[ SECRET POST #6379 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #6379 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.


01.



__________________________________________________



02.



__________________________________________________



03.



__________________________________________________



04.



__________________________________________________



05.



__________________________________________________



06.



__________________________________________________



07.
















Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 02 pages, 35 secrets from Secret Submission Post #912.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

[tabaqui]

I think it's really cool that people go through the effort of making their own books because they like a story so much.
*shrug*

To each their own.

[(Anonymous)]

On the surface that’s what it looks like and I’d have to agree with you. But they’re really not. Everything OP has ever said about it makes it clear they’re not going to much effort at all. A handful do the majority of the work, everyone else just prints their work and constructs the binding. And based on the pictures OP has shared, they don’t have a fucking clue how to construct the binding. Which wouldn’t be a big deal but the whole reason they do this stuff is to sell it to other fans.

[tabaqui]

.....and if the people buying it are satisfied, that's all that matters.

[(Anonymous)]

Except for the knock-on effect that real binders who use quality materials and do a professional job lose custom because suddenly their prices look too high. I watched that exact thing happen to shirt makers when suddenly every suburban stay at home mom got a Cricut and started a “business” applying budget heat transfer vinyl to dollar store shirts using stolen artwork and selling them for $15 each. Suddenly anyone that could embroider or screen print and get licenses looked like crooks charging $35+ a shirt. I really don’t want that to happen with binding, which is why I hope they always stay far away from the rest of the bookbinding community.

[tabaqui]

Since more professional bookbinding appears to be more expensive and difficult, I doubt that people who buy those products will settle for 'backyard' bindings. I know that if my favorite fic had been presented in book form at a price i could afford, I might have considered buying it, but in the long run, I prefer my fic on my computer, and my books to be something other than fanfiction.

I understand your concerns, but I can't be too mad at people who at least are trying to be creative, however déclassé it might be.

[(Anonymous)]

See, I don’t really see it as creative. They’re using all the same templates and the only thing that really varies is the cover art and if they decided to glue softcover or hardcover. Granted, there is indeed some creativity in that and I admit I’m pretty jaded when it comes to crafts for sale. In the last fifteen years it’s been painful watching MLMs and beginners undercut advanced crafters in pretty much everything. Most major craft fairs now allow MLMs and many even reserve the most prominent spots for them. I hate the idea of one of the last handcrafts falling to that trend :(

[tabaqui]

I really hate that so many artists are being ripped off, like you said, their work turned into cheapy t-shirts and stuff. And it does suck big time that fairs allow it. That sucks all around.

[(Anonymous)]

Genuinely curious, how can you even tell?

[(Anonymous)]

Tell what? OP has been bringing this up since at least Christmas and a couple months ago finally answered some of the questions I’ve been asking. OP explained the process and what some of the terminology means (I don’t know if it’s all fan binders or just the Dramione ones but they incorrectly apply a bunch of terms).

[(Anonymous)]

How do you know its all the same OP? I dont think I come here often enough to see the pattern so I'm just curious.

[(Anonymous)]

I’m here daily. Fan binders aren’t a huge group to begin with, but OP always mentions it’s about Dramione fic. And that’s not a huge group, either. I also finally got OP to answer some questions a couple months ago and yes, it’s all the same person.

[(Anonymous)]

Yeah, it seems really cool to me, too. And if the end result is shoddy, I definitely can't tell from looking at the images in the secret.

I also don't really agree with AYRT's opinion that armature book binding is going to devalue professional book binding in customer's minds. Hardcopy book sales are in a rough spot for lots of reasons, mainly to do with the ease and cheapness of ebooks, P2P sharing, the skyrocketing price of rent influencing the amount of available living space people have to store books, and hell, maybe even a little bit due to the increasingly mainstream popularity of fandom. If amateur book binding poses any threat to professional book binding at all, it's way, way down the list of things that are wreaking havoc on book sales profits in 2024.

[tabaqui]

Yeah, pretty much. And I can't help but think that pro book binders aren't out there making fanfic books, so...the market doesn't really cross all that much.

[(Anonymous)]

These are glued books, not bound books. The end result is poor quality that won’t last more than maybe 18 months.

As for impacting other binders, I think I didn’t clearly explain that I’m comparing fan binders to semi pro binders. The semi pros do each book by hand but they absolutely have a customer base. And it’s a natural progression with all crafts for sale to branch out, especially if you don’t have repeat customers. It’s unfortunately easy for me to imagine these gluers deciding to start selling notebooks, etc. and undercut the market. I’m not saying that will happen, just that it’s a logical progression that I really hope doesn’t come to pass. Hence, continue to stay the fuck away from real bookbinders, please.