When you finally have completed all card art & book are ready to print your option to publish are:
Petitioning popular card publishers to publish your deck & do all work (print, promo, distribution & selling) for you! (in which case you are advised to check their respective web pages for submitting guides & required files format!:)
tip;
be sure to consult legal adviser before signing up any legally
binding contract & make sure you understand copyright status of
your art & expected profit from each deck sale as well as other
obligations you may have?;) as far as i know your royalties are paid
every few months or 2x a year & it may seem big check but ask
yourself does it pay rent & for how long you can live with that
money & consider does it cover All work & time you invested
in creation?;) or
You can Selfpublish by investing
your time & $$$ into finding good pro printer that will print
your deck (usually minimum quotes are +300 & around 500 decks!)
then figure how to sell promote & ship to your costumers
worldwide?
Note: You are also advised to check & prepare logistic part in advance that will include:
1) collecting $$$ for printer & shipping & shop & payment options you are offering to your costumers (this also include selling platform & expected: money processing conversion & transaction fees & other limitations your payment acc bank or card may have, as you need to be able to pay big bills to printer & shipping providers & other associated services & fees you may have regardless of your funding sources (i.e kickstarter indiegogo & others you may use etc) as well as to receive big number of payments & if you are in US you should have plenty options but all this may be more complicated if you are outside US)
2) storage & shipping (most challenging topic at the moment with restrictions delays & limited options 1st you need to know most printer will send you all your printed decks in 1 big pallet that will be delivered to port of destination country or your local post office where you will need to pick it up & not to your front door unless you specifically ask & agree otherwise i.e more smaller boxes instead of 1big pallet that will make your decks easier to transport & handle esp if you are using 3rd party storage shipping provider or store manager that all have weight limitation usually 30kg or less & don’t accept or charge extra for oversized parcels!:) Tip: be sure to ask your printer if they can offer fulfillment service aka ship directly (with tracking & insurance!:) from your printer to your costumers worldwide & save you extra import shipping costs & time!;) or look for fulfillment center /store manager (i.e in Europe US China Australia etc) that will receive your decks from printer & keep in storage & ship to your costumers worldwide when you have order!:) & if you plan packing n shipping your orders by yourself you will need to ensure appropriate storage & package space as well as needed supply such as working table storage shelves packaging material bubble envelopes shipping boxes extra bubble wrap labels regular transportation to post office & associated cost etc
here is Pic of 500 shipping box you'll need in case you wonder how much space it'll take!:) https://www.instagram.com/p/CQ-K2lEncZV/
3) all mentioned above will include you filling LOT of forms (esp if you are importing & exporting aka sending decks overboard!;) & explaining everyone included what you are doing & how you are doing it as well as reporting your income to tax office & it is advised you deal with these formalities in advance by checking your local regulation for registration of appropriate enterprise & get all needed licenses codes & tax numbers etc in advance!:)
4)
Time & Work needed for all mentioned + Costumer Service &
Sale Management!:) Before print & starting your enterprise be
sure to have good estimate of expected time line it will take for
your deck to: print (usually within 2/3 months from payment +
at least 1/2month shipping to you
& your costumers) tip: kickstarter & indiegogo
are good way to reach your audience & test demand & collect
needed $$$ in advance but imo it also includes extra risk fees nerves
& reputation as anything can go wrong from printing to Shipping so imo Pre Orders & reaching out to resellers is Best!(: adding my fav in Printer List!:) as selling & processing orders & costumer service are also time consuming you need to form price that
will take all mentioned in consideration including popular demand for
similar decks on market as well as your goals i.e price will be
larger if you are not in hurry to get your investment back sooner &
have good storage option aka in next 2 to 3 year or less if you
prefer to finish your project sooner & move to next!;)
5) Web presentation social network including instagram & official web Shop that should include: Contact form, Newsletter, Terms & Conditions & Return Policy in case of misprint missing cards etc (as imo big printers include 4-12% error in their contract!:) & parcels damage or loss be sure to list these on your web page as well as include any other info & links to your reviewers resellers & other relevant content you wish to share!:)
Also regardless of printer keep in mind printing & other errors are always possible as cards are usually assembled by hand sometimes card can be missing & you should have some extras to send as replacement!:) here is good post on Card Printer Process; https://printninja.com/printing-resource-center/printing-academy/post-press/card-game-production/
I
hope this list gives you some idea about investment risk time work &
nerves this option require!:) personally I find whole *web Shop job super demanding & prefer to work with resellers!:) so it may be good idea to contact
resellers in advance & agree on quantities you can ship to them
directly from printer?:)
tip: before jumping into it be sure you & your household members are all familiar & OK with all mentioned esp if you require their help & assistance & you definitely will need All help!=D lol
& don't invest more than you can spare to lose as there is no guarantees you'll sell ALL your decks within a year or in few years unless you run successful crowdfunding or preorders i recommend!;)
&
even if you do in our crazy time monetary & finances flows are
tricky &
best not relayed upon!:)
& if you prefer less risk & work here is;
Why Selfpubishing with US & EU based Pod is best!^^if you plan printing just 1 deck for personal use or Selfpublish for everyone to order!
& Selfpublishing your deck directly from US based Print on demand companies is best because with option to make your shop page you can sell your decks/books directly to your costumers worldwide!^^ All you need to do is sign up to set up your acc shop page & upload your artwork, pick options to order test print & approve it then set up your item price & enable sales for your title (aka publish!;) & wait for your royalties payday!:D & people worldwide can browse search & order your published title directly from PoD who do all job starting with Costumer service to taking & charging orders, processing printing & shipping & send you sale notification every time someone order your title & provide great statistic page!^^
My favorite Recommended & most popular PoD are US based; thegamecrafter & drivethrucards (Full review here!) but Superiorpod may be worth looking into with good price for card box books & more!(; will share my review soon!:)
Here is why I luv US Pod;
2. Pod ship worldwide & thegamecrafter offer best shipping rates & options & drivethrucards have best shipping for US & your home address!;)
3. Simple and clear user interface easy to understand & use & good statistic page as well as search tool & traffic provide good visibility on net!
4. Awesome costumer service is big help when you need it & Brian from drivethrucards is my fav tech help Ever!:) Thank You Brian!^^ lol
5. Options!:) minimal investment mean it's easy to print different card sizes & offer your deck as Standard Tarot size & smaller Poker & Bridge as well as Larger cards & enable further personalization with different cardstock, booklet & box options (my fav is 1$ transparent plastic box that fit 90 card poker & bridge size deck from drivethrucards & mpc Tarot size tin!^^;) + extra options such as different back or border & borderless design!;) Also it's Easy to fix printer error/change card design/print extra cards any time!:)
6. Publisher discount & fulfillment for larger orders!:)
7. Improvements!:) both drivethrucards & theGamecrafter & Superiorpod are constantly improving their services by upgrading their cardstock & tgc have best worldvide shipping rates & game price calculator & selection of all possible game pieces for game creators so go test it asap & be sure to share what worked best for you?!;)
Note; printing in China may seem like a good idea for all fancy options & extras it offers but it's not & here is why;
1) Shipping cost & time!(most of your orders will be in US so it's faster & more affordable to ship from US printers with tracking that actually works!:)
2) Tax! (if you *import something from outside your country tax is expected as well as import formality!:)
3) Better card stock quality & price (mpc & ps now charge double for same embossed/linen card stock you have on dtc & tgc & Superiorpod!x,x facepalm)
4) Search engine (mpc & ps are missing these! so only way for people to find your game is by direct link you post somewhere or random luck!)
5) Exposure & sale statistic (not only your deck won't sell that well on mpc & pc but can you trust their statistic if they have any is correct?)
6) Copyright! (fact is China have different regulation for this than US & EU & if you send your img to their printer it may end up pirated!)
7) Buyer protection & Costumer service (my 1st order from mpc was lost & never found even I pay *extra for *tracking number & insurance & contacted costumer service more than once never got any reply & had to ask paypal intervention lucky they decided in my refund! point is;
8 ) paypal is your best insurance! if your printing company don't have paypal better look for one who does!:D
Note: while I advise against printing your deck in China it's worth mentioning alibaba actually grow it's reputation to platform where you can find good legit manufacturer for any extras you may need such as boxes, Tarot cloth, bags etc & if they accept paypal you should have buyer protection.
& when it come to promotion & sale I still need to figure it out! however net is infinite market! And you only need to figure how to use it! Note: good news ebay now accept direct card payment!:)
Nothing more to add but KEEP UP with your creation process Remember key to crating your Tarot deck (or accomplishing anything!;) is to not give up before last of 78 cards is completed it's totally worth it!;D
I conclude this tutorial with Resources & Card Printer List with Hope you find it useful & learn something interesting & if it help you decide to create & publish your deck please be sure to credit; reall/Irena & link to source; http://creativenlight.blogspot.com/2020/03/complete-guide-for-artist-how-to-create.html
GOOD LUCK!;D
MyLuckyCard
reall/Irena
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