Technological Joys and Hardships: PDF Patterns Part 2

My knitting friend Leanne from Knitting Today posted a very well written comment regarding pdf patterns from the shop owner’s perspective. I thought I would copy and paste my response to different parts because I think it is an interesting discussion and highlights some of the issues in the current market.

With advances in technology, knitter’s have greater access than ever before to yarns, patterns, tools and other notions. Yarn stores cannot possibly carry everything, and for knitters who have “special needs” it can be a real boon. It can be a real boon to those who live in yarn deprived areas as well.

For local yarn stores, it can cut into their earnings however, as shoppers sometimes forget to continue supporting their local store.

There is increased competition on a far more reaching scale, I guess you could say.

For the independent designer such as myself, the increased competition comes by way of hobby designers competing in some of the same arenas, as well as flooding the Internet with self published patterns. On top of that, satisfying different segments of the market without undercutting your yarn stores or vendors can be a challenge. Some knitters will only purchase download pdfs, and some only want patterns.

As a designer, do you market to TNNA groups for the bulk of your marketing? There are a significant number of shops that don’t go the TNNA route. How do you, as a designer, reach these markets? Again the Internet has been a boon for some and a bane for others.

Here are the comments from the thoughtful post from Leanne, as well as my comments. I could have just put it in the comments section but as I said, I think it is a good conversation to have.

> Stocking is always a difficult decision for the LYS owner, Jolene . . . . I have
determined Knitting Today cannot carry hard copy patterns that are also available via download direct from the publisher because the majority of our customers are Internet savvy and have in fact downloaded and brought in the pattern vs. purchasing it at Knitting Today. I need to put the $ on potential sales instead. <

I can see how it would be, as you cannot carry everything. I really don’t want to compete with yarn stores or my distributor, but I look at it from a distribution stand point on my end, so it is a little different perspective.

> There are publishing designers that allow download “licenses” to the LYS owners and enables them to sell the .pdf or be an affiliate for the sale — I’m investigating that model now and figuring out how to program it through my existing shopping cart program since the funds are actually captured by the publishing designer. There might be potential with this model <

I know there are some who have licensed. The biggest issue I hear cropping up is lack of control on the digital files when they go that route, and how much you really have to trust individuals you have never met.

Let me know what you come up with on your investigation, as having a system where the funds are captured by the publishing designer would be a good model to have. A lot of designers, I think, would be interested in this as it affords some control and accountability.

On my end, if I could figure out how to set up a shopping cart with vendors listed, so that the customer could download the pdf and the revenue normally generated by the store would go to the vendor they choose, I would do that. That way I would still have control of the digital file, and the vendor would not be cut out of the loop. I could have that on my site, as well as something like your model you are looking at.

I suppose that is what you are talking about regarding an affiliate of the sale? What do you know about this yourself because that might be something that I could offer.

>Another model is to publish .pdf of discontinued patterns/magazines. A magazine publisher is doing that now, but sometimes the shop model invested in and several issues of the magazine are still available at the shop — the publisher’s impression of what is out of print and the reality is not matching — frustrating and again a magazine that Knitting Today is not able to support. <

I have thought of this actually. Although right now, I don’t have any patterns that are retired to do this with.

I suppose it is like yarn in some ways, when discontinued by the manufacturer.

> I’m thinking more and more of going to in-house design contracts for exclusivity and promotion. Is this a subject you have addressed? I’m slowly going back through your archives.
> Lea-Ann
I have thought of this, but am unable to recoup the expense of the design when doing this. I have a good two weeks of work just in the pattern drafting, writing, editing, graphics and layout. Then there is the cost of tech editing and sample knitting. A fairly significant investment. I have to sell a lot of patterns just to reach my break even point and it is very hard to do through one shop.

In the end, I think that is one reason why designers are looking at pdf downloads. They are here now, and part of technology. Reimbursement from magazines, when looked at from the perspective of what is my investment in this design, is not enough to recoup the cost of the design. Some designers think the knitting is free if they do the knitting themselves, but it really isn’t, because time is money, and time spent doing the knitting is time you could spend designing another garment. All those costs have to be figured into what you are doing so that you can then make decisions regarding your business investment. They have a lot of very tough competition to get into yarn stores.

On one hand, if they offer pdf downloads some shops won’t carry them. On the other hand, distribution of their patterns can be significantly higher if they do.

For the Independent Designer such as myself, the question of distribution is a significant one. Many yarn stores do not carry very many patterns for different reasons, so designers have turn to other markets.

I don’t know that there are any easy answers. Which is why, I suppose, that I have not made any real decisions regarding this issue. I know one designer who does sell pdf’s but charges more for them than she does the printed copy that is sold by her vendors.

I like the affiliate idea, what I have heard of it. That may be worth investigating. For now, I will keep looking and mulling it over in my head.

It was good to see you at TNNA by the way.

Cheers, JoLene

What the h– does Copyright cover?

It amazes me that in the designing lists, and on Ravelry forums, I am seeing this crop up. Not the question of copyright and what it covers, but situations where someone has had their copyright violated and they are being blatantly taken advantage of.

Copyrights are a bundle of rights, that the creator of a work at this time has from the very beginning. First North American Serial Rights, for example, would be what an author sells to a magazine the first time an article is printed in a magazine. Although now-a-days, with the internet and all, publishers usually make a grab for more rights than that. The right to anthologize or have the item in a digital collection, the right to distribute something digitally, etc.

All of these rights have value. As the activity that the right is related to provides profit or potential profit to someone.

For those of us out there that purchase a knitting pattern, maybe have a blog or knitting group, how does this impact us?

Well, first off let’s look at what we get when we purchase a pattern. Yes, the physical pattern is ours to do with as we wish. We can make a photocopy to work from so our original stays pristine. What we don’t have the right to do is make copies and give them to our knitting buddies. As hard as that might be and it doesn’t seem right that we cannot share with them. That sharing, magnified beyond our little group, can and has put designers out of business. When we make a copy and give it to a friend, we are in fact distributing the pattern. That is part of the copyright also, the right to distribute the pattern. What has actually happened, however innocent, is that the designer has had that distribution taken away from them and the loss of that income.

Does this apply to free patterns too? You betcha it does. Just because it is free doesn’t mean it isn’t copyright protected. You may distribute it only if it states you may do so.

What about the photography? Can I scan the photography and use that? In a word, no. Does it happen without anything bad happening? Yes, because publishers want people to buy their publications. In all actuality, that photograph that was scanned from a book or magazine is also copyright protected. It is good form to get permission to do so. Even if you are an avid blogger who posts lots of pictures, and you asked them if you could post scans of pictures on your blog as long as you don’t post the patterns and they gave you a blanket yes.

What about out of print books that are still in copyright? Those are copyright protected too. Sorry, those cannot be scanned, reproduced, and distributed by anyone but the copyright holder. Inter-library loan, or purchase of used books. That is the legal and ethical way.

I have to question why we as a group of people are so greedy that we cannot wait a little to get an item in an ethical and legal manner. We want something so badly that we don’t care if we don’t have the right to distribute something. The hard facts are if it isn’t ours to distribute, than it isn’t our choice to make on whether it is distributed or not. We cannot look at it as our innate right to have it, because it isn’t. It doesn’t matter how fabulous the design is, or how much of a shame it would be for it not to be shared with humanity. If we do not hold the copyright, we have taken that choice away from the person who does have the right to make that choice.

How do I know the pattern I am getting on ebay or etsy hasn’t been lifted from someone else? I don’t know the answer to that one. I was reading on Ravelry some issues related to copyright violations on etsy and ebay. The best thing I can tell you is to do everything you can to be an ethical and conscientous consumer. Let the buyer beware. Be conscious of whether something passes the snif test. You are not going to see a professional looking spread that is poorly scanned. Why? If someone has the money to pay for a graphic designer and layout that is professional, they are going to have a file that has a professional quality look to it as well. That is the kind of thing that we need to be more aware of.

If you purchase directly from the designer, well that is a much more certain thing. You know, if I ever do go the pdf route, I am going to post on my blog where authorized sources are.

We depend on you to let us know when you see things out there on the web. I don’t know how many times I have read about designers being contacted by someone familiar with their work.

There are a lot of people, even in our cozy corner, who want to make money without doing any work themselves and think nothing of copying the photography and pattern and selling it as their own.

For those who bring that to the attention of designers who are affected, you are heroes.

Peace and Knitting, JoLene Treace

Copyright Issues: Pattern Sharing

One of the things I love about needle art enthusiasts is their wonderful sharing nature. Unfortunately, in this day and age, there are ugly things that crop up like people wanting to get paid for the work that they do.

I can say that I have never had a copyright issue to my knowledge of my own patterns, but as a designer each time I see it crop up it makes me sick in the pit of my stomach. And there can be such acrimony on both sides. Designers who are tired of having to fight to have their work respected and not given away begin to get somewhat jaded. It ceases to become innocent sharing among friends, no harm meant, when people see their work scanned and posted on blogs for the world to have. Mass distribution, without the right to distribute.

For designers who have had to fight this battle it feels to them more deliberate and calculated. Let’s face it, there are those out there who are are cold, calculating, and don’t care who they rip off, even among needle art enthusiasts. Then the occasional individual who is truly innocent and doesn’t mean any harm can get into a real mess.

I have said it before and I’ll say it again: don’t put anything on your blogs that you did not make or create yourself. A scan of a pattern in a book is not something you made yourself. There is a lot of work and a lot of investment on the parts of a lot of people that goes into these publications. They deserve to be paid.

When you are offered a copy of a pattern, it would do my heart good to see needle art enthusiasts say “No, thanks, I want my own pattern. I want that designer to be able to keep putting out designs!”

Yes, that does happen. Many designers get very tired of this issue and ask themselves why they continue doing this.

Yikes.

I have been either fortunate or blissfully ignorant.

It isn’t that I don’t want to share with all of you, but here is the breakdown of my cost in a design: I have about 2 weeks of work in the pattern drafting, pattern writing, and graphics work (charts and schematics, photography and photo editing, pattern layout). I have around $200 in the test knitting, and about $150 in the tech editing. Now, you know I love you. But love just doesn’t demand that kind of price. It isn’t like we are married or nursed at the bosom of the same mother.

Guess how many pattern leaflets I have to sell to reach my break even point? Not including the cost of mailing yarn and garments back and forth or the cost of printing, or the cost of electricity and so on to power my computers and overhead of the office in my home? 750 patterns. For one design. As a designer, you know you have to have more than one pattern come out each year too. That is quite an investment. And as you might guess, it is a labor of love. Now if my designs were less complicated that amount would be less. There are designers who don’t factor in their time in working on the design as a cost of doing business, but that is a mistake. I don’t work for free, even for myself.

What is really unfortunate is that many independent designers, such as myself, should their copyright be infringed on, cannot afford legal expenses to defend their copyright. They have to weigh the cost of the loss of the design with the cost of an attorney’s fees.

Great independent designers exist because of the many knitters out there that want their own pattern, not one that is a photocopy given to them by a generous and well intentioned friend who doesn’t understand the economic impact to that designer.

My daily rant, I guess. Please feel free to distribute it. Let’s educate our sisters and brothers and keep designers able to produce more designs.

Peace and Knitting, JoLene Treace

PDF Knitting Pattern Downloads: To Go, or Not to Go

One of the things I have seriously given some thought to lately is pdf pattern downloads. I am leaning towards the belief that knitters already fall into two camps: those that want it now and will only purchase a pdf pattern or print one for free off the Internet, and those that prefer a regularly produced pattern.

My distributor is wondering if they will go the way of the E-book. I don’t think so myself, because for the knitter it isn’t any different, quality wise, than working from a photocopy.  The knitter who really relishes having their pattern on nice paper and saves their patterns as a collector will always want that nice hard copy.

The big question for me is how does electronic distribution impact my distributor and the stores that carry my patterns? I am of the mind that they won’t impact each other all that much, as electronic patterns can be had all over the internet and knitters already fall into their groups of which they prefer. But it can be a challenge in a changing market, and new technologies can present unforeseen challenges to the “food chain”, as it were.

While it is true I need to tend to my business and let others tend to theirs (it is not my job to sort out change for them), I do need to be cognizant of how it can impact their business, particularly as I wholesale only. I don’t sell retail myself. Therein lies the rub. If I was a retailer myself, I could choose how many methods of distribution I want without competing, because there would be no one I would be competing with.

One reason I went with a distributor was so that I would have wider visibility with my pattern leaflets, and therefore more volume. I also would not be working on lots of little orders.

I discussed it with my distributor at TNNA, and I am frankly divided. Right now I don’t have enough pattern leaflets to have to “retire” any of them.  As I add new patterns to the line this year, that may be a consideration. When I no longer carry them in print, that they would go to pdf download.

As they are all rather classic in nature, I don’t really have any that don’t sell anymore, however to keep the line fresh I suppose I could go with a certain length of time and then have it go to pdf download.

I will have to think on it some more, obviously.

Peace and Knitting, JoLene Treace

What Makes a Designer a Professional?

In the realm of the needle arts industry, handknitting in particular, the quality of patterns can be a hot topic. With the advent of self publishing, desktop publishing, and the internet, “designers” are prolific.

I look at it in terms that I can relate to in my everyday life. I suppose cooking would be an example. We all have seen people who can throw together a very good meal, even perhaps a gourmet meal, but we all understand that there is a difference between ourselves and a professional chef.

For the Industry as well as the end user, a problem is that there are no real standards of practice for “professional designers” within the knitting industry. The Association of Knitwear Designers is working now to establish standards of practice. Comments levied by the Industry have been along the lines of asking us what makes our professional members professional.

We have long had a jurying process for our professional members, and many things are looked at, but putting down on paper what criteria is looked at can be a challenge.

One of the things I would like to see myself is that our professional members need to know how to write a pattern. That might sound like a “duh” kind of comment, but there are designers out there who don’t. Poorly written patterns abound because designers don’t know how to write one well.

Another reason there are poorly written patterns on the other end of the equation are hobby designers who don’t know how to write one well (see, it happens across the spectrum for professional designers and hobby designers as well).

This is not to say that if they cannot that they are not artistically brilliant. But at some point, they need to communicate clearly to the end user how to recreate what they have designed. There are some well known designers who don’t know how to write a pattern. They knit up their creation and hand it off to others to decipher and write up the pattern. While I don’t think they have to change the way that they work (as long as they compensate the worker for their work fairly I have no quibble with it), they should be able to look at it and know if it was done well.

To be honest, I have trouble wrapping my head around that issue. To me it is like being a gifted graphic designer but not knowing how to use the basic software involved. So, you do the artwork by hand and then have someone else do the computer work. In the real world, the artist/graphic designer would be expected to have a minimum proficiency in the tools of their trade.

What does it mean for the Industry if a professional designer cannot write a pattern? If you are submitting a poorly written pattern to a magazine, it means higher costs in tech editing, since many more hours are needed to pull it into shape. There should be a difference between tech editing and writing the pattern. With the effects of the economy, and expectations in the market from consumers which impact on rights the designer has to their work, perhaps designers would be better paid if the Industry did not have to pay so much to have patterns brought to a minimum level of usability. Their wallets are not bottomless, just as ours are not.

While I would never tell someone that they are not a “good” designer because they cannot write a pattern, I would say that part of being a professional is having standards of practice that delineate quality and competency.

In the end, it helps everyone. For the consumer there will be less poorly written patterns. For the publishers, there is less work to be done before the patterns are published. For the local yarn store, they have more certainty with a line of patterns they have not used before that the pattern won’t be poorly written and riddled with errors. There will always be the occasional error, but that should be the exception rather than the rule.

Peace and Knitting, JoLene Treace

I Saw the Harlot, but I didn’t tell the Deputy

I will confess, the title is more catchy than the sighting. I went to TNNA to generally be in the booth of one of my distributors, Up North Fiber Art Supply, and to schmooze. That I saw the Harlot was anecdotal for my stepdaughter, Erin (Hi Sweetie!). She phoned me up and wanted to know if I had seen The Yarn Harlot. Erin is a fan, and devoted fans of the Harlot knew from her blog that she would be at TNNA. I caught sight of her at a book signing. The list of people waiting for her was immense.

If I could have taken a picture I would have, but they don’t allow cameras on the trade show floor.

Other sightings were friends from Stitches and Scones, in Indiana, Pat Kirtland of Kirtland’s Yarn Barn, and Knitting Today. There were others too, but my brain is still, well, feeling like I have had a lobotomy.

For those who wonder about the process of schmoozing, yarn acquisition as it relates to designing, and ethics related to such, some points are worth remembering.

1. This is a trade show meant to sell product to retailers, not court designers. What this means to the new designer is that we need to be conscious of customers coming into the booth we are visiting. This is the big show for vendor and retailer alike, and there are shop owners, reps, and others meeting up with representatives from companies, planning their product line often for the year. Schmooze discreetly and let them take care of their business.

2. If you are a hobby designer (which isn’t a bad thing or a slam), don’t solicit free yarn. Don’t get me wrong, many are very willing to give designers either yarn to swatch with or yarn at a discount. When approaching them, wait until they are free (unobtrusively), be upfront with who you are, where you are at, and simply ask what the process is for ordering yarn for designs. They will let you know what their policy is. If you DO accept yarn that they offer to give to you, you need to really try and do something with the yarn. I do not take yarn for swatching anymore without a specific purpose in mind. Remember, that yarn is ultimately not free. They cannot sell it if they gift it to you…and there are a lot of designers out there that may or may not be professional designers. Giving away yarn is an expense for yarn companies, an investment on their part that they hope yields a return.

3. Be friendly and courteous to people who come up to you and talk about your work. They have paid you the supreme compliment by sharing a hobby they love very much with you. Knitting your pattern takes time and effort, as well as an investment of money on their part. Don’t take them for granted, for without them you would have no one to design for.

I had a lot of fun at TNNA. I will be adding spring and summer garments to my line of pattern leaflets by next TNNA. I have a number of things I want to get done. I have as I mentioned before been pretty busy over the last several months with projects going in books. The last two books are with Interweave.

I will be doing some new patterns using SWTC as well as Naturally, and hope to also be doing some things with Rauma yarns, Claudia Handpaints, Interlacements Colorado, Black Water Abbey, and Dale of Norway. Hopefully the remodeling, the yard work, and everything in between allows enough time to get a good number of designs done by TNNA next June.

By the way, one of the funniest things I saw at the show was at the booth of Jade Sapphire. They had some cardboard cutouts of people, one of Elvis and one of romance cover model Fabio. The funny thing was about Fabio. There was a sign that said something like “Show Special”, or something like that. It was the placement that to me was absolutely hysterical and left me wondering if I was the only one with a dirty mind. Well, more accurately if I was the only one who noticed why it was so funny where it was placed in relation to what it said!

For those who love traditional knitting, as I do, it was good to see my friend Beth Brown-Reinsel on the floor again in a booth. Of course, I saw Lucy Neatby who is also carried by Up North Fiber Art Supply (they also carry Sivia Harding, Jeanne Abel, and Cat Bordhi). If any of you get to take a class with Lucy, it is well worth it. She is great fun and a good teacher.

On an unfortunate note, I was rear ended on my way home from Columbus. I had pulled off the highway to fill my tank and was waiting to turn left and then I was rear ended while sitting there. No real injuries, just some stiffness and burning. Alfred (the name of my Uplander) has a dent in the hatch, and the bumper is scratched up and gouged. The hitch for the camper is mangled too. My vehicle fared much better than the young lady who hit me. She was pretty shook up (her first accident), but the Deputy was very kind. I don’t remember the name of the county, which is a shame because I appreciated his kindness and professionalism.

On a happy note, I got to play Grandma for a couple days before the show. Andy was out of town for about a week, and I visited with Erin and Ian. Ian is growing so quickly and he is such a little cutie pie. He is fun to play with. That, in the end was my favorite part of the trip. The yarn was a very close second, however. There are some really neat yarns coming out.

Peace and Knitting, JoLene Treace

Knitting Today: HAT, CAT, or Somewhere Inbetween.

Occassionally on lists for designers, a discussion regarding Hip and Trendy (HAT, or H&T as it is also called) crops up. There are a number of designers, including myself, who dislike the term as it usually is used in combination with something like “Not Your Grandma’s Knitting!”…as is, our knitting is good, yours is not relevant.

I suppose that is human nature to some extent. I am wondering, though, how much of that is due to the influx of younger knitters (as another designer wisely pointed out there seems to be a cycle with many things when “young” or newer enthusiasts join something, and everything is new to them). We are at a point (or rather, they are at a point) where they are ready to move beyond garter stitch scarves in novelty yarn, and the desire for things that are fashionable and fresh drive marketing. The search for what is “new” and “relevant”, can be somewhat misleading. Old techniques are discovered and used in new ways when minds are open, rather than closed. Don’t get me wrong, everyone should be able to choose for themselves how simple they want their knitting to be. It is their knitting and they should be allowed to enjoy it without comment from anyone. But it works both ways. Human nature being what it is, we don’t always embrace diversity as we should.

There is a whole world of knitting out there, and we are only limited by our imagination and belief in ourselves. The desire to learn more and do more can be severely hammpered by our beleif in ourselves. Many knitters have started to search out other things in knitting beyond the garter stitch scarf in novelty yarn, and there is a return to more classic types of knitting. For the fashion conscious, this classic style is not without it’s own modern feel.

I for one am rejoicing, as I am a CAT (classic and timeless) type of designer. There is more interest in other types of knitting as a result of this swing back to basic yarns and classic styles, and there isless dependence on novelty yarns to make a project special.

I have a hard time designing with the novelty yarns myself. I think they are pretty, but I have trouble doing them justice. I think because I just never learned how to combine them or use them. This is because the kind of knitting that shows these yarns off bores me silly. In all honesty, I prefer classic yarns and classic types of knitting. The knitting itself is more challenging and is the star of the show, rather than the yarn itself being the one and only design element.

I enjoy an Aran jumper (pullover) or a fairisle jumper much more than a sweater that is knit out of novelty yarns. I can appreciate them, I just don’t use them myself.

It has been postulated that designers tend to fill niches, and I suppose in many respects that is right. I have not seen any effect in my own business related to the knitting industry (many are wondering if the bubble has burst, as there are now yarn stores closing and for awhile there, it seemed there were a lot of new ones opening). I would venture to say that is because the designs that I do never appealed to the knitters the market was courting. At the TNNA (The National Needlework Association) trade show, the market was definetly more balanced and not so heavily slated towards novelty yarns last year, and I would imagine this year will be the same.

I have always, to some extent, designed what I want and let the chips fall where they may. I think in many areas of life that is a good approach. Do what you believe is right, essentially. Or do what you believe in. I believe in designing garments I would love to wear. When it gets to the point where I am designing something to make a quick sale, that is not what I am into. Some people are and there is nothing wrong with that either. But if it isn’t right for me, then I should not pursue it.

Whatever my niche is, I am not entirely sure as I have not stopped to analyze it. I suppose I should. Janet Szabo is the queen of Aran knitting. Annie Modesitt is brilliantly creative. Bonne Marie Burns epitomizes elegant and trendy (IMHO). I just do what I like and see where it takes my fancy. And I try not to be afraid.

Peace and Knitting, JoLene Treace

Free Knitting Patterns: To Blog or Not to Blog

I had a somewhat lengthy reply to a question from Ginger, regarding posting a link to a free blog. I did answer her question via email as well as beneath her comment on my blog, but I thought free knitting patterns related to copyrights might make an interesting topic.

Copyright itself can be difficult to understand. I was told at one time that you might think of it as a bundle of sticks, each stick would represent a “right”. There are any number of rights involved. First North American Serial Rights are typically the first publication of something in a North American magazine.

Over the years, publishers have expanded what they want beyond First North American Serial Rights to include the right to put something in an Anthology, the right to store it digitally, the right to distribute it digitally or in a collection, and on and on. I might add that compensation for the use of a design has not increased to cover the additional rights the publishers want.

It isn’t that I think the publishers of knitting magazines are being unfair per se, as I don’t know what expenses they have…I only know what mine are. I also know that they have to remain competitive in the publishing world or they go out of business.

The market has changed over the years. With the advent of the internet and what consumers expect, that bundle of sticks has grown. Both in the number of sticks in that bundle, and the number of sticks that publishers want when they pay a designer for the right to publish their work.

Publishers don’t want to be left in the dark in the advent of new and as yet undiscovered technologies, which can ultimately leave them behind in consumer expectations.

For example, there are now magazines that offer free downloads of some patterns. This would not be possible if the publishers had not secured digital rights to these patterns, or the right to distribute these patterns. They had to think ahead in terms of technology to have in place the means to satisfy the demands of the consumer, who can now cruise the internet and have immediate digital access to many many things. And it had to be in a way that was not too specific so that new technologies were not excluded!

There are designers who are not keen to see their patterns that were published in a magazine then offered as a free download. They don’t typically get compensated for that, although it depends on the legal wording on the contract. Contracts are often vaguely worded as it gives more wiggle room in the advent of - you guessed it - new technologies. It isn’t that publishers set out to stiff anyone. They too have a budget and they also need to meet the expectations of their consumers.

That said, how does this apply to the average knitter/blogger who likes to share free patterns? Some argue that since the pattern is free it is meant to be shared freely. While there is some truth to that, unless the pattern states clearly on it that anyone may distribute the pattern freely (as long as the pattern remains in its original state with the name of the designer clearly on the pattern) that may be one of those sticks in that copyright bundle that the designer has not given up. The right to distribute the work ultimately belongs to the creator of that work, and then it may or may not be sold or given away.

There are people out there who do patterns just because they love to do patterns and share them. When you are looking at the work of a professional designer, that free pattern represents many things. To the consumer it is a free pattern and the consumer is happy because they don’t have to pay for it. To the designer, it is something they put work into for a purpose. The purpose may be to draw traffic to their site, and to give their target consumer a chance to see what their product is like. It is a marketing tool.

In the end there is nothing wrong with that, nor is there anything wrong with not giving permission to distribute the pattern freely. It the designer put work into a design expressly to draw traffic to their site and to give a taste of what their product is like, it is their right to distribute it as they see fit.

Unfortunately, statistically, those in search of free patterns are not necessarily the ones who click through and buy…especially the ones who get the free patterns from websites that have collections of free patterns. The only way the designer benefits off of their work is if someone purchases a pattern or the design if it is work going to a publisher. Warm fuzzy feelings don’t pay the bills, and there are costs associated with designing.

So, lets say there is a free pattern you love and you would like to be able to put it on your site. One thing you can always do without permission is post a link to the pattern directly on the site from the designer. You can make the link open in a new window so that folks still have a foot in your door, so to speak.

Look at the pattern. What kind of information is there on the pattern besides the name of the designer? If there isn’t anything, you need to write and ask permission to post it on your blog. I would state upfront that the pattern will remain unaltered and with the name and copyright information of the designer on the pattern. Offer to link back to the web site or blog of the designer as well.

When you receive permission to post it on your blog, state clearly at the beginning (the end would not hurt either) the name and copyright of the design, as well as the name of the designer and that permission was given (along with the date) to post the pattern on your blog.

Many people are delighted to have free patterns they have done appear on other blogs, but others want those free patterns to stay on their website, where they can see what kind of statistics they get and where they can use it as a direct marketing tool.

As long as you have permission, you are good to go with a free pattern. You can link to your heart’s content without permission, as you are not distributing with a link.

Peace and Knitting, JoLene Treace, PR Chair The Association of Knitwear Designers, Inc.

It’s a Raverly World: Knitting on the Internet

As a designer I received information about Ravelry at the start. At the time, I was too strapped to look into it. As the months went on, more and more designers joined up and there was more and more buzz amongst designers regarding the community there.

There will always be knitters who are not online, or who avoid computers, or only go online to read their email. There will also be those intrepid souls who boldly go where others fear to tread. Fear of the unknown can stymie many a good knitter.

At any rate, I joined up and have been there for a while now. I post now and then, where I can, and enjoy the time I spend there. I have met some very fun and unique people too, too. One thing I need to do yet is get all of my designs on Ravelry. I havn’t managed to do that yet.

For those interested in designing, or becoming a professional designer, there are many good topics at hand. Self-Marketing is a good thing when you are in a personality driven business, and make no mistake this business has that component. However, the savvy business person understands that Self-Promotion is more an end product, rather than the product.

In today’s market consumers are looking at information, what they need when they need it. Consumers don’t want a sales pitch. They want truly useful information. What this means for designers and local yarn stores and others in the business, is to put yourself in the shoes of your customer. Instead of having a bland web site with your special of the day, have information they can use. For example, online references of techniques, or how to do different cast ons. You get the idea.

One thing I try and do on my blog when I have a new design is talk about the process behind it. I try and keep it brief because I don’t want to bore anyone, but I also want to inform. There is little information on how to design, and many who are interested in learning how are not interested in the art principles involved. I have talked about this before, and I think it is because the art principles involved are not presented in meaningful ways to them.

There are a myriad of wonderful knitting sites out there, and truth be told you all are probably more aware of them than I am. A little Google search (or your favorite search engine) can yield a gold mine of knitting content.

Which brings me back to Ravelry. It is a wonderful community, and has managed to bring together many diverse elements. I know there is some concern at times by designers that you can have a knitter who for whatever reason has problems bash a pattern, when it is not error in the pattern that is the source of the trouble. This can happen when the pattern is beyond the skill of the knitter, or perhaps they are not familiar with the language of patterns.  As always, you have to read and make your own decisions.

In the end, I think it is how we are in the community around us which will have the biggest impact, not only in how the quality of our designs are viewed, but in the information we share as well. I have heard throughout my life comments regarding my creativity. “You are so creative!!!” and so on. While I enjoy the compliments, in the end it is not that creativity that I want to be admired for, but by the kind of person that I am…creativity being a gift I was born with. The kind of person that I am requires far more choice and diligence.

Who we are in the community is what it is all about, and it is what makes us feel connected. Within the world of knitting, online communities such as Raverly provide another way we can connect with each other.

Maybe I will see you over there. If you see my picture, by the way, I will fess up that it is about 20 years old. I don’t have very many pictures of myself because I am usually behind the camera, and I like that one.

Peace and Knitting, JoLene Treace

Knitting on Ravelry

Ahh, the joys of Ravelry. I don’t know what they are, personally, as I was late joining the party and am still awaiting my invite. I have heard a lot of discussion about Ravelry, so it will be interesting to look around. Granted, most of the discussion I have heard has been on some of the lists for designers that I belong to.

Those discussions led to other discussions, such as the question “What is a Designer?”. For me, it is rather similar to cooking vs. being a chef. There is the hobby segment, the talented home enthusiast, and the professional. What does it mean to be a professional designer?

The first obvious answer to that quesiton is that it has become a business. In as much as it is a business, it has to be treated as a business. This is hard for people to do when they begin their journey as a “real designer”. I prefer calling it a Professional Designer.

An interesting thing I see as a professional designer (and something that causes professional designers a lot of angst) are invitations to submit designs for publication where they have the honor of having their design in said publication, and it will be great publicity for you, it will get your name out, wonderful exposure, blah blah blah. Did I mention that their is no monetary compensation and that they want the copyright? Thereby ensuring you will never recieve any income from that design for the work that you did on it.

In the design world, that copyright is the coin of the realm. There has to be a balance between getting your name out, and paying someone to do this for you by giving away your copyright. The ONLY time I consider such an arrangement (where I do not get paid, or the amount is small) is if I retain that copyright. At that point I can use the design for other things, which greatly enhances my chances of recouping my investment in the design.

LaMancha, for example. The test knitting was $200, and the tech editing $165. That does not include my time in sizing, writing the pattern, layout of the pattern, chart and schematic, and corrections after tech editing. Really puts things in perspective, doesn’t it? Yes, I could have knit it myself. But, the knitting would not really be free even if I knit it myself. I would simply be paying for it with my time rather than money. In the end, time is money too. Time spent test knitting is time that is not spent working on writing patterns or working on the layout of the chart. And tech editing? It does take your patterns to a more polished level.

It is hard to catch everything that needs changed on your own. And it is hard to see where you may need to be a little more consistent.

On the side of the knitter, there are a lot of choices out there. Among them are the many free patterns that abound on the net. The question has been posed, “Why should I pay $5 for a pattern when I can get one for free?”. I take you back to LaMancha, and the figures I shared above. Finding a free pattern that has that much thought and attention to detail, sizing, accuracy and so on for free is going to be like looking for a needle in a haystack. Why? Simply look at the economics of it and you will have your answer.

That is not to say that you won’t find good free patterns. There are designers that offer some on their sites to help promote interest in their patterns. Should you find one from a designer that you like, strongly consider purchasing a pattern from that designer.

There are more and more designers every day. There will always be “designers” that are so excited to get published that they give their copyright away. They remind me of Sally Fields clutching her Oscar, saying “They love me, the really, really, love me!”. In the end it hurts all of the professional designers, as reimbursement for designs has not kept up with other wages in other industries. I had one company (quite popular too so I won’t name names) who responded to comments regarding the cost of design”We love your work, but we can get less experienced designers and have three or 4 designs for the amount you want”.

We were not talking about an amount over $300 either. Granted this was not for the copyright, it was for licensing the design. Who really stands to make money on the design work? When a design is popular, not only are their sales in patterns, but sales in yarn. This discussion happened after a pattern they had carried was their all time best selling pattern. They wanted exclusive rights for one year. I wanted fair reimbursement for what I was expected to provide: a sample garment (I did not have to provide the yarn), and a complete pattern that was “press ready”. If I did not have to do the final press ready layout on the pattern and provide the sample garment it might not have been so bad. I walked away from it, as I would rather do business with folks who understand the economics of it for me as well as their own bottom line. I just want to be treated fairly.

Another distinction of the professional designer, in my honest opinion. Look at who the pro’s are, the names you admire and respect. Where do you see their designs? The difference is they treat it as a business. And they have to, it is how they earn their living. I consider myself a professional designer, as I treat it as a business, although it is not my primary method of earning an income (I work part time as a nurse). I can say without hesitation if I did not work as a nurse, I could not afford to do the design work. It does not pay enough for me to do it as my primary method of income. If I had a bigger name that would be, I am sure, a different story.

That’s okay with me. I enjoy what I do, both as an RN and as a professional designer. I design what I like, with an eye to what I would like to knit or wear. I work with who I want to work with, and the yarns that I want to use. Even where my designs have been in publications and the yarns have been more or less chosen by someone else, they were yarns I liked. I had input on the yarn as an integral part of the design.

So, when you see discussions or groups for designers, remember that there are all kinds. And hopefully know when you are looking at your pattern that there is a tremendous investment in time, energy, and income to produce that pattern. The designer has trusted you not to abuse their copyright by making copies for friends or selling the finished item in a cottage industry. It amazes me how many times we see the “C” word crop up still in this day and age, customers in yarn shops who expect to get a xerox copy of a pattern because they just spent $80 on yarn. I hope (although I know it will never dissappear) that knitters stand up and say this is not right. Just as I hope (although I know it will never change) that budding designers quit giving their work away.

Peace and Knitting, JoLene Treace