done, done, and done...

Well, as of noon yesterday, I am done my book! I can't believe I'm saying this. After 12 weeks of work, "Dance of the Butterfly" is finished... and it looks good (if I must say so myself).

I had a few minor issues with printing and registration, but I think I solved those quite well in my binding of the book. It was fun! I love the hands on aspect of making my own book; I love knowing that I did everything - right from concept to completion. It's a very good feeling of accomplishment.

I must say though, I'm sad that the class is done... I really am. I would take it again in a second next year (but I don't think I'm aloud). I can say that this will not be the last book I make. I will be involved in another one down the road... who knows, maybe I'll do one for real one day. Get it published?

Well, this is the end of that 'chapter' of my year. What a blast.

Pictures will be posted soon!

home stretch...

Alright, so it's the final week!! Exactly 8 more days/192 hrs to go... then I have to be done. Scary? Kind of, but I think I'm actually on the right track... things seem to be coming together nicely (although I'm sure there is more to be done still than I think). The problem for me is not spending enough time on it, it's that I can't seem to put it down! I'm always wanting to work on it because I am so excited about the project and I'm so into it. However, this is taking away from time on other projects, so I need to start scheduling when I am 'allowed' to work on my book.

I've got about half of my book laid out and I'm pretty happy with how things are coming together and looking. It looks great! I have questions about little things for tweaking etc. but I will ask those on the last class.

I'm going downtown on Thursday to get my papers for the pages and the cover and the box I'll make later... basically, I'm getting all the supplies I'll need to finish this bad boy up.

a side note...

I've been doing a lot of thinking about materials. I think what I need to do is go out to some fabric and paper stores and just grab a crap load of stuff that I'm interested in. I'll do that this week.

it has begun...

Have you ever been in a situation where everything that could go wrong does? A day that seems to be like a "Murphy's Law" advertisement? Well, yesterday was almost that day...

Everything was in order for the photo shoot for my book: the dancers were ready to go; the studio at NBS was booked; visitor access was arranged for all guests; the photographer was booked... and then the snow came. And it didn't stop; it just kept snowing. Every passing minute the roads worsened and worsened.

I got a call from Matt (the photographer) at about noon yesterday saying that he wasn't sure if it was safe for him to come for the shoot - due to the weather. I advised him to be safe but reminded him that this was the ONLY time I could do the shoot (this was due to the fact that there was not enough time left in the semester to re-schedule and re-coordinate every aspect of the shoot).

I frantically contacted every photographer I knew to try and find someone else to fill in. Of course, no one could. It was looking like I would have to do the shoot on my own.

Then the sun came out - metaphorically, of course... the actual sun was not to be seen all day! Matt called and said he could make it, and from that point on everything was splendid.

The shoot went off without a hitch and I could not have asked for better results. The dancers LOVED it; everyone had so much fun! So, I'm just waiting on the picture CD from Matt and then I'm ready to get down to business. I have the written material from the dancers (except for one) and am just waiting on the forward material - this is being written by my girlfriend's mentor/dance teacher.

We'll see where it goes from here...

to have fun...

So after some thought, I guess I'm still not EXACTLY sure what I am going to do next. I know I need to get some questions together - to ask all the dancers - and I know I need to start writing my own copy as well. I'm just not sure which to do first...

Should the questions take cues from my copy, or visa versa? Should my copy be the focus or a supplement to the photography and written exposé's of the dancers?

I think I'll just let the process flow and trust that my vision and my intent will hold it all together and steer it all in the right direction... after all, isn't that how it's supposed to work?

to the races...

I just got off the phone with the photographer I'm working with on my book project. It's always weird to talk to someone on the phone for the first time after only communication prior to that point via email... they always sound different than you thought they would. But why does that even matter?? I digress.

Things are really coming together now. I have the photographer all set and ready to go, the dancers/models are all 'booked' for the shoot, and my ideas for the book are becoming evermore concrete as the days progress. At this point in the process though, they'd better be!

I'm even more excited now than I was before; seeing the vision start to become a reality is always an exhilarating part of the process! I am also excited about seeing the results of my vision being seen through the eyes of someone else - i.e. the photographer, Matt. I know that he will have a lot to add to not only this process, but the final product as well.

I think the only obstacle I still have to overcome is nailing down the locations and permissions of the shoot. I have the Human Participation Forms ready for all the girls, I'm just not sure if I am 'officially' allowed to use the dance studio I'd like to.

and we're off...

So, with reading week on its way, I have come to the realization that it's time to get my butt into gear on this project. It's not enough to just have 'ideas' anymore; now it's time to start seeing results.

I am in the process of finalizing my questionnaire/response form for all the dancer participants to answer. I am really looking forward to seeing their responses and beginning the process of putting it ALL together... time to get going. And we're off!