Cartooning in the Age of AI #5: We Don't Need a Publisher - We Do Need Help
Developing a book without a publisher using AI as an unpaid publishing pro.
Cartooning wasn’t an easy way to make a living before generative AI came along.
Now we’re going to have to get smarter.
And more human.
Why get a publisher?
Earlier on in my career, I worked with a couple of publishers and I know cartoonists who worked with some really good ones. They would develop and edit your book, guiding you to make it the best work possible. Then they would contact media outlets for reviews and publicity, and get your book into brick-and-mortar bookstores, ensuring prominent display for at least the first few weeks after launch. The bigger the publisher, the more they would do. You didn't even need to have a name for yourself, as long as the work was good enough and something they felt they could sell.
All that has changed since social media took our collective attention. You need to have an audience before a publisher will take you on. They won't find an audience for you, and they won't do much of the marketing either.
If you're anything like me, you'll find marketing one of the hardest parts of any job. As I've said before, I’m not good at blowing my own cartooning trumpet.
The AI Alternative
If you're providing a good book with a unique selling point and an audience, what is a traditional publisher giving you for the huge percentage they take when they sell your book? Essentially, a little marketing and editing. If you want your book to be a success you can’t do without either, but that doesn’t mean you need a publisher.
This is where AI comes in.
I don't ever want AI to do the creative stuff that I enjoy. But it can take over what I’m no good at and what publishers used to do for me.
Editing is essential. Even if you're fantastic with spelling and grammar (and I'm not), it’s difficult to identify your own mistakes. I use the AI-assisted software, ProWritingAid to check my work. It’s more author-orientated than Grammarly, and does a pretty good job of cleaning up the manuscript so that my human editor, Sheila, doesn't have to deal with trivial typos. Because she has to spend less time on my books, Sheila charges me a cheaper rate. My book about Lyttelton, New Zealand will be short at under 20,000 words (there are a lot of pictures), but the editing should come in at under 150 quid. Well worth it.
I found out this week that not only will AI spellcheck and grammar check my work, but it will also critique the book and suggest what genre it should be marketed in. I uploaded half the unfinished manuscript and some drawings and Claude AI suggested Illustrated Memoir with Humour.
Not only that, Claude wrote the blurb for me – the copy that will appear in the listings on Amazon and other online bookstores. It also wrote a cut-down version of this blurb to go on the back of the book. I hate doing this stuff; you can't see the wood for the trees. Now I have a good first draft to work with:
Lyttelton isn't your typical Kiwi town. Nestled in an extinct volcano's crater, it's a working port where history and modern life clash in ways that'd make your head spin. This book peels back the layers of a place that's more than just a gateway to Christchurch. It's a town where you're as likely to run into an artist as a stevedore, where Facebook arguments about port noise are a spectator sport, and where the iconic Timeball still keeps time (when it's not being rebuilt after an earthquake). From the tunnel that connects us to the 'big smoke' to the hills that cut our winter sun short at 2 pm, I'll take you through a year in the life of this odd little town. It's a place where resilience isn't just a buzzword, it's a way of life - because when you live in Lyttelton, you learn to roll with the punches, whether they're coming from Mother Nature or the local planning committee. Forget your tourist brochures; this is Lyttelton, warts and all.
AI can even critique something I've always struggled with: picking the best cover for the book.
Cover Selection with AI
Here are three cover designs. I had already discounted the one with the fishing boats as being too generic. But I uploaded the three covers to Claude, together with half of the very early draft manuscript. I couldn't believe how good it was at suggesting which cover I should use.
I liked the red boat cover because of its look, but Claude picked the view over Lyttelton because that better sums up the contents of the book. Here is Claude’s take:
The first cover, while charming, focuses solely on fishing boats, which might not fully represent the breadth of your narrative.
The third cover featuring a large ship is striking but might give the impression that the book is primarily about shipping or port operations, rather than the broader life of the town.
The second cover offers the most comprehensive visual representation of Lyttelton and best aligns with the wide-ranging, intimate portrait of the town that your blurb promises. It invites the reader to explore the entire landscape of Lyttelton, both literally and metaphorically.
And I have to agree with it.
What do you think? Did Claude make the right choice, or do you have a personal favourite?
Book Launch Possibilities
I talked to a local printer this week, and if I can afford it, I'd like to have cards and calendars to go with a real-world launch of the book. Real world marketing is something that AI can't do. But I did ask Claude to look at the designs to see which it liked best. I’m not sure about its take on that one.
Paid subscribers can see my conversation with Claude AI plus proposed greeting card designs and what Claude thought of those in a separate post.
If I'm going to get this book done for a launch in the first week of November, I better get back to the drawing board.
—
Thank you for being one of the good humans.
Alex
PS. The neighbour has put in more fencing to keep in her sheep. Unfortunately, Molly has figured out how to get through the hedge at the front of our house.
She was after a very big ball. She’ll do anything to get a ball of normal size. This Swiss ball sent her into overdrive.
I’ve now had to hide it from her. If anyone wants a Swiss ball and can pick it up from the morning sun side of Lyttelton, let me know.
Wow, that blurb is actually really good!
Excellent info in this article. As a self-publisher I relate. The main obstacle I'm also finding is the marketing. If I could get some robot to take that over while I get back to making art, I'd be overjoyed.
In regards to covers, the overview choice is the best of the 3, but maybe there's a better representation that's more dynamic, up-close, and relatable. Perhaps a layout that's a collage of people and unique local architecture/sights? Granted, it's a far more difficult illustration, but I'm just putting it out there to help you dig deeper on other marketable cover ideas.