Interview with Margaret Radcliffe,

Author of The Knitting Answer Book

Interview by Amy Brozio-Andrews

Knitting designer, teacher, and writer Margaret Radcliffe is the author of The Knitting Answer Book: Solutions to Every Problem You'll Ever Face, Answers to Every Question You'll Ever Ask. In 2007, she'll be doing a Maine Knitting Cruise on the schooner J. & E. Riggin, as well as teaching a week-long design class for all levels of knitters at the John C. Campbell Folk School in late April. Visit her website at http://www.maggiesrags.com for more information about Margaret Radcliffe's work, including book signings, classes, workshops, pattern editing and publishing services, and even free patterns.

How did you discover your talent for being a knitting writer, and how did you break in as a knitting writer?
 

In the beginning, I really didn't think of myself as a writer. I was fascinated by designing sweaters. I taught myself knitting design with the help of a couple of books and I had an idea I'd like to publish my patterns, but I was working in software development and implementation and had no time to pursue it. Then I had my first child, quit my high-powered job, and moved to the town where my husband was already living. The idea held on and in 1997 I started my knitting pattern publishing business, Maggie's Rags. I use desktop publishing, print on demand so that I don't need to maintain inventory, and sell only wholesale. Initially I did all the marketing myself, which meant a slow start, but since I had almost no overhead and small children at home, my plan was to stay in the black and to grow the business slowly. I also wanted to get to know my customers, since I have no experience working in retail needlework shops.

As a way to promote my patterns, I began teaching knitting workshops at conferences, yarn shops and knitting guilds, and for my local YMCA. This was what really got me started writing about knitting, because I had to develop my own course materials and it gave me a "laboratory" for testing my writing. I got to see first-hand what worked and what my students found confusing. I soon discovered that teaching was a far more efficient way to make money than selling knitting patterns (which are small ticket items), plus it gave me a chance to travel and an opportunity to network with knitters and other professional designers.

To promote my pattern sales and my teaching, I have a website, www.maggiesrags.com. I should say that I've got quite a bit of experience in technical writing from my software days-- when you work for a small software startup company, everyone does everything, and if you're the only one with degrees in the humanities (I have a B.A. and an M.A. in English), you tend to take over responsibility for the writing and editing of all the user manuals and technical documentation. That's another way of saying I got stuck with it!  I've also done a lot of academic editing (research papers, dissertations, proceedings of conferences). So, when it came time to set up my own website, I offered knitting pattern editing and writing services. This generated only two small jobs, as far as I can recall. Then, in 2003, I got a call from Gwen Steege, the editor of Storey Publishing's knitting book. She was looking for a copyeditor with expertise in knitting to work on their new line of knitting books and my website was apparently the only one out there with the keywords "knitting" and "editing." I ended up doing the copy and technical editing of four of their books.

What inspired you to write The Knitting Answer Book?
 

Frankly, it was more of a business decision than an inspiration. I had pretty much decided that I didn't have time to develop a knitting book. Most of the books that are published are simply collections of patterns-- instructions for knitted garments. All of my time was taken up simply designing for my own pattern line and I didn't see how I could do that and come up with 20 or 30 more original designs to put in a book. I also need to emphasize that I had no idea how book submissions worked or how the rest of the publishing process really worked. Gwen Steege, who I'd been working with at Storey Publishing, had the idea for The Knitting Answer Book and asked me if I'd like to write it. I have to assume that she liked my work! I had submitted writing samples to her before they hired me as a copy/technical editor, so she was already familiar with my work.

Can you please tell us about how you sold your book (i.e., had you written only a book proposal or had you completed the entire manuscript)?

Gwen already had a sketchy proposal for the book. I helped her expand the outline, but she was the one that developed the rest of the proposal and pitched it to the editorial committee. At the time, I had no idea what a gift this was-- I was literally handed this opportunity on a platter. Now I have a much better understanding of the normal process and am very, very thankful. Looking at Storey's line of knitting books, I now see that publishing The Knitting Answer Book was a strategic move for them. They had been publishing the traditional pattern collections, but their specialty is "how to" and reference books. The Knitting Answer Book is their first knitting reference book, with very broad appeal, so it's a good fit for them.

What kind of promotion have you done for it?
 

I promote it on my website, along with my line of knitting patterns, and have since long before it was released. It's mentioned in my signature, so every time I send an e-mail or post to one of the big knitting lists or groups it gets visibility. It's promoted in the catalog for my patterns and I include a flier or post card for the book whenever I fill a pattern order. This is a very targeted audience, since the people who purchase my patterns are the owners or managers of knitting shops.

The book was originally scheduled for release in August 2005 but was delayed until October so copies didn't actually make it into bookstores until November. This presented a challenge because by November all of the big fall knitting events are over. I did pre-release promotion at these events in 2005 by handing out thousands of flyers. At one event where I was scheduled to appear at an "author's table" but with no books to display, I printed a transfer of the cover of the book and ironed it onto a shirt. On the back of the shirt, it said, "Got Knitting Questions" with a giant question mark, and on the front it said, "I've got answers!" with the cover of the book.

When it was first released, October 2005, we had a release party and signing at a spinning group (that's spinning yarn, on spinning wheels) that I'm a member of. That was very exciting, because they express shipped me 60 copies directly from the bindery in China, so they'd be here in time. Those copies were the first ones that made it to the US, at least a month before the rest of the printing. In December, leading up to Christmas, we had three hometown events: a Knit-In, Q&A, and display of my trunk show my local independent bookstore; a signing and Q&A at the local university's bookstore; and another signing at the local yarn shop.

For the last year, since release, I've traveled to the big knitting conferences and done book signings at the retail booths, and I mention it in my introduction whenever I teach and in my bio in promotional literature for teaching events. When I'm traveling, I try to set up events at yarn shops and bookstores in the area. Most importantly, though, my publisher has set up promotional events with the major craft book distributors at trade shows. I've done signings at both of the national needlework trade shows that target the craft knitting industry, which lets me meet and put signed copies directly in the hands of the retailers.

Has any part of the book publishing experience been dramatically different from what you expected?
 

I really expected more interaction with my editor in the process of writing the book. I was used to frequent exchanges with her when I was doing editing and felt like I was working in a compete vacuum while writing my own book. I also expected to have direct interaction with the artist doing the illustrations, but that was all handled through an editorial assistant.

How do you prepare and write out your knitting patterns?
 

My approach varies. Sometimes I play around designing on the needles without more than a vague plan of what I want. If it's successful and I think it's marketable, I'll write down what I did. Then, if it's a garment, I have to go back and calculate sizing, check all the math, and write detailed instructions.

Other times, I'll have a detailed idea before I start, for example for a sweater with specific features and cut and with a textured or colored pattern. Sometimes I sketch what I want, but frequently I'll just have the idea in my head. I begin by designing the fabric itself, knitting test swatches until I've got what I like in terms both of the hand of the fabric and the look of it. Then I use garment design software to print out schematics for the garment pieces and measurements for industry-standard sizing. I decide what my size ranges will be (which will vary depending on how the ornament on the sweater fits into the sizes).

I take the stitches per inch from my swatch and figure out how many stitches are required to fit across the garment pieces for each size. This is like figuring out how many bricks you need across the front of a building, and it's all mathematical. I work out all shaping (armholes, necklines, etc.) in terms of stitches and rows, for every size. If the math is complicated, I may actually do this in an Excel spreadsheet to prevent arithmetic errors.

I type up the instructions and all the measurements, stitch counts, rows counts, and so on in a Word document. I try to include everything I can, like abbreviations, explanations of specialized techniques and space for illustrations. Then I print it out and sit down to knit it from the pattern, making corrections as I go.

If I'll be traveling during this stage, I take it all with me on paper, with the pattern, notes, needles, and yarn in a two-gallon zip lock bag. If I'm working at home, I'm just as likely to put my laptop on the ottoman in front of my knitting chair and make any changes directly in the Word Document. Each time I print out a new copy, I number it in red or green ink so I can tell which is the latest version, but I save the old ones in case I make some dreadful mistake and need to revert to an older version.

At the end of the process, I weigh the garment to see how much yarn was actually used. I also make some test swatches which I unravel and use to estimate the yardage needed for each size. I set the whole thing aside for at least a week before proofreading.

Are there any challenges particular to being a knitting writer?

As you can see from the description above, math is a key element to good design. As part of the proofreading process, I always check all the math in the pattern because it's so easy to introduce errors. Writing a knitting pattern is very much like writing a computer program. You tell people to do something over and over again until they've done it X number of times or until a certain measurement is reached. Unfortunately, all writing is open to misinterpretation. The writing must be very precise to limit the number of people who are confused by the instructions. At the same time, it must seem simple and conversational so that knitters aren't put off by the style.

How long does it take to go from idea to finished piece?
 

It depends a great deal on the individual design as well as how much I'm traveling and what other writing deadlines are looming. About a month for a sweater, but some projects take much longer.

Do you have knitters test your patterns prior to submitting them for publication?

Again, it depends on the piece. For garments where specific sizes cause some sort of exception (like a pattern repeat that doesn't fit easily into the width of the garment), I will get someone to knit at least one of the "problem" sizes. For more complex garments, I may ask several people to knit it in several sizes. I have actually found that I am my own best test knitter; experienced knitters sometimes don't notice that instructions are missing or inaccurate, because they already understand what they're supposed to do. I look for middle of the road test knitters-- the kind I expect to use my patterns-- and who will be frustrated by poor directions.

How would you advise prospective freelancers interested in breaking into knitting and other craft-related markets?

Research the market. Check out all the magazines and all the book publishers for your craft. Join the trade organization for the industry. In my case, this is The National Needlearts Association. This will get you access to the trade shows, where you can network with retailers, distributors, and publishers, and will also get you a listing in their membership directory. There are also Internet discussion groups for knitting designers (and I assume for other crafts); join them and pay attention to the discussions.

Keep in mind that you need to be either an expert in your chosen craft or a very good writer. There are plenty of people now who have been blogging about knitting, self-publishing newsletters and patterns, and so on, who are now writing for magazines and publishing books. There is a lot of competition. In order to set yourself apart you either need to know more, you need to be highly innovative in the craft, or you need to express yourself better.

Thanks to the Internet for marketing and distribution and to inexpensive personal computers and printers, there are now thousands of people who are trying to break into the knitting design business and self-publish their patterns. Very, very few of them are making a living at it. In fact, I can only think of one pattern publisher for whom it's a full time job. Self-publishing brings the same distribution problems in craft patterns and books as it does in other areas of publishing. You have to do all your own marketing and are limited in the number of retail outlets that will actually stock your product. On the other hand, you have complete control over the design and printing of your work.

There are, however, lots of freelance opportunities. Yarn distributors pay for pattern instructions for designs using their yarns. Knitting magazines also pay for designs and articles, and usually only want to purchase the first North American Rights (in the US at least). Check with them for submission guidelines. Unfortunately, designing doesn't pay well for the investment in time actually knitting the samples. The last time I checked the most magazines were paying for a design was $500. You must use the yarn that the magazine selects for you (which may not be at all what you had in mind). And once your proposal is accepted and you receive the yarn, you may have only a week or two to actually knit the sweater.

If you can do copy or technical editing, there are many more opportunities, especially with so many writers and publishers just breaking into the field. I've turned down several editing jobs in the last two months because I've begun writing my next book. The publishers who contacted me say they can't find anyone available to do copyediting of knitting books until well into 2007. I understand that there's a shortage of crochet editors as well. If you have expertise in these areas as well as some idea of what's involved in copy editing, you should be contacting publishers and yarn distributors to offer your services.

Knitting seems to have grown significantly in popularity over the last few years. Do you have any thoughts you'd like to share on why knitting has seen such resurgence in popularity? Has this renewed interest in knitting translated into expanded market and book publishing opportunities for freelance knitting writers?

Interest in knitting surged after 9/11. The theory is that people were looking for a return to traditional values and spending more time at home, so hand crafts appealed to them. Within the needle work industry, I hear from some of the more senior people that knitting has always gone in cycles, and we're just seeing the top of the cycle here. Others say that spending on knitting follows the track of economic prosperity, since it's now a recreational activity. And finally there are those who attribute its popularity to high-profile knitters, such as Hollywood celebrities, who knit in public. Personally, I can't account for it at all! But yes, definitely, there has been a surge in knitting books. Presses that never published knitting books before have gotten into the business. And, while there aren't really more knitting magazines, circulation and advertising are up.

I understand you're also an editor; what are some of the most common mistakes you see knitting writers make?

Inconsistencies in presentation, where the same technique or instruction is expressed differently every time it's used. Mistakes in math. Assumptions that the reader performs a technique the same way you do. Omissions-- it's easy to forget that you did something and skip a crucial step in your instructions. Essay writers have it much easier than pattern writers, as you can see!

Click here to order The Knitting Answer Book.

Amy Brozio-Andrews is the managing editor of Absolute Write.

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