The Future of Scrapbooking

By Rosana Hart

Scrapbooking has become a hugely popular activity in recent years, and I think it will continue to evolve in a variety of fascinating ways. No, I don't have a crystal ball, but I do have a unique perspective after being a librarian, self-publisher, and collage artist/scrapbooker for many years.

Beyond that, I can imagine a lot of ways that scrapbookers could branch out into self-publishing. There's no reason to stop at family or travel memories... the format of interesting graphics combined with words can work well for children's picture books, travel tales, novels... you name it! These could be for your own creative pleasure and to share with family and friends, but I think they will also become a significant part of the self-publishing movement.

In the years that I have been a self-publisher, the field has changed tremendously. One of the most important changes was the coming of Publishing on Demand...

Back when I started out in 1984, it was rarely cost-effective to do print runs of under 2000 or so. If you guessed wrong about how popular your book would be, too bad. I still have copies of my Twelve Walks Around Olympia in a friend's garage in Olympia, Washington. Another of my books, Llamas for Love and Money, did fine until the market changed about the time we printed the third edition. Cases of that book form the basis for a sofa in my house!

But now, publishing on demand means those problems can be a thing of the past. You can now publish as few as ONE copy of a book. In terms of commercial sales, it can be cost-effective with as few as a couple of dozen copies! And color printing is becoming more affordable.

This revolution in the publishing industry came about with the invention of the IBM Docutech, a machine that turns paper and ink into books, one at a time. At something like a quarter of a million dollars, you won't want one in your garage. But you can order books from firms that either have these machines or themselves job out the physical printing. I currently am using the services of Lulu Press and have been happy with them. They can do short books with full color inside them at remarkably low prices.

Now, making money at self-publishing involves more than printing a book, but it certainly can be done. There are many books and websites on the subject. I got my start at a workshop with Dan Poynter and still read his ezine.

Scrapbookers of the world, unite! Let's make our mark on the publishing world!

Rosana Hart