buy it already done? Maybe they’ll want to buy a craft project partially completed . . . I hope the craft craze continues — it feels like there has been a good burst of creative energy. And it allows people to create their own clothing, jewelry, etc.

This depends on the type of project that you are submitting. It’s different for a children’s book, for an AT book, for a gift project. It’s probably best to go to the library and check out a book, but here’s a very rough guideline: First, it’s important to be really clear about the project that you are pitching. Why is it cool/different/marketable? Write up a brief summary (concise and clear=very important) of your project. What’s the format? Can you include any visuals? Would a mock-up be helpful? Then include market research. What else is out there? Who is the audience for this? Author bio. What makes you the right person to be the author on this subject? Then take a look at a bookstore and see who publishes the books that are like the one that you want to do? Not worth wasting your time or the publisher’s time in sending a project to a place where it’d never be a match. Also, keep in mind that some publishers don’t accept unsolicited manuscripts. Some only accept them from agents—depending on where you want to submit the idea, you might want to think about getting one. But that’s another conversation. Send it off and, if you don’t hear back, follow-up with an email after about a month or so. Good luck!

Let’s see. I probably get about 5-7 pitches a week. But it varies. And it totally varies by department. The “next step” for a project is to make it out of the slush pile and into a meeting. If I’m interested in a project, I’ll bring it to what we call a Pre-Board meeting. At the Pre-Board, the other people in Gift (production, design, and editorial) let me know what they think of it. Sometimes new questions will come up, or problems, or something that the author needs to re-work before I bring it to a Board. If everybody loves the project, then I’ll bring it to a Board. At our monthly Board meeting, I’ll present the idea to our Sales and Marketing folks. If I can convince them that this project is interesting/smart/great and will make money, then it’s a go. It’s at the Board when we set the print run, which influences how much we can pay someone. The higher the print run, the higher hopes that we have for the project, a greater probability that the author will receive a higher advance.

If we love someone’s work, it doesn’t matter whether we’ve worked with them before. But, as you can imagine, if we’ve had a positive experience working with someone, we might be more likely to try and work with them again. There’s a certain amount of trust that you can develop after working with someone (most books take at least a year and a half to produce!). Yes, a person’s fame/visibility does contribute to the likelihood of publication. We don’t just care if they are famous, but if they have demonstrated that there is a market for what they are producing. If someone has already been featured in magazines and TV, it’s easier for our publicity department to promote them, which we hope leads to more sales. Take the new Angela Adams line. Angela Adams is a great textile designer and by the time that we decided to create a stationery line with her, she had already been in a number of magazines and on TV. So, we were able to use her past publicity to help launch her new line. Or Jill Bliss. She already had started www.blissen.com and had been featured in ReadyMade. It made it easier for me to pitch her work to the Sales/Marketing teams because then they could see that her work was already appealing to people, but perhaps we could distribute her look on a larger scale.