How much does Art cost?

The Ninja · May 7, 2004

I am working on a start up company right now and I am looking into the publishing of my book, but I have a few questions on the cost of art and how much I am going to have to pay for artiest.

1.) How do you generally pay an artiest? Do you pay them per picture drawn and colored (if so how much am I looking at paying an artiest per picture?)
or
2.) Do I offer an artiest a royalty of the book. If this is the case, what percentage am I looking at?

I also was wondering what kind of contract is needed so that the pictures become the property of the company so that I my put them in my book. I would not want any surprises down the rode for one reason or another.

I am hoping that the book is going to have full colored artwork very similar to WotC products but it all depends on pricing. Any help would be much appreciated since I know very little about the workings of a company.

Eosin the Red · May 7, 2004

This is gonna vary quite a bit on the level of quality you desire but here is a simple guide:

1/4 page is $15-25
1/2 page is $25-50
Full Page is 75 and up

Color is more.
Covers generally run from $150 to several thousands for top tier artists.

Look at RPG.net

Say what you want, time, and the pay you can afford and you will get some folks willing to do the work. It goes without saying that more $ will attract better artists but plenty of people get passible ar on the cheap.

I suggest that you go to RPG Now and buy the PDF Publishers guide for $20.00. It answers many of the questions you have about contracts and such, plus a ton more.

Another thing you can do is read my thread ----From the Ground UP, the building of a game company ---- it has a ton of indirect advice and has comments from several publishing companies.

HTH - feel free to drop me a line with any other questions - I am a neophyte so the odds are good that I am learning the questions you will shortly be asking.

Cergorach · May 7, 2004

Eosin the Red said:
1/4 page is $15-25
1/2 page is $25-50
Full Page is 75 and up

Color is more.
Covers generally run from $150 to several thousands for top tier artists.

I got some different quotes, but the artist was topnotch:
1/4 page is $30-40
color ~ x4

Covers starting at $300 to $1200

blobsticks · May 7, 2004

Hey there,

Prices can vary considerably and so can quality.. generally they go hand in hand though, so its all down to you on how much quality you want and how much that will dent your budget.

A good place to go is here, it's the rpgnet freelancers forum.
There are lots of talented artists over there who will give you a range of quotes if you ask.

Prices can also vary depending on what printing rights you want. It sounds like you may want full rights or work for hire... that 'should' cost you more than first printing rights, but generally if you put a clause in your contract saying that you want first printing rights and that the work cannot be used in a competing product (rpg or otherwise) that'll be cheaper for you. And it'll leave the artist happy so they can sell prints of their work etc.

Fairs fair on the artist and the publisher then... too many times we see the artist get stiffed for rights the publishers dont even need

Hope that helps

Scott.

MEG Hal · May 7, 2004

Scott "Blobsticks" Purdy is one of those talented artists, he is a pleasure to work with, and is a creature master, I would recommend him 100%.

Wulf Ratbane · May 7, 2004

MEG Hal said:
Scott "Blobsticks" Purdy is one of those talented artists, he is a pleasure to work with, and is a creature master, I would recommend him 100%.

Selfish considerations aside, he is one of the best... I only wish I could clone him so he had more time to work on MY projects!

Wulf

Red Spire Press · May 7, 2004

Eosin the Red said:
1/4 page is $15-25
1/2 page is $25-50
Full Page is 75 and up

The old adage "you get what you pay for" rings very true here. And these prices are extremely optimistic..

Make sure you prioritize how important art is for you and budget accordingly. Also, make sure you have a good sense of your final layout and specific image needs before you even write up a contract, otherwise you may end up with gaps down the road and no time or money to fill them.

FYI, for high quality interior art you are looking at anywhere between $100 and 300US for full page B&W. A color cover will run you between $1000 and $5000US.

Cergorach · May 7, 2004

Red Spire Press said:
The old adage "you get what you pay for" rings very true here. And these prices are extremely optimistic.. Make sure you prioritize how important art is for you and budget accordingly. Also, make sure you have a good sense of your final layout and specific image needs before you even write up a contract, otherwise you may end up with gaps down the road and no time or money to fill them.

FYI, for high quality interior art you are looking at anywhere between $100 and 300US for full page B&W. A color cover will run you between $1000 and $5000US.

*drools*
Not everyone can afford an Adrian Smith! Btw, are those previews you where showing full page? His art goes into the exceptional art catagory ;-)

It will probably also matter how much art you order. If you contact an artist for a big project, chances are that price will go down, although not significantly.

blobsticks · May 9, 2004

Ahhh Wulf, Hal... you guys are gonna make me blush

Eosin the Red · May 9, 2004

Speaking of art and prices....I have to show off the stuff I got from Lee Smith the other day.

Middean Knight

Just to clarify on the prices listed earlier - those are from the RPGnow guide (from memory) and they are REASONABLE. They might not get Todd Lockwood but they will get SOLID B&W art. I see no need to terrify a neophyte with quotes of $1,000 plus when the industry average ESPECIALLY for PDF is lower. $250.00 to $500.00 will get you a good cover. It will not get you Brom, Nielsen, or Reynolds for that you need to look at the $2,500.00 to 5,000.00 plus range.

On the other hand $100.00 for interior B&W full page is generally the average that I was quoted.

BTW Blobsticks - very nice gallery.

How much does Art cost?

The Ninja

First Post

Eosin the Red

First Post

Cergorach

The Laughing One

blobsticks

First Post

MEG Hal

First Post

Wulf Ratbane

Adventurer

Red Spire Press

First Post

Cergorach

The Laughing One

blobsticks

First Post

Eosin the Red

First Post

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