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Holly Becker Interview | Decor8 Blog

During my trip to London for the London Design Festival last fall with Modenus, I was fortunate to meet Holly Becker and listen to her speak about her wildly successful design blog “Decor8” and her international book “Decorate.” I was enthralled with her passion, her determination, and her fun insight into the design world. Holly currently blogs, runs a “Blogging Your Way” e-course (launched over 3 years ago), and is in the process of writing her second book. Please enjoy the interview below, where you will learn some great things about blogging and getting a book published! Also be sure to leave a fun comment, for a chance to win an autographed copy of “Decorate.” The winner will be announced on Monday February 6th!

-How was writing a book different from blogging?

You have to really think about the message you wish to communicate and then, gather together all of your content to fit that vision. This is not a spontaneous task and certainly not something you figure out immediately. Blogging is very spontaneous. I see it, I like it, I blog it. With a book, you have to think, “Is this thought or image really worth taking up space in my book, knowing that this book will be in book stores worldwide for years to come?” and I think, “Will this be interesting when the book is published in many months or by then, will this be considered a bit stale or overdone?”. Often if I question anything, I will set it aside and think it through for days and if I’m still not convinced, I’d pull it and move on. I do not consider these things when I’m writing a blog post because the intention of blogging is different for me – it’s to share in a spontaneous way and to connect with others. For a book, it’s to share what I think matters most out of everything I’ve been inspired by over the course of many years (to sift it, I guess you can say, and pull out the gems). I also hope through both channels, the blog and the book, to encourage, teach and instill confidence in my readers — to let them know that decorating isn’t hard or rocket science, that it’s an organic process that should be fun and I’m more than willing to inspire you on your decorating journey!

-What was your inspiration for writing this book?

My readers and the large community that I’m a part of online and offline. So many have requested a book from me for several years, I really wanted to give them something for their coffee table that would always remind them – even in twenty years from now – of the blogging “golden years” when everyone was discovering and being inspired by blogs. I thought to have a tangible product would be the ultimate! It would be wonderful for me and my family, a real honor… However, to be able to offer this to those who love decorating and who love reading blogs like decor8 — well, that’s all the inspiration that I needed to go for it!

-What is your best takeaway advice to the reader?

That decorating is an organic process and as we evolve as people so will our homes. That we should infuse our homes with our own personal style and listen more to our hearts and less to copying what we see – to really personalize our homes and create an environment at home that supports us in every way.

-How long did the entire process take from start to finish?

We began in March 2010 and wrapped up in October, though I finished writing and editing the Directory while on vacation in Istanbul in early November of 2010. The Directory was a lot of work and took me a bit longer than I had anticipated!

-Why did you use Chronicle books in the U.S.?

Chronicle Books has long been one of my dream publishers so when I heard they wanted to work with me, I was thrilled and honored.

-I also see that other foreign publishers have also printed the book; how did that come about? Is it in collaboration with Chronicle or totally separate?

The publisher sells the rights to other publishing houses who then take the book, translate it and publish it.

-Speaking of other countries, how many countries is your book published in? England, Australia, Germany?

The book was published by Jacqui Small Publishing in the UK and by Chronicle Books in the US. From there, Murdoch Books in Australia published it. Then Germany decided to buy it and translate it into German to sell in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Next was Finland, so there is a Finnish version of the book. After Finland, France wanted the book so they translated it and published it in French. Next will be the Polish, Danish and Czech Republic/Slavic versions. It is currently being sold worldwide from Canada to New Zealand and beyond thanks to all of these wonderful publishing houses supporting and promoting the book! I’m happy that 8 versions of the book will exist by the Fall of this year – 8 has been a good number for me!

-I see that each country chose its own cover also. That’s interesting. Did you have any say in this decision?

No, they chose all of the foreign language editions and I had no say on that at all. I wish I did, I had lots of ideas! I only had a say on the UK and US covers, but in the end the publisher ultimately decides.

-How did you organize all of the text and photos before submitting it to the publisher? Did you use a specific software program?

The text was sent in chunks and usually via word documents and/or email – it wasn’t glamourous at all! Our editor, Sian Parkhouse in London, kept us organized. As for photos, when Debi Treloar and I were out shooting, we’d send the images to the publisher after each shoot to get their comments. On each shoot, I had a list of things we needed to accomplish – perhaps we needed a few sink shots, a close up of some dinnerware, or I needed to create some flower arrangements and set a table. I followed my checklist for each location but also there was a lot of flexibility so once we had the shots we needed, we take ones that I thought communicated an idea that I wanted to add to the book so we’d shoot more freestyle as well.

-How did you choose which designers’ work to publish?

I thought about those who inspired me and who I wanted to pull into this project to either interview for decorating advice that we could quote or with whom I could work with by styling and shooting their home with Ms. Treloar. It was all up to me to find the locations and to decide on who I wanted to interview for the book, which was wonderful, because the end product is a book with opinions and homes from those I absolutely admire and am inspired by!

-Can you discuss the photography, which is beautiful by the way. I believe some photos were submitted by the designers, and others were shot on location with photographer Debi Treloar. Is this correct? How long did it take to complete all the photo shoots?

Ms. Treloar took over 500 photos for Decorate. We needed to fill in the “blanks” though when we realized that a point that either Joanna or I wanted to highlight had to be shown visually to support the text… If we didn’t have a supporting image, we would ask one of the contributors for an image but that was rare and we tried to avoid it as much as possible out of respect for Debi, especially since I wanted her name to be on the cover and to have it there, she would need to have shot most of the book! We started traveling in April of 2010 and wrapped up in July, so it took us 3 months to complete the photography, though we weren’t on the road for 3 months straight. We went to Sweden, Denmark, London, Amsterdam, Belgium, Los Angeles, Orange Country and NYC. It was one of the best times of my life!

-Do you have any advice for a 1st time author? Is there anything you will do differently on your second book?

My advice is to clearly communicate your vision to your publisher and let them know exactly what you want, even if you feel like you may step on some toes. I believe publishers, at least the right ones or ones you want to work with, are looking for authors with a clear, strong and watertight vision. They want to work with people who have something to share and who are not afraid to voice their opinions. If you imagine a book with certain elements, from paper type to layout and beyond, communicate this. If you don’t want certain things, clearly communicate that as well. For authors with a large online audience especially… BE CLEAR to your publisher because ultimately YOU know your readers and what they want from you far better than the publisher and if you can combine their expertise with what the mass market is looking for (i.e. ‘what sells’ ) along with what your readers are looking for, then together you can have a really strong book. On my next book, I will have less questions for my publisher because after working with a publishing house since the end of 2009 asking millions of questions, I know how everything works so I can trust the process and also chill out focusing more on my content and less on the process of if all.

-Have you been happy with the publisher and their marketing efforts? Can you self promote/market?

I would imagine any author being asked this question publicly would say yes, how could you not? But truthfully, I have been very happy and yes, I’ve promoted the book online and off with the help of my publishers, retailers, readers, other bloggers, book stores, design fairs and even hotels and magazines who sponsored or co-sponsored the 20 appearances and signings that I’ve done for Decorate in the UK, US and Europe.

-What is your absolute favorite thing about the book writing experience?

I loved working backwards. What I mean is that when I write an article for a magazine or a blog post, I work from beginning to end — I typically sit down and think of what I want to say, do my research, and then begin with the first sentence and the words flow forward from there. With Decorate, the concept was developed, the section outlines were fleshed out, but then we had to work backwards in a sense to fill in the blanks depending on what we wanted to communicate and what our photographs were saying as we went from location to location. Sometimes, we had to think of a new angle because we’d arrive to a location that looked much differently than when the home owner originally showed us in their photos – perhaps the bedrooms were redecorated, the wallpaper I wanted so badly to highlight had been removed, a room was under renovation, a sofa was more worn that we had expected, or the home owner simply didn’t want their bedroom or a certain piece of art on the wall shot for the book. In those cases, I had to think on my feet and find other points from the home that Joanna and I could speak too. Working with a co-author, I had to consider her viewpoint while still ensuring that the overall message was also shared by me so the book was consistent. We skipped around a lot, some days working on Mid Century text and others, on Flea Market, etc. Captions were added as photos came in from Ms. Treloar. Quotes were mixed in as I received all of the text from each of the interviews I had with over 75 contributors and together, we decided which ones fit a specific photo or spread best and then pulled quotes and laid them in which took months. I really enjoyed working in this way and especially with my team because I valued their opinions and learned so much from them. It was exhilarating to watch all of the components come together.

-Tell me about your second book. When will it be on the market?

I can’t disclose this yet, but I begin work on it next week and I begin shooting with Ms. Treloar end of January! So very soon you will see!

-What other books are on your nightstand now?
I’m reading Chanel and Her World by Edmonde Charles-Roux and (lowering my head), Crap At My Parents’ House by Joel Dovev. That is seriously the funniest and ugliest un-decorate, anti-decorate book ever – you have to see it to believe it.

-What is your favorite design style?

I don’t have a favorite – the only style that really speaks to me though are ones that have a lot of personality and are creative with lots of handmade touches. I love mixing classic pieces with modern finds, new and old, and very often my finds are influenced by decorating styles found in Scandinavia, France, England and the Netherlands. The Dutch are clever, the French are chic, the Brits are tongue-in-cheek and quirky and the Danish are consistent with their vision and style and so pure – it’s inspiring!

-What else can we expect soon from Holly Becker?

Another book, a second e-course to add to my Blogging Your Way online classes that I’ve been teaching online since April 2009, a new look and feel for the decor8 blog as it’s currently being redesigned and more events and in-person classes. I will begin my first series of creativity courses in my studio space in Hannover, Germany in April and I can’t wait!

Written by: Michelle Jennings Wiebe, ASID