Another jam-packed day of tech editing and a bit of a rant
✨I’m not giving anything away here with this photo...this is just a quick shot of the pattern template for I Like Knitting and I Like Crochet magazine to illustrate a point.
Okay, so the point!
Submitting and getting your designs accepted by a third party publication might be your goal. Yes, it’s great to see your name in print. That’s the goal, right? Or maybe just one of them. Heck, I’m still that nerd that goes to Barnes and Noble and flip through the magazines to see my name in the print. Dorky? Yes, I know. But that's the reality of a knit and crochet designer :)
But between the time a pattern is accepted for publication and the print magazine goes live, there is a lot of work that needs to be done by the designer and I’m afraid you, dear designer, is not be grasping all that, particularly the when it comes to the pattern writing portion.
This, the pattern writing part of the process, is crucial to the end product, i.e. the entire magazine.
So, you’ve self-published a few of your own patterns and now ready to design for your favorite publication. For your line of self-publish designs you’ve created your own layout and style guide, all pretty with flowers 
🌺 and 
🦄 shooting rainbows out its butt. But that doesn't fit when you're writing for a magazine. All that pretty is more work for the editors and tech editors to reformat to the publication's style guide.
🌺 and 🦄 shooting rainbows out its butt. But that doesn't fit when you're writing for a magazine. All that pretty is more work for the editors and tech editors to reformat to the publication's style guide.
Remember, when you're being published with a 3rd party publication, your pattern is only a part of the overall magazine or book. Your style, your voice, your aesthetic doesn’t matter that much if it’s not produced in a way to create a cohesive finish publication.
Essentially, use the style guide provided by the magazine.
How to fit your design into the publication? Study past issues to understand the sound and feel so that your pattern can be easily slotted into the next issue without too much wrangling.
❓Why is this important?
1) My time as the tech editor cost them money.
2) Most importantly if there are many tiny things to catch + fix, tech editors are humans and might miss something more vital to the pattern.
3) Knitters and crocheters need consistency within a magazine so they know that from pattern to pattern, issue to issue will have all the same information in all the same format. We/they need this consistency to build the trust of that magazine.
Imagine if you get Interweave Knits every month, and every month they have a different layout, completely different terminology or abbreviations?
❓Why is this important?
1) My time as the tech editor cost them money.
2) Most importantly if there are many tiny things to catch + fix, tech editors are humans and might miss something more vital to the pattern.
3) Knitters and crocheters need consistency within a magazine so they know that from pattern to pattern, issue to issue will have all the same information in all the same format. We/they need this consistency to build the trust of that magazine.
Imagine if you get Interweave Knits every month, and every month they have a different layout, completely different terminology or abbreviations?
❓How much would you trust they know what they are doing over there at F&W?So, if you want to design for a publication, do your homework. Spend the extra 8 bucks each for a few back issues, heck, it’s a business write off.
Do your due diligence!
Ready to write your next pattern but need a bit of help? Here are 3 ways to work with me:
This is a self-study course where you get weekly lessons delivered to your email that you follow at your own pace. During the course, you can email me questions. Here's what you get with the course:
Weekly Lessons
Week One |
Pattern anatomy.
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Week Two |
Layout and format.
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Week Three |
Craft your pattern.
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Week Four |
Get ready to publish.
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2) Get a one-day one-on-one coaching and strategy session where help you through the pattern writing process.
This is a one-time strategy session where I answer your questions and review your pattern. After the session, you finish the pattern and send me the final pattern for tech editing with 7 days of the strategy session. When we're done, you'll be ready to hit publish. Email me to schedule a day!
3) Get your pattern professionally tech edited.
Want to hire me to tech edit your next knit and crochet design? Click here to Request a Pattern Tech Edit.
If I can help to answer any of your questions about designing, please feel free to reach out.
Tian
*A rising tide lifts all boats*
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