This page is for designers, particularly beginning designers. If that's not you, you'll probably be bored silly here.

I'm very fortunate to be able to help direct market designers as they're starting out, much like others helped (and continue to help) me. Sometimes it's just a word of encouragement, other times it's very specific advice on how to reach a personal or design goal. And quite often I'm asked, "What do you read?" or "What software do you use?" That's how this list started.

My studio library has many more resources than you see here. But this list represents the resources that I think are the most helpful. As time goes on, I may try to break things down further based on books that deal with specific software.

Design Books:

For the books, I'm taking advantage of Amazon's store tool and have placed links to all my recommended books here. All the books you see in the main window of each section are books I own and have found useful. I'm not including books that I don't own or books I do own but didn't find useful. The books in the Similar Items section are ones that Amazon includes to tip you off to other books you might find valuable.

Software:

Mini-Site Creator Course - I wrote a lot about this on the blog, so I won't repeat myself here. Through videos and templates, this course will help you create mini-websites, also called landing pages. Taking what you learn in this course, you can even create nicely-formatted e-mail promos.

This category would also include programs like InDesign, Photoshop, Quark, etc. Which should you choose? There's no easy answer. Again, I'll point you to the blog for a more detailed look at what to consider. That link is for the archive page.  Scroll down until you see the entry called, "Q&A: What software do I need?" 

Magazines:

Before & After Magazine - Quite simply the best magazine you can buy when it comes to help that direct mail designers can put to use. Study every page (and the free PDFs you get with your subscription) and you'll know more than most other beginning direct mail designers. You won't find this magazine in your local bookstore...you need to subscribe.

Layers Magazine - All things Adobe are covered here, so unless you have Adobe products (like Photoshop, InDesign, etc.) this magazine won't do you much good. If you do have Adobe products, you'll learn a lot.

Photoshop User Magazine - You can find this at some bookstores, but your best bet is to join NAPP and get it as part of your membership. The things I've learned by being a member of NAPP has paid for the membership many times over.

InDesign Magazine - Obviously, this is useful only if you use InDesign. This is a download-only magazine, but ultra-professional.

Dynamic Graphics - This one isn't as well-known, but I like it and learn a lot from it. Many of the things it covers easily applies to direct market design. They have some good before and after projects, articles on color management, etc.

Other:

I Still Can't Draw Stick Figures - Ok, you caught me...this is my book. I happen to think that it's worth recommending, but obviously I'm biased. If you want to learn from the mistakes and successes I've had along the way as you're building your own graphic design business, this book is for you.