By Joseph Sutton for IndieReader
Coloring books aren't just for kids anymore--in fact, coloring books for adults have been gaining steam, and there's no end in sight to their popularity with the encroaching holiday season. Publisher's Weekly reports that the 10 most popular books in the category have sold a staggering 1.5 million copies combined, and that retailers like Indigo Books & Music and Barnes & Noble attribute coloring books to rises in sales.
And it's not just traditionally published titles that are flying off the shelves. Indie artists and authors are finding success producing their own coloring books as well. We spoke to a couple coloring book artists about their work and the successes they've achieved after putting their books together via Amazon's CreateSpace.
First, we have Theo Nicole Lorenz, whose books should be fun for adults and children alike: they transport colorers to whimsical worlds where dinosaurs make up the workforce and unicorns act like total jerks. But despite the silliness of the books' premises, the appeal in Lorenz's work is that people can see themselves living inside them.
"All of my coloring books begin with a thematic idea," Lorenz said. "Like twisting science fiction tropes to show different body types ... I try to come up with not just a theme, but the sort of people and creatures that exist in this world and the stories and motivations they would have."
Lorenz knows how to produce books her fans will love because she'll often draw on them for feedback. "Occasionally, if I have an idea I'm tossing around and debating, I sometimes toss it out to Twitter and say 'Hey, would anybody buy this?' and take the feedback from friends and Twitter strangers." In a comment thread related to Lorenz's work, a reader expressed interest in a mermaid-themed book. Other readers jumped in to express their enthusiasm for the idea, encouraging Lorenz to make Mer World Problems, "a coloring book documenting hardships under the sea." It wouldn't have existed without Lorenz's openness to fan input.
Her books have stood out so much that she was able to quit her job in tech support to focus on art full-time--and buy a house! Lorenz was able to secure an agent for her books, who helped her navigate a foreign rights deal for Unicorns Are Jerks with a German publisher.
Aside from coloring books, Lorenz produces comics as well. She has a short comic in Oath, a forthcoming queer superhero anthology, and is looking forward to an apocalypse-themed coloring book and a "robot guide to love" coloring book in the near future.
Another full-time "creative", Jenean Morrison is a freelance designer whose work you can find on party-ware, scrapbook kits, fabrics and more--and you can add your own little bit of flair to her designs by picking up one of her coloring books.
After coming across an old coloring book from her youth in 2012, Morrison snapped a photo of it to share on Instagram. A follower gave her a fateful suggestion: she should make one of her own! Thanks in great part to CreateSpace, Morrison had her first book ready after spending only three weeks culling the designs together. The first book sold about 50-60 copies in its first month, though that equated to a few extra hundred dollars per month in coloring book royalties--all while also making new use for old or scrapped designs from Morrison's career.
Morrison loves being in touch with people who use her books. One such place is The Coloring Club, a Facebook group for coloring book lovers. "Every week they color a different page from one of my mandala designs ... Each Sunday they post their pictures, and it's the coolest thing; there's my black and white image, and then there's 40 different color combinations, different markers, different ideas... it's just really cool!" Morrison also mentioned fans who'd tell her how the books helped them relax and de-stress. Her most popular title by far is the Flower Designs coloring book.
Morrison's books have done so well that they've been (traditionally!) published in France, Italy and Brazil. Morrison is looking forward to their upcoming publications in Japan, Turkey, Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
For the artistically inclined, coloring books can be great way to augment one's income.
Cherina Kohey--a pseudonym for a businessman and his wife, a bestselling Thai author--is another prolific coloring book artist. After the birth of their twins in the spring, the two decided to establish their own adult coloring book publishing company to bring in some extra income. They've published 11 books on CreateSpace since July, including Magic Christmas and Happy Halloween, and sales have exceeded their expectations.
There's a lot for fans to enjoy about coloring books no matter their age, providing an easy way to let out some creativity without requiring advanced artistic talent.
They can be quite stimulating and relaxing (yes, they are diametrically opposed feelings), as seen with Elizabeth James' varied collection of coloring books designed to encourage mindfulness and a sense of calm.
This time of year with the holidays approaching, we can all benefit from a little de-stressing. So pick up grab a glass of milk and a couple of cookies, pick up a Crayola and try to stay in lines!
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