Hol Art Books

As the brand design progresses, teams keep growing and working, and we get closer to actually publishing some books, I've been thinking a lot about specific book formats. Though I'll be exploring them further in some prototype books we'll be publishing just prior to attending the College Art Association's February conference in Los Angeles (more to come on that), the following are some of my current thoughts on book formats for Hol...

My hope is to publish all of our books in simultaneous paperback, hardcover and ebook editions. While any given book will have a common cover design no matter its format, each format has its own unique production and display needs and its own unique audience.

The paperback edition will generally be each our books' primary edition and the one we market most aggressively into stores and to the general public. For the paperback, I'd like to let teams choose between two sizes: a pocket-size (roughly 4.25 x 7) and a trade size (roughly 5.5 x 8.5).

The pocket size was the original paperback size when the format was first introduced in the 30s, but it is now most associated with genre fiction (mystery, sci-fi and romance). Referred to as mass-market or open-market, I think the size is on the verge of a renaissance in use, for its nostalgia, its supposed eco-friendliness (less paper used), its price, and its distinguishment from the now more typical trade paperback size and from self-published titles. It's perhaps best suited for fiction now, but at the very least I also foresee using it on the other end of the commercial spectrum, for handmade chapbooks.

The trade paperback size, now the most widely used for general fiction and non-fiction titles, is the standard. It's larger size generally allows for larger type, and is associated with a better quality for the price, while still being friendly in hand. For longer works, non-fiction, or general scholarship, this would probably be a team's first choice.

No matter which paperback size is chosen, I'd like to consider reviving the practice of marketing other books and Hol itself within every book. Book lists, coupons, maybe even ads... this might be a move as much about conveying our overall attitude and personality as it is about actually marketing books. I'd love to let teams think creatively about what they include, maybe listings for museums with collections strong in their area, or travel information for destinations related to the book. I think it also might allow some fundraising opportunity to actually sell space in the books, and have those funds be used by the team in development. As I propose below, this marketing will also offer a way of further distinguishing the paperback from the hardcover editions of our titles.

Most of the hardcovers will be produced through print on demand or very short run digital printing and will marketed primarily to libraries, art institutions, and book collectors and bibliophiles. We may take advantage of the smaller quantities to do some hand work to make them a little more special (a hand-pressed seal on the title page, a special bookplate, a bookmark ribbon...). I thought originally about adding additional material to the hardcover that's not available in the paperback (a more comprehensive index, an annotated bibliography of suggested reading, a bonus chapter), but I think now that removing material may be a stronger position. Particularly, removing the marketing material that I spoke about adding to the paperback editions -- making the hardcover a more "pure" edition, more timeless.

I'd also propose that no matter the size the team chooses for the paperback (pocket or trade), all of our hardcovers will be the same size. I'm thinking of them as a visual art version of the Modern Library, or Everyman's Library. Less generically designed then those though. I think maybe they'd retain their paperback cover design, but the spine would be different, branded and -- aside from maybe a color/pattern choice -- immutable. As much as I value the variety and personality of individual books, there's a part of me that wants a perfectly ordered, always consistent set on the shelves. Maybe these could be part of a deluxe subscription program. We'd also have to think about what graphic differences, if any, would be applied to different kinds of writing -- fiction, theory, biography, etc.

Ebooks. Obviously external packaging isn't the issue here. The bigger question with ebooks is format and DRM (Digital Rights Management, or, how freely you're allowed to copy and share the digital files). I'm most interested in O'Reilly Media's approach to ebooks. When you buy one of their ebooks, you actually buy a bundle of formats (PDF, EPUB, and Mobipocket) that cover all major devices. There's no DRM imposed on any of the formats -- though they are exploring digital watermarking to label each person's book. They also offer free updates to reflect published changes in the book, which might not be such an issue for us, though we might offer free updates to any format in the bundle, or any new format that comes out. Ensuring that once you buy an ebook from us, you'll always have access to it, no matter how devices or formats change.

In brief, the defining features of each, would look something like this:

Paperback:
• The primary edition
• Teams pick one of two sizes -- pocket or trade
• Cover design (front, back and spine) done by team designer
• Interior includes marketing for other Hol books
• Produced sustainably, using recylced paper

Hardcover:
• Institutional and collector's edition
• Always same size for all Hol titles
• Front and rear cover match paperback edition
• Spine is iteration of Hol series design
• Includes special stamp/bookplate/ribbon marker
• No interior marketing
• Archival quality production +Ecolibris certified

Ebooks:
• Sold in bundle of 3 formats: PDF, EPUB and Mobipocket
• Formats cover reading on PCs, Kindle, Sony Reader, iPhone and PDA devices
• DRM free
• Free format updates for as long as the edition is "in print"