Rebranding the Author Brand: "Let Your Imagination Take Flight"

Last week I blogged about what the author brand is and shared some examples of logos and taglines I found for other authors online. I mentioned that I was trying to figure out the core element of MY brand. Why I write, who I am, what my books are about ... and these were the things that came to mind:

escaping reality 

imagination without limits 

breaking free from real-world constraints 

unforgettable characters

I initially wanted my tagline to be this:

"escaping reality one book at a time"

Essentially, that is EXACTLY why I have always loved stories. Loved reading and writing. Purely to escape reality. But I thought that "escaping reality" might (MIGHT) have a slightly negative connotation. Escaping reality isn't always a healthy thing. That whole ostrich-burying-its-head mentality isn't seen as a good thing! And while getting lost in a good book isn't always about denial, "escaping reality" may sometimes be seen as just that.

So onto the next idea: Imagination. No limits. You open a book and your mind is free to soar across worlds, real or fantastical. So ... I needed an image and a tagline that would fit together and depict this idea. Soaring ... flying ... a bird! Which goes perfectly with:

"let your imagination take flight"

So I started doodling and came up with this bird:

Cool. I liked it. I really liked it. But I wanted it to be in nice, neat vector format. So ... I opened up a program I've owned for more than a year but have never been brave enough to use! Adobe Illustrator. After a few basic tutorials, and several hours (yes, hours. Don't laugh. It was my first time!), I had my bird!

Then I just needed to add my name in a clean, simple non-serif font (and I spent a while looking through various options), plus the tagline in a font slightly more whimsical...

And there we have it :-)

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GIVEAWAY WINNER

The giveaway for anyone who left a review of The Trouble with Flying ended today,

and the winner, picked at random by Rafflectoper, is Sally!

Congrats, Sally! You've been emailed :-)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Author Brand: What It Is and Some Examples

I've been told about this author branding thing for years. I've even tried to do it. Sort of. I never had my own logo or a tagline, but I've tried various "looks" and then created blog, Facebook, Twitter, Google+ etc headers all based on the same image (like what you can currently see at the top of my blog). But I've never fully liked any of the ideas I've come up with. Basically, I want a neat little logo/tagline combo that can represent my brand anywhere on the internet. Something that's easy to print on business cards or bookmarks or, basically, any swag. Something I can do in different colours for different situations, but that no one can doubt is mine. So ... how do I do this?

It's difficult when you write more than one genre. A fantasy author could go with an image / font / logo that shouts YOU'RE ENTERING THE FANTASY REALM NOW! A chick lit author could go with an image / font / logo that shouts I'M CUTE, I'M ROMANCE, I'M CHICK LIT! But if you write in multiple genres, like me, how do you show that?

So I'm left trying to find a thread common to ALL the books I write, no matter what genre they're in. I'm left looking at ME as an author--who am I and why I write--because, ultimately, for indie authors it's all about creating a brand around YOU, THE AUTHOR rather than around any of your books specifically, right?

So here's what reading and writing are about for me:

escaping reality

imagination without limits

breaking free from real-world constraints
unforgettable characters

I'm still boiling that down to one core "thing" and working on how to represent it, but I've got one idea I really, really like, and I'm sitting on it for a little while to see if I still like it tomorrow, the next day, next week!

For now, here are some cool examples I found online:

An Example of Branding

Several weeks ago, our wedding photographer (Derryn Semple) contacted me to say our photos (which we were going to get in digital format on a disc) were ready, she was just waiting for packaging to arrive. My highly impatient self was like, Packaging? Really? Can't she just stick the discs in an envelope and mail them?! A little while later when we finally got the photos, I understood :-)

My grandmother always says "Feast the eyes" when she's making her food (i.e. presentation is just as important as taste), and Derryn certainly feasted the eyes with the beautiful presentation of our photographs :-)

So the point of this post is to show you, an author who's been told over and over that you need to create a "brand" for yourself, how Derryn creatively incorporates her brand into everything she produces.

 First of all, here is her logo:

And here is what our photos came packaged in:

Click to enlarge

 And when you open the box, this is what's inside:

Click to enlarge

The coffee smells so good! (And I'm not even a coffee drinker ;-) ) I love that little bird on her logo, and I'm not likely to ever forget what it represents -- Derryn's photography. I've seen it on her website, her Facebook page, now the box, and the little keyrings that are so pretty we will HAVE to use them somewhere (and so that we'll never forget our anniversary ;-) ).

Oh, and the photos themselves are gorgeous too! I'll be sharing some here soon.

What represents you as an author? A logo? Font type? Colour?

Rebranding

You're not in the wrong place. This is still my blog! It's just ... had a little makeover.

I've been thinking about the "author brand" as opposed to the "book/series brand", and realized that those two things don't have to (and maybe shouldn't) be the same. Up until a few hours ago, my blog very definitely said I was an author of young adult paranormal/fantasy fiction. Which is the truth. But I don't plan to always write in that genre. In fact, there's a very non-paranormal idea that's been hanging out in my head for nearly a year now that I'm very much looking forward to writing.

I don't want people to associate me with only one genre and then be somewhat freaked out one day when I publish something completely different. So ... I'm trying to go for a more "neutral" feel with this blog. Something that doesn't immediately scream Very Specific Genre. Do you think I've succeeded at all? :-)

PS - And April is OVER! Hallelujah!