Books losing momentum... solutions?

[Eric Terry]

So the 2 week rule is pretty much nonexistent these days, which is fine, but we're definitely having problems with the books getting stuck... I imagine that the problem stems from artists 1) being too busy with other stuff and 2) not being sufficiently inspired and motivated.

I feel that the first one is mostly out of my control and I've tried to avoid the second by providing a place on the site where people can find inspiration to get them going, but it seems we're still running into a lot of problems with stuck books...

Any ideas? I'd love for people to view this as something they can't wait to get started on, rather than a "job" they must complete...

[Johnathan Fuller]

Well , this is a tricky one. I know that if I'm not prepared for a project I can hit a brick wall and stay there. What I'm hoping will work for me is planning the drawings I'm going to do before hand, references, thumbnails and rough drafts; so that when the book arrives, all I have to do is complete a polished finished version in the book.

I am not sure if this method would work for every artist though, some are driven more by the intuitive and the spontaneous which is just as good (I wish I could do that).

I think simply starting with most of the work out of the way before the book gets there will make it more fun (because it cuts out the "what now" factor), and it also betters the chances of one finishing sooner than later

[Eric Terry]

That's a great way to approach this, I think, but I'm not sure every artist is willing to put in that much forethought... I know that for myself I'm often inspired easily and can create from that, so I'd expect to look at the previous drawings in a book, get some ideas, and go from there right away... I guess everyone just works differently.

It's a good suggestion, though, and it needs to be incorporated somewhere on this site.

[Vincent Maglione]

Okay, so I'm probably in absolutely no position whatsoever to give suggestions for this, but I'll try my hand at it anyway and risk sounding hypocritical.

Two main things:

1. Do away with the two week rule
   
   This may seem counterintuitive, but deadlines are intimidating and creative people are, in general, procrastinators. We don't like being told what to do, however insignificant (and logical) such a rule may be. If there's no two week rule, there's no rule to break, which means nobody's unhappy — though e-mails such as the one you sent me are certainly worth their weight in gold as far as motivation to finish up goes.
2. More specific themes
   
   Again, it may seem counterintuitive to place more constraints as far as creativity goes, but when you have a very specific end in mind — theme, motif, recurring objects, etc. — creativity can flourish. The open-endedness of the book that I have, for instance, is a little intimidating, just because when you can go anywhere with something, you often end up going nowhere. At least, that's the way it is for me.

[Eric Terry]

I like both of those suggestions too. I don't think we'll be having any more open-themed books like the first few, so that shouldn't be a problem in the future.

For the first point, since no one's following it I'm not too worried either, but it's nice to have a sort of goal to reach so that people aren't planning on keeping it for ages and ages. I guess my main thing right now is that we've got a lot of people on here that have been waiting for months to get a book. Plus the place kind of looks dead when it's the same drawings week after week...

[Eric Terry]

Hm, another thing I'm thinking might work is a book limit per artist per year. Maybe 2?

That way it's a lot more special when it comes around, and people are more conservative with their choices when signing up for a book. Plus it keeps new artists in the lineup... Thoughts?

[eddie humphrey]

Hey peoples, I gotta few suggestions... maybe each artist can start their own book as well. now I'm not sure how that would fly but i know when I did the Throw Back Toon I got excited because it was something I felt like was me! and hoped that others would like it as well. and I'd have to agree with Eric as far as the "dead line", with out that folks would have the book forever and that's kinda what we're experiencing now. I think "we" just need to grow up as far as the procrastination goes...

Eric for you as being the moderator I think maybe you should be blasting us with emails and contest and such. I think the post card contest was cool, but that was the only one I seen. This is just me but I feel as though if I got something like once every two weeks about something, that's going on with the Collation I'd be more, for a lack of words, GEEKED up waiting on my sketchbook to come in the mail. I know we're all busy and if that's the case find one of your buddies and delegate some of the task that you may be overwhelmed with. don't know if I'm rambling on or not but that's my two cents. thoughts...

[Eric Terry]

Yeah, I'd probably be way more jazzed about the idea of constantly pumping stuff out for this place if it was my only project going! :P Right now I'm balancing this, a Tshirt company, and a part time job, along with a ton of other personal stuff! I agree though, I think we definitely need more content here. The thing about the contest too was that I didn't get any submissions until about a month after deadline, so that was kind of a bummer... :(

I'll keep it in mind though. I've been thinking about some new possibilities for the site, just need the time. Thanks so much for the suggestions though and please keep them coming!

[Vincent Maglione]

That was my point. Nobody's following the two week thing, so why have it anyway? It's just kind of a stressor at this point. Procrastination isn't something most can just grow out of, really. It makes sense to have a guideline, but I do think a rule is pointless if nobody follows it.

The limitations on a book per year make sense, but if nothing else, it might be a good idea to just make the books seem a bit more exclusive. Especially since they're traveling slowly. Encourage people to really, really think about it before they sign up.

[Eric Terry]

Yeah, I think that's a great idea. I think I'm going to start thinning out the lists that we've already got, eliminating folks who're signed for a handful of books and ask them to pick just 2 (or if they've already contributed to a book, then just 1). The thing that makes the least sense to me is to have these books taking so long and having the same people on all the books. I'd feel a lot better about their delays if I knew there were all new people on each list... if that makes sense.

So basically we've decided that the bottom line is...

• Make the books more exclusive (limit sign ups, encourage forethought)
• Emphasize specific themes to give direction

So what about starting new books? Thoughts?

[Vincent Maglione]

Auditions? Maybe? I don't know. It's exciting to start new books, since it ensures a diversity of interests. But at the same time, let's face it: as with most online communities (and with pretty much everything else), 20% of the people are going to do 80% of the participation. The 80/20 rule holds true. So yeah. Encouragement of forethought applies, not just to those considering joining the books (do you really want to be faced with the responsibility of putting something in this book?), but also to those considering starting books. Perhaps a certain number of participants required before the book actually gets approved for this community (though technically people can do what they want)? Or limiting the number of books being active concurrently?

Yes, there are over one hundred members, but not everybody is going to participate...that's just the way it works. I think, honestly, the books have lost momentum, but that it'll pick back up again. The pendulum swings both ways, and forcing it or prodding it, especially on such a democratic medium as the Internet, won't do much that it wouldn't have done itself, you know? This isn't meant to discourage friendly reminder e-mails, mind you. Mine stirred me to action, without a doubt! But, for lack of better words...let nature take its course, Eric. Let nature take its course.

[natasha stevie]

Being 'new' to the site, i dont know what went on before, but why is it so hard to just do something in the book? take it with you on the train, grab it if you have to wait for something, in between tv commercials, a few moments on the toilet, then those 10 pages will be filled up quite easily no? or is there a requirement that says you have to make artistic wonders? im not telling to just doodle, but everybody always has a few minutes per day left to make something nice, just 15 min per day. thats something. :)

[NANO]

i think the two week rule is fine but maybe a consequence
for not returning in time would light a fire under peoples arses.

if not returned in time he/she is exluded from a number of books.

if one isn't prepared mail it to the following person just to keep this ting moving.