Flavia Guarino

Are we there yet?

Oh yes we are finally there!

Check out these slides of Mummy, Let’s Go! in print!!!

August 1st, 2008

Self-Publishing Chaos

Well… It has been a very long couple of months. My website has crashed miserably and is now just floating on back ups. I can’t touch it and apparently neither can the tech support team who are meant to be helping. So lots of dilemas later including rather expensive internet accounts later I am off to see a web developer. However, lots of valuable lessons learned through my own ventures and the new site will be up at the end of July and still should be running to all the usual links.

So far I have learned:

1. Template should only be used for extremely simple websites. The template I used was on an out-dated program where only parts of the program were purchased by a bigger company. So…when I reached a dead end with the functions in creating a site, it was more often than not that I was informed that I was at the limit of the program and that if the parts that I needed existed they had not been purchased.

2. Large web hosting companies are not necessarily more reliable, up-to-date or user friendly just because they’re big. I have found a much smaller, Melbourne based company that has proved both reliable and available to help when necessary.

3. When all else fails it’s okay to shed a few tears.

4. Best do the job right and get a web savvy web developer to put a site together from the bottom up. Especially if you are technologically challenged…I count myself in that category.

The book publishing has come a long way though and after a few initial set backs I have viewed several proofs and I believe that the last has been finalised!!! So I am planning the first print run very early in August. Didn’t realise how much to-ing and fro-ing there was to be done to polish a children’s book.

It is still very exciting and although my enthusiasm has waned here and there knowing that I am on the home stretch is rather exciting.

July 3rd, 2008
Oh Dear!

This month has been full of surprises. The best surprise is that the proof has been edited and I have viewed the proofs! There were lots of tidy ups including checking the bleed lines were correct and that the text has been well placed plus the usual punctuation corrections and checking that the pages are in the correct order. They will be ready to print hopefully at the end of the month, which will make, the long awaited, release date for Mummy, Let’s Go! the 8th of August, 2008!!! It will be published in hard cover and will be available for $16.95 (plus $6.65 p&h in Aust.) I am hoping to convince the printer to permit my to watch the first book being printed and maybe take some photos for the website. We’ll see how it goes…However in the mean time the website has crashed and burned miserably so that is beyond repair. My apologies to all who have visited during this month and waded through the very fractured site. I appreciate your patience. So now, I’m off to a web developer to get the site back up and running in the three weeks before the book is published…

June 2nd, 2008
Waiting, waiting, waiting…

It has been a rather disappointing month in that the proof for Mummy, Let’s Go! is still not complete. Very frustrating indeed! Only because I had certain unrealistic expectations of course! However, it has given me more time to start the revisions and editing of The Guide, which will compliment the children’s book with lots of great ideas and practical suggestions for families in crisis.

The paintings have been out at Jimboomba Library and will be moved to Logan Central Library near the Council Chambers tomorrow.

I’m also delighted to have added some more exhibitions to this year’s schedule and early next year. Details have been posted on the Tickets Please page. I am thankful to all the art gallery and library staff who have been so very supportive and encouraging with their feedback and of course all the people who have been to view the paintings with plenty of enthusiastic feedback.

There have been a few more modifications to the layout of the website as you can see and some new pages have been added into the Little Ones section. Check out the Mummy, Let’s Go! Train Cake…great for children’s parties and learn how to draw a lorikeet while you are there!

May 1st, 2008

Well this month has been slow going. I had anticipated that when the printer informed me that it would take roughly 18 hours to create a template of the book, that graphic designers would be working long hours…with lots of overtime and it would be complete within two days, ready for my approval. Needless to say, it is not the case. However, the scans and manuscript have been sent away to the printer and I did that roughly two weeks ago…I am still hanging in anticipation for the proof.
I believe that the next step will be to create the plates, once the proof is finalised, and then we can print away!!!

The teaching notes were finalised early on in the month and are posted on the Little Ones page. The paintings have also been on exhibit in the Jimboomba Library since mid April and will remain on display until the end of May. They will then be moved to the Logan Central Library in the Logan City Council building for the month of June.

The initial run of prints for theStrawberry Farm will be released this month and will be available through the eshop. These prints will be a limited release, signed and numbered, high quality prints of the original paintings from the children’s book, Mummy, Let’s Go!. You will be able to place orders for prints as of the 16th of May. The prints will be dispatched within three weeks of this date.

Please note that prints are temporarily unavailable – 03.08.08 April 4th, 2008

It’s been a terribly busy month with setting up the website. But, now it’s almost complete as you can see! The next step has been to create the teaching notes to compliment Mummy, Let’s Go!. Next, I needed toÊapproach Education Queensland for official permission to publish my teaching notes for Mummy, Let’s Go! which are based on their Essential Learnings due to be implemented in Queensland schools in 2009.

So the notes have been approved with a couple of formalities to finalise. Then they should be available at the start of next month so keep an eye out for them in the teaching notes page.

As the big day approaches I admit to being very excited! The first print run of Mummy, Let’s Go! will hopefully become available, in hardcover, at the end of the month.

I have just spoken to the printer who will be passing the manuscript and scans onto a graphic designer as soon as the CiP (Catalogue-in-Publishing) data arrives from the National Library of Australia – apparently next week. I have just completed the finer details of barcode and ISBN plus the final edit of so-many-edits I’ve lost count!

The very first exhibition of paintings at the Logan West Library has just ended and drew quite a bit of attention so… many thanks to everyone who managed to view the paintings and pick up a colouring sheet for the little ones. The paintings will decorate my studio now until the next exhibition in June at the Logan Central Library.

March 5th, 2008

Well…six of the illustrations have been framed in order to be ready for exhibition this month. I was also asked to put together an artist’s profile with my previous artistic exploits and a list of titles for each painting to complete the display.

The book Mummy, Let’s Go! is ready to be published and I am just waiting for the finances to beÊorganised and then it will be two weeks till publishing after that date. I have chosen to self-publish because I really wanted to maintain control of how the book will be distributed and I wanted to be very particular with the layout and content of the book. It’s become quite interesting!

My favourite step so far, has been having the illustrations professionally scanned on a metal drum roller to produce a very high resolution print – apparently very important for a good quality of printing. The proofs were all printed onto a large poster size sheet of photo paper for me to check over the colours. I just loved being able to see all the illustrations together and printed!

I believe that the printer will now take those scanned files and create four plates with different colours to print them. Negotiating with the printer and the photography studio has been a big learning curve for me. I knew absolutely nothing about either – now I know next to nothing and still have lots of questions! But there’s only one way to learn…