Crazy Money Making Scheme!

[Rodak]

I smell an Idea coming on.

It smells like a room full of Eustachian Tubes!

Normally when I get an idea, I pull it's butt-hole inside out and look for the Egg Sack!

That's the best part.

But this time I may throw it out for other folks' opinions.

I like art. I enjoy making money off art (I ran a comic book store for 15 years!).

Now I need a crackpot plan to raise extra money (Never EVER buy a Government home). So naturally I hatched a plan involving art.

I want to self publish a coloring book type thing.

My collection includes many books of ancient and medieval art.

I like those old woodcuts of demons and other weirdness.

I even made some scans and printed them so I could color them with colored pencils.

Then it dawned upon me that these images must be Public Domain because they were made long before Cpoyright laws!

I read the indicia in all of my collections and they point out that while the Art is public Domain, the collection is Copyrighted.

However one of the books said that the collection is copyrighted, but it gave written permission to reproduce up to 10 images (so long as you give credit to Dover Books).

Naturally I conceived of a way to profit from this.

A portfolio of themed images, oversized and intended for coloring!

The Theme is The Seven Deadly Sins and their Punishments as described in Dante's Inferno.

The images below link to my own colored pencil / marker / crayon / etc versions of the pages.

EDIT: Read forum content rules.

Would people buy such a product if I Self Published it?

Opinions wanted!

Peace.

[Shard]

Re: Crazy Money Making Scheme!

Stupendous idea, finally a way to tap into the modern, Christian-family market-place and promote medieval art appreciation at the same time. And you can spin it off in a variety of children-oriented ways, lunchboxes, school binders, a Memory-style card game, or a Dante's Inferno sing-a-long Book & CD combo.

[Jamos' Old Account]

Re: Crazy Money Making Scheme!

Personally, I would love for this idea to do great. The problem is that most people aren't too interested in buying books of artwork. Mainly this would appeal to artists, like myself. We live in a time where art isn't appreciated as much as it should be. I do sincerely wish you good luck, though.

[Rodak]

Re: Crazy Money Making Scheme!

HOLY CRAP!!

I just saw the edit and apologize.

I never thought about the images being possibly offensive.

I'm jaded.

It won't happen again.

If it won't anger anyone, I'll cut and paste some just monster stuff, no anatomy.

I see these in bookstores all the time and never once saw them teated as "mature" but I completely agree with the edit.

I apologize again... That was stupid.

I'm glad folks like the concept though.

And fear not, I was not planning on using this site to promote sales, just get feedback on the idea.

Peace.

[Snarf]

Re: Crazy Money Making Scheme!

Rodak,

I would really love to see what you came up with. Could you please PM me with the link?

I think its a fabulous idea and I would love to make some suggestions on next works.

[Big Rick Cook]

Re: Crazy Money Making Scheme!

A buddy of mine up in Ohio created a Juggalo Coloring Book for the Gathering of the Juggalos last year, the big 4-day concert for ICP and all their rap groups under them. The book consisted of artwork done by my friend depicting the various Psychopathic groups.

His mother fronted the $1,000 he needed to print the books up in the first place, and he walked away from the Gathering last year with $4,000. $3,000 profit is pretty damn good.

So this is a decent idea.

[Rodak]

Re: Crazy Money Making Scheme!

Wow, that's encouraging.

I don't suppose you know the size of the Print Run of your friend's book?

I am going to have to go for High Quality because I only have "The Rights" to ten images. I was thinking oversized (roughly the size of 4 magazines arranged in a square) and water-color stock paper.

I want to use the Seven Sins Punishments and the book also has two of the covers to Dante's Trilogy (Paradisio, Purgatorio, and Inferno). That's nine. I'm sure I can come up with a tenth from the book I have that gives permission to use up to ten of it's images. But I'd need to find a public domain copy of the third cover to round out the set. I want to do this legally or not at all!

Sadly $1,000 is beyond me at this point.

A smaller print run, and perhaps numbered copies, may off set that.

The format I envisage in this early stage is an illustrated envelope to hold the "plates" (unless the "folding" portfolio sleeves are cheaper).

I can't see binding 10 pages and I honestly do not know where I'd get more that I can use without fear of violating someone's rights.

With luck the finished product can be put up retail for $10 to $20. Not bad for Portfolio Art. Bad for a Coloring Book, but this is a new idea! A Coloring Portfolio!

Thanks for your thoughts.

Peace.