Kate Harper's Blog: Art Licensing and Card Design Interviews

Here are a list of interviews on this blog applicable to the greeting card and gift industry.

THE HI-TECH ARTIS

Licensing Art for Electronic Devices

Art Licensing on Tech Products

Artist Publishes Digital Children's book

Licensing Artist goes "high tech" in Surtex Booth

How I Use Email to Sell Art & Get Leads

How I Sell my Designs Online: Jude Maceren

Selling My Art Through Social Media

How Artists Can Use Twitter in Their Business

How Blogging Led Me To Art Licensing

MANUFACTURER INTERVIEWS

Interview with Wall Art Manufacturer

Card Publisher Talks about the Digital Shift

Artists or Agents? Tips by Susan January

GREETING CA

RD INTERVIEWS

Meet the Master of Greeting Card Writing

Greeting Card Rep Talks about Trends

Greeting Card Award Winner Interview

Breaking into the Greeting Card Writing Market

Audio Interview: Getting into the Greeting Card Writing Market

ART LICENSING INTERVIEWS

When Religious Faith Meets Licensing

Surfboard Artist Talks about Art Licensing

Interview with Licensing Artist Patti Gay

Great Images from Italian Publisher & Artist

Interview with Licensing Artist Sara Henry

Artist BJ Lantz Talks About Licensing

Interview with Card Artist Valéry Goulet

Sean Kane: Fun Designs from Bikes to Teapots

CONSULTANT INTERVIE

How to Stay Positive & Move Forward in Art Licensing, in a Negative Economy

Special Interview with J'net Smith on Art Branding

Protecting Your Art: Interview with Alyson B. Stanfield

Interview with Greetings etc. Editor, Kathy Krassner

10 Things You Can Do, to Make Time for Art

Greeting Card Designer Booklets on Amazon

You can support this blog by ordering e-Booklets that are a compilation of different articles on this blog starting at only .99 cents! They can be read on your kindle, ipad, ipod, cellphone, or your computer. Free samples and lending options available.

ART LICENSING

Booklet on 20 Steps to Art Licensing that is a list of suggested steps to to take for getting into art licensing. How to license your art to companies that publish greeting cards, and manufacture coffee mugs, magnets, wall hangings, kitchen items, and dozens of other gift items. This booklet covers 20 basic steps from how to prepare your art, to what companies to contact. It includes topics on: How to find agents, classes and what trade shows to attend. There are extensive resources on social media, licensing community groups, and lists of interviews with professional designers (5,200 words).

CARD WRITING

Booklet on 7 Mistakes Greeting Card Writers Make A list of 7 things to avoid when submitting greeting card verse to publishers.

Includes a list of card publishers and their guidelines, links to writer interviews, articles, card samples and other current resources. 20-page booklet and 2,300 words and 8 Pages of Card Samples.

GETTING YOUR CARDS INTO STORES

Get Your Greeting Cards Into Stores. A If you already make your own greeting cards, this book explains how to get your cards into stores and sell them sell nationwide. Included are guidelines on: how to price your cards for a profit, how to get professional feedback, where to find a sales representative and and what industry standards you should follow. All the information is also applicable to gift items, such as magnets, journals, calendars, collectibles, etc.

MARKETING CARDS

Booklet on Unusual Ways To Market Greeting Cards, and 22 places to get your designs featured. A 20 page booklet on how to get your cards noticed in non-traditional ways. Everything from why you should send cards to your dentist, to how to get special features in national publications. Great tips for designers who are starting out and want to get their cards into the hands of people beyond friends and family. Special Section: Submissions guidelines and contacts for 22 Gift Industry publications and professional gift industry blogs that seek out new greeting card designs to feature for free. (5,000 Words and 17 greeting card images included)

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BOOKS FOR THE CARD DESIGN

These are books I own and recommend. Some may be out of print, but used copies may be available. Check link.

Start & Run a Greeting Cards Business Book covers starting a card business in the UK. Good basic info, but financial/measurement info is in different monetary units.

Greeting Card Design Book that shows examples of professional card design.

Publishing Your Art as Cards How to make and sell your own cards for an extra income.

Pushing the Envelope How to work with greeting card sales reps.

Complete Guide to Greeting Card Design and Illustration Great Book on understanding the greeting card profession and how to develop a style.

1000 Handmade Greetings: creative cards and clever correspondence This is not a simple craft book for hobbyists,instead it is a picture book of professionally handmade cards by leading companies and designers.

By the Batch: Creative Cards, Postcards, Envelopes & More Book that addresses how to "manufacture" handmade greeting cards.

How to Write and Sell Greeting Cards, Bumper Stickers, Tshirts and Other Fun Stuff

Sell the Fun Stuff: Writers' and Artists' Market Guidelines for Greeting Cards, Posters, Rubber Stamps, T-Shirts, Aprons, Bumper Stickers, and More!

Writing Card Sentiments

Freelance Writing for Greeting Cards Another good book on how to write for cards professionally.

You Can Write Your Own Greeting Cards Clear guidelines on how to write card sentiments professionally.

Finding the Right Words One of many basic books of this series that tells you how to add words products, cards, etc.

Licensing Your Art to Companies

Licensing Art and Design

Licensing Art 101 Good beginners guide on the art licensing business.

2011 Artist's and Graphic Designer's Market List of greeting card companies, art licensees and agents.Detailed information on submission guidelines.

Gift and Product Design

Start with a Scan One of a kind book that tells you how to transform your art into a scan and what to do with it from there.

Design Your Own Repeat Patterns Simple book on learning repeats.

Twentieth-Century Pattern Design Great book for inspiration and creative approaches to designing patterns.

How to Break into Product Design Overview of product design in all industries.

Designing a Digital Portfolio Shows you how to put a digital portfolio together for the modern era.

Mary Engelbreit: The Art And The Artist Amazing story of how Mary ended up doing licensing.

Principles of Pattern Design Good info on pattern design

Imagery on Fabric Basic info on putting images onto fabric.

Graphic Artist's Guild Handbook of Pricing Yearly updated guidelines for pricing for people in art careers.

5,000 Years of Textiles Far East, Americas, Africa, Scandinavia, and Egyptian. Good for studying fabric design.

Abstract Design and How to Create It Over 380 illustrations, diagrams, designs, border patterns and textile patterns.

Creative Illustration Workshop Exercises for integrating illustration with other mixed-media techniques, and scan and layer your illustrations using a computer.

Print Workshop Hand-Printing Techniques for low budgets. Interesting ways to put imagery on products. Perhaps a good technique for putting our designs on model items to show what they would look like on real products.

Digital Alchemy Printmaking techniques for fine art and how to transfer images to a variety of surfaces. It includes decals and skins.

Critical Mass Cutting-edge developments in international printmaking. Since printmaking is fundamental in most surface design concepts, this book's goal is a modern approach on a traditional printmaking.

Tradeshows and Booth Design