Q: Why should I hire Graphique rather than use AI or do it myself?

 

A: Like many other trades out there, with the advent of YouTube and TikTok these days, there is pretty much a tutorial to show you how to do a lot of things when it comes to design, but the question is should you? Just because you can learn a skill, doesn’t mean you know when and how best to use it or apply it for the best results. This inexperience can lead to a lot more headache and time wasted, that in the long run may even cost you more. And let’s be honest, I think we can all safely pick out an amateur design verses. a professional’s. There is no comparison. So, the question is, how do you want your book to be perceived? While I could never explain all the elements a seasoned designer takes into account in this short answer, I can say, Designers have spent many years learning specialized formatting, color psychology and theory, composition, balance, and typography, continuously studies trends, techniques, and new technology to name a few, that enables them to make decisions quicker and more successfully the first time around. They understand how to prepare art for reproduction and distribution literally working with it on a daily basis. They know the requirements when it comes to avoiding copyright infringement, which can come into question when using AI. Use of AI is sort of a tricky area right now when it comes to lawful use, and not to mention, its concern for originality, so we strongly advise against it. Therefore, do yourself a favor and skip the headache. Hire us and we will get the job done efficiently and ensure success!

​

​

​

Q: I'm creative. I know Microsoft. Why should I hire a designer to layout the interior instead of doing it myself?

​

A: I get this question a lot and the answer really boils down to...do you want your book to look bargain based or polished and professional? Polished and professional, right? Then 100%, hire a designer. For starters, Microsoft Word is extremely limited in its tools for typesetting. Using Designer Programs like Adobe InDesign, Photoshop and Illustrator are much more versatile in allowing manual formatting and spacing between letters, words and lines which is absolutely necessary in keeping the text balanced and clearly legible, high resolution, crisp imagery and scalable illustration/graphics. In addition, finding an experienced designer takes the guesswork out of setting up files correctly for printers, they understand what does and doesn't work in the market, they are up on trends, have a good understanding of what fonts, colors and graphics work well together, and what needs to get done to provide a top quality book. It's like any job out there, hiring someone experienced and an expert in the field is going to be faster, going to know what to watch for to prevent potential problems and so make the process more streamlined, they are up on trends and will know what does and does not work upfront cutting out unnecessary time and expenses.

​​

 

Q: What are Graphique’s business hours?

 

A: Graphique is open Monday through Thursday from 9am-3pm Mountain standard time by APPOINTMENT ONLY. Please e-mail Michelle at michelle.manley@graphiquedesignoc.com to schedule appointments.

 

​

 

Q: What is your preferred method of contact?

 

A: We prefer all contact to be done via e-mail so we can keep a record of all requests and direction throughout the process, however, if more immediate attention is needed, a text is fine during business hours to schedule a time to talk by phone or to alert us of an important e-mail or urgent concern. Thank you for your cooperation on this.

​

​

Q: If I send you all of my photos, can you scan in and organize the photos for me?

 

A: Graphique does not offer scanning services as part of our business, however, upon request, we are happy to send you detailed instructions for you to scan on your own, or a list of businesses that can quickly scan and organize your photos so they are ready to deliver to Graphique. NOTE: if you are scanning highly confidential or irreplaceable photography, we would highly recommend you either scan yourself, or find a local scanning company so you can hand deliver rather than sending via mail. It has been our experience that snail mail is a little unreliable. We have had many packages get lost through USPS, so we don’t trust them. Also, as far as organization goes, you know your material best, so while we understand it can be a tedious process, it is absolutely necessary that you review your content, organize and label in an easy to understand fashion. This will streamline the process tremendously and make things go much faster. For tips on organizing files, please reach out, and we will send you our tips and instructions hand-out.  

 

​

Q: What resolution and format do you need photos to be delivered in?

 

A: For best print reproduction, we require a minimum of 300 DPI resolution at actual size to be printed. So, in other words, if you have a photo that is 3” x 5” but it needs to be at least 3” on the page, then 300 DPI would suffice, however, if you need it to be sized up to say 9,” it is probably best to scan at a larger resolution like 600 or even 1200 DPI to make sure we have those pixels as close together as possible for the print. It will produce a more clear and crisp image. As far as format goes, .TIFF is preferred for photos, but .JPGs will work too. For logos or other graphics, we will need an editable and transparent file format, like .EPS or .AI. PDF can work too as long as it is editable.

 

 

Q: Why does the color on my final print look different from what I approved in the digital proof?

 

A: Unfortunately, our computer screens use a different color model than that of the color ink that is printed on the page. Computer monitors display RGB, which stands for red (R), green (G), blue (B), the primary colors of light. These three colors makeup tiny pixels on screen, and when mixed together create a wide range of colors, patterns and imagery. When printing on a page, printers use a different color model called CMYK. CMYK is comprised of Cyan (C), Magenta (M), Yellow (Y) and Black (K). Like the computer monitor, CMYK is mixed to create thousands of color variations that make up text, graphics and imagery on the printed page. These colors by nature tend to be a little less vibrant when printed then what you see on screen, particularly when printing blues, reds and greens. However, modern technology has allowed us to make up for this downfall with the advent of additional inks called PMS or Pantone color inks. If your project depends on the use of more vibrant blues, reds and greens, we can suggest including an extra color to the project by way of Pantone colors. The Pantone library is extensive and allows us a little more control over the end product. That coupled with reviewing color sample proofs are always recommended, so we can make adjustments to color as needed before printing large quantities.

 

 

Q: Why don’t you have a price list available online?

 

A: Design is a very subjective process, and therefore, every project and experience is very unique. Some clients are very experienced in the design process and can give very detailed direction, leaving less time to the exploration phase of the design, while others need quite a bit more help navigating through the process. Furthermore, some designs are far more complex than others, and require a lot more fine-tuning and revision, while others are simpler and more straight-forward. We never know until we consult, which route your project will take us, so, we offer fully customized pricing to allow for all variables that may come up. Upon request, we do offer pricing guidelines and case studies that you can review to see how other projects were priced as a means of ballparking the project, but nothing will be definitive until we discuss your needs, establish a clear design direction, and determine experience in the process. A preliminary estimate will be submitted early on for your review detailing 

 

 

Q: I am self-publishing my book. Can you help manage my project, so I don’t miss any steps?

 

A: While we are happy to use our experience to help guide you along the process, we are not a publisher, and therefore not experts, nor do we have experience in all areas of the publishing process. Hiring Graphique, means you are hiring us to design only. With that, we will work with you on the concept, the execution and the delivery of artwork in the proper format to your chosen printer or online distributor. As self-publisher, you are responsible to approve and coordinate all vendors needed in the publishing process, as well as manage the timeline and funding from start to finish. As part of our network of collaborators, we often work with illustrators, printers, publishers (hybrid and traditional), publicists, editors, etc., so if you need help acquiring contacts to help you complete the process, we will be happy to refer you to one of our trusted partners that can help advise you along your journey. If at any point this becomes too overwhelming, please reach out and we will be more than happy to connect you with the right people to help you reach your goals and make your project a success.

​

 

Q: Why can’t I see a finished sample of my book before we print mass quantities.

 

A: Every printer is different. Depending on the size of the project, the printer and/or the technique being performed, determines the process. If you are one that needs to be hands-on in every phase of the project and printing, I would suggest using a local printer, so you can make arrangements to go in and do a press check to look at color, special techniques and binding. If a local printer is not possible, at the very least, I would suggest supplying samples for the printer to compare color and techniques to, and requesting samples of their work as well to get a better idea of what the end result will look like with application. In addition, always make sure to review a proof, whether digital or physical. I would recommend physical wherever possible, even if it doesn’t have all of the special effects added to it, at least you can review color. Ultimately, you are responsible for approving all art and proofs to print, so please make sure you understand the process and what you will be getting. Graphique is happy to review as well and offer our opinion based on our experience, but will not be held responsible if the end result is not what you had in mind. So, complete understanding of what to expect is key.

​

 

Q: At what point should I hire a designer to start on my book cover?

 

A: I would say it is never really too early to enlist a designer to start thinking about your book design. I have had a client come to me before with a finished manuscript, set up as a narrative, chapter style book, and upon consulting and concepting, we decided based on the content and the purpose behind the book, a journal-style was more in line with how we wanted to design the book. This led to the author having to go back and reorganize and rewrite chapters to fit the style. Had we spoken earlier on in the editing process, we could have prevented that extra work from the get go and not had to do double the work. I have had other clients tell me they have writers block, and we start conceptualizing the cover and overall design themes, and in turn, it gives them a new sense of motivation and clarity to finish writing. So, sometimes it can be advantageous to at least brainstorm early on in the editing process. Creativity is best done as a collaboration. We truly believe that!

​

 

Q: Is it better to begin designing the book before it is fully edited so we can add in content as we need to fit?

 

A: The answer is, it depends. If you have a text only book, then yes, it absolutely must be final and edited, as once we flow the copy into the design program, we manually format page by page, adjusting for spacing, alignment and page count. If you add or delete sentences or paragraphs, seeing as there are no photographs to offset the addition or deletion of pages, it adversely affects the whole book, and can lead to a lot of extra work to redo all of the manual formatting. However, if it is a fully custom coffee table style book, I would say it is best to have the manuscript in as close to final of a state as possible, however, as we map out the text and add in pictures and other customizable design content, we may need to add, delete or rewrite text as needed to fit the design. Therefore, rather than flowing in the entire book as we design, we typically will design by chapter to allow for the design to flow as it needs to, adding and/or deleting content as needed to adjust for flow and consistency of content. So, in these more custom jobs, it is advised to have an editor you can consult as needed for some of these adjustments, as well as we recommend hiring a proofreader to review again once the design is complete. It is a much longer process, so it is helpful to have a fresh pair of eyes on the job to ensure accuracy. 

​

 

Q: Do you have somewhere I can see estimated timelines for design?

 

A: Like pricing, timelines are also not a one size fits all kind of thing. While we have a general timeline for each deliverable, there are a lot of variables that can go into the design process that can lead to delays. For example, holidays, vacation schedules, complexity of design, client turnaround for feedback, changing direction at any stage of the process, legal review, proofreader availability, etc. Below are some general timelines to expect.

 

• Front Cover design exploration: about 3-4 weeks

• Full Cover design: about 2 weeks

• Interior layout (text only): 4 – 6 weeks

• Interior layout (standard 6 x9” size – text + pictures): 6-8 weeks

• Printing (including printing, binding, shipping and books in hand): 6-8 weeks

 

****NOTE: Some of these timelines may overlap if all content is ready to go at time of project commencement, cutting down overall timeline for the project.

 

 

Q: What format do you take revisions in?

 

A: All revisions must be submitted in writing, and once design has commenced, revisions must be returned one of three ways.

 

1. PDF Markup (Preferred) – probably the easiest method for revisions is to make comments directly in the PDF sent for your review in Acrobat. You can place comment notes directly on art as needed, make revises to words or punctuation, or overall page notes.

2. Print Markups – If you do not have Acrobat, the next best method is to print out the pages, and mark up the revisions directly on the page itself. From there, you can either…

   • Scan the pages and e-mail back to us

   • Package the pages and send standard mail back to us. This method is our last choice due to the delays in mailing back and forth, but if that is what makes you most comfortable, this is completely fine too.

 

****NOTE: Once text has been flowed into the layout, these are the only three choices for revisions to keep within original estimate. We will not accept a new word document with the revised manuscript once the text has been formatted. Too much manual editing has been done at this point to reflow. Reflowing will resort in starting from scratch and therefore additional costs (likely a fee comparable to the original estimate as we are in essence starting a whole new job). So, please make sure manuscript is final before agreeing to move on to layout design.

​

Q: Do you do web design?

 

A: Currently, we do not offer web design or digital design services at this time. It is something we are looking into expanding into in the near future, but in the meantime, we have a great network of digital designers and marketers that we would be happy to refer you to and work with to take care of all your digital design, app design and social media needs. We do, however, offer e-book design and social media banners as part of our services.

​