Swallow

It's done. It's finally finished! After weeks of cutting, gluing, sewing and printing, I present you with my book about oatmeal - Swallow.

Not only did I make one book. I made fifteen in total. Here they are, perfectly lined up in the one place where they'd all fit.

When you open the cover, you see the title page. This is a Micro-Fiction Oatmeal Cookbook made in 2008. They are about the size of a 5 by 7.

What's great about micro-fiction is that it takes a short story and condenses it into under 500 words. Each entry in my book looks something like this:

There is a corresponding photo and story. Each piece of micro-fiction is about a person and written in second person. For example, the first line of Peach Puzzle is this: "Parts of you didn't fit together."

Each bowl of oatmeal represents a person I've met. Sometimes the pictures are clear and very representative. Other times they are more abstract. In this entry, there is a bowl of oatmeal with a lemon slice on top. The corresponding story is about a friend of mine who loves all things lemon. 

The book is 24 pages long with an Author's Biography and Colophon at the end. A colophon is a list of all materials used to make the book.

Here's my list:

• Binder board
• Decorative paper
• Cardstock
• Ink
• Hemp String
• A Drill
• Burlap
• Plastic envelopes
• Oats
• Matte photos
• Super glue
• mod podge
• hot glue
• Spoon flattened by a hammer
• Permanent marker

The back of the book is just one solid color.

You may notice that I spent a good amount of time working on the cover of the book.

I was really aiming for a layered look - the way that a bowl of oatmeal can be layered with different toppings and items. I used a bird's nest paper because I liked the texture. I then cut out squares of burlap - sort of like a placemat - and then placed a small bag of oats on top each book. I placed the oats in plastic bags to preserve them properly. I then affixed a spoon on top.

My experience in making these books took a lot of time and space. Here are some process photos that you may remember:

I individually cut each piece of paper and all the hardcover parts of the book.

My bedroom was a disaster.

Final Outcome:  I am more than happy with the way my books turned out. I think the writing is solid, and I think the pictures really add to the dimension of the book. I love the cover, and I'm glad I took the time to really figure out a layered look. I am also happy that I made a hardcover book, as that was something I aimed to do from the beginning.

Things I'd do differently: I printed photos and taped them into the book by hand. In the future, I would probably have these pages professionally printed (in color for the photos) and then cut. This would have saved me a good two hours worth of work.

Several of you have let me know that you're interested in one of these books.... for all of you who are interested, a special surprise is coming soon in the form of a contest. Keep your eyes open and keep reading the blog!