Bookmarks are a great promotional tool for writers and poets. To create a good bookmark for your next haiku conference, you’ll need:
- image
- text
- contact information (name, e-mail, website)
Bookmark by Frank Carey
This bookmark by Frank C Carey is one of my favorite freebies. On the front, there’s a photo with a haiku. At the back, there’s a red seal, a QR code, and Frank’s contact information. The design is clean and easy to read.
The bookmark is laminated. I like the addition of the twine: the color matches the photo. Not only is the bookmark beautiful, but it is also practical and durable. It’s been, and still is, my favorite bookmark to use. Every once in a while, I would see the address on the bookmark and visit Frank’s website, so I would say this bookmark was an effective promotional tool for its author.
(Unfortunately, Frank’s website is no longer active. He says he’s been out of the haiku game but continues to write science fiction. Considering I visited his website 3-4 times in 2 years, the bookmark did a good job in promoting him.)
Moon bookmark
I like this bookmark by Jennifer Sutherland. The design is beautiful. However, it doesn’t have the author’s contact information (website, e-mail).
Moon bookmark, by Jennifer Sutherland (HNA 2015)
I like the simplicity of this laminated bookmark, but I don’t know the name of the author.
You can get creative with the photo and text alignment, like Margaret Beverland from New Zealand.
Bookmarks by Margaret Beverland
Why not use a different material, like a tag made of cloth?
Tag by Wanda Cook ; bookmark by an unknown author
You can also add more than one haiku, following this example by Claudia Coutu Radmore
Bookmark by Clauda Coutu Radmore
Kala Ramesh created this beautiful bookmark with haiku, line drawing, and decorative twine.
Stanford Forrester used a printing press to create his bookmarks. This means he selected each font, placed them, and aligned them in a printing press, added the ink and printed the bookmarks one at a time.
Bookmark, by Stanford M Forrester
Tips for designing bookmarks:
- Make it beautiful so people will keep it.
- Add a twine so the bookmark won’t get lost in a book.
- Create them months in advance (it takes time to print them)
Are you thinking about creating a bookmark as your freebie for the next Haiku North America conference? I hope these examples inspire you.
In the next post, I’ll write about creating postcards.
Old Pond Comics 