Art and writing are my heroin. I can’t stop jonesing for the next high that I’ll get from a bout of creative flow. Today I went to the printers to get preliminary proofs of some of the pages in my book. It was really exciting to see how the actual pages will look (8.75 X 12.25, not taking bleeds into account–quite large!), except one thing was dismally off. The images were literally too dark!
The luminosity of my iMac had deceived me. This is my fault. I should have purchased a calibrating tool eons ago and now I will have to pay the ultimate price for my procrastination–TIME. There are literally thousands of layers that I must go through in order to independently adjust levels, exposures, contrast and brightness. I will attempt to cut corners here and there if the work looks satisfactory, but this will be an exercise of meditation. I must enjoy the process. Jamming out to good music is a must.
To make sure I get it right the first time, I have just purchased the calibrating tool and it will be arriving on Wednesday. A $220 tool. The printing itself isn’t cheap either. At 75 cents per page (11X17) for a high quality proof, it adds up fast.
So here are some fun break downs of where I am at:
Printing 200+ pages–b/w laser printer $150.
Layout of illustrated novel–technically on pg 44 (w/o taking into account the tonality edits). The book itself will be a little less than 200 pages given the layout of text.
Submitting story to editor next week. Minimum total: $1100 for a intense edit, although I have revised it like crazy so that the editor can focus on the important stuff–flow, plot, character development, etc.
Printing proofs at least twice through–$300.
New front-load Frigidaire washer — $650–mine just broke–not related to this, but it’s another expense I had to fork last week.
Calibrating tool $220
Possibly a new iMac, $2500
Half an ounce of Cannabis indica for chronic pain and for reaching altered states of consciousness–$150 (don’t judge–I have a medical marijuana card!)
Fulfillment from completing my book and getting it published–priceless.
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