Happy 2009! I don't know about you, but I'm ready to move on. Sayonara 2008 – we loved you, but we are setting sail on the turning of the tide. There's an excitement in the air. Change has come and I think it's bigger than the election. To that end I have been thinking about new directions for my art and where my creative spirit and I may journey to next. More on that later.
My blog will be a year old in February and I have some new design ideas I'll be revealing on my blogversary. But in my heart of hearts I'm a paper girl. I love paper and collage and the smell of glue and ink and the sound that the pencil makes as it tattoos's itself across the page. This digital thing is, for me, the next best thing….not so much the next greatest thing. So when I found out I could turn my blog into a BOOK! I leapt for joy. You mean I could hold my blog in my hands? Feel the crisp weight of the page as I turned from beginning to end? This is the juiciest best of both worlds.
It's called "blog slurping" and you do it through the wonderful people at blurb . Listed below are the bullet points for this amazing technology:
- Works with many blogging platforms – Supports LiveJournal and TypePad blogs.
- Edit in real time – Allows you to customize and edit your book as little or as much as you like.
- High quality – Our Hardcover, Dust Jacket,Hardcover, ImageWrap and Softcover books all feature professional bindings and coated, matte paper. Up to 440 pages accommodate thousands of blog posts.
- Fast turnaround – Orders arrive on your doorstep in approximately 7 to 10 business days.
- Automatic slurp action (watch the video) – Imports and maps blog text, images, comments, and links into professionally designed page layouts.
- Affordable – Prices start at only $12.95 for a 40-page softcover, $22.95 for Hardcover, Dust Jacket and $24.95 for Hardcover, ImageWrap. Thebookmaking software is free.
- Flexible ordering – Order just one or many copies of your book. You have the option to place your book in Blurb’s bookstore for fans to purchase.
Click here to go over to blurb to find out more and watch an easy to understand video about how to do this. blurb offers a lot of different book creation options, so if you've never been, take a look here. I have made books through iPhoto on my Mac, but I'm really impressed with blurb's variety and really easy to use instructions. My friend Stephanie has made several really great blurb books which you can check out here as well.
So in February I'll be sluping my blog into a book so I can see it in the "real" world and it can fit neatly on my shelf next to my journals. It feels like a more permanent record of my 1st blogging year. Call me old fashioned.
See all the weird spacing on this post??? I've spent 10 minutes trying to fix it…to no avail. Any wonder paper is my preferred medium??? Cut. Paste. Repeat. No weird spacing.
oh typepad is just CRAZY these days. I will be really anxious to see how this goes for you….I ‘slurped’ the text from my posts but couldn’t figure out the photo part.
I agree, holding paper in your hands…just nothing like it.
x..x
steph
yo cutie pie meneley – i’ve been wanting to do the same thing with blurb, because like you i want the hard copy as a keepsake. and……i also started my blog in the month of february. and another thing. i am so glad you started yours too. it’s nice to have spots on this world wide web that feel welcoming and g o o d.
Whoa!…is that the sound of time flying AGAIN?
Hooray for the Slurpers of the World!…I totally get the need to hold stuff in your hands but like a flowing river, I’m going to let some of it drift by…..do I sound zen enough?
Tell me as soon as you get the book in hand. I’ll come down and page through. Happy Anniversary!
Hey, I have looked for your email addy, but my Mac won’t bring it up. I just wanted to tell you that I’m devouring my copy fo 1000 Artist Journal Pages, and I love your pages in there. They are SO colorful and fun. I love the color you use in your work, on your blog, too.
It’s funny how a lot of the male contributors in the 1000 Journal pages book use almost exclusively black and white, and the women often use COLOR!! I love the qualities of both. Design is the key, baby!!
I am with you. Nothing beats paper. Great idea here!
I tried about a dozen times last week to slurp my blog into a book and it came up with apologies that they couldn’t do it.
Frustrating when one is so excited and wants it to happen now!
Let me know if you are able to achieve this. Inquiring minds want to know.