Republish your knitting patterns with these 7 steps
Having one of your designs published in a Knitting Magazine or book is always exciting, and can boost your confidence and credibility, particularly if you’re a new or aspiring knitting designer. So if you’ve achieved that recently - well done, and congratulations!
Once the Magazine has gone out to print you may think that’s the end of it, but what if you could extend the life of your creation, and earn more money to boot by self publishing that design at a later date? This guide explores why you might consider republishing knitting patterns you’ve previously had commissioned for a publication, the benefits of doing so a best practices for doing so broken down to 7 steps for how you might go about doing this.
There are numerous benefits of having a pattern published in a Magazine, apart from the obvious feeling of validation and getting your work known. From a motivational perspective it gives you a deadline and accountability, and if you struggle to prioritise your design work over life’s many other priorities, having a commission to work to can bring this higher up on your to-do list.
From a design perspective it can be refreshing to respond to someone else’s brief or mood board, which is often set out by publications as part of a call for commissions. You will of course still be bringing your own take and style to this, but this design challenge can get you thinking in new ways and exploring themes you might not have considered by yourself. As well as keeping your creative muscles toned, this can also help prevent you getting into a design rut.
Making knitting patterns is process intense - there are many steps that need to be taken from design idea to print-worthy pattern. If you are working with a publication, although you will need to write the pattern and provide the knitted sample, at least some of these steps are generally taken care of for you by the publisher. This can include activities such as photoshoot, technical editing, page design/layout and most of the marketing. In addition they will often arrange for yarn support. As well as saving you work, this also means you don’t have to invest money upfront on some of these processes.
But……..The hard truth - you’ll struggle to break even designing knitting patterns….
Benefits of republishing your previously commissioned patterns
When you consider all the hours you put into your design and pattern, and calculate your hourly rate against your commission fee, it’s most likely going to fall pretty short of minimum wage, especially as a new and less experienced designer.
There’s been a lot of discussion about the state of independent knit designer’s pay, which I’m not going to unpick here (but if you are interested in that, then have a look at what Andi Satterlund , and Hunter Hammersen had to say on the matter a few years ago), but it’s important to realise that you are going to need to sell a lot of copies of your pattern to get paid reasonably for the time you invested in creating it. It’s also important to understand if you give up your copyright for a set fee it will reduce your potential future income from that pattern.
“**Now, an important disclaimer - I am not a contract expert or lawyer, and this article should not be construed as legal advice. If you have any questions about copyright and publishing rights, please seek appropriate professional/expert advice. I am just making you aware you can often republish your patterns depending whether your contract states that the rights will return to you after a specific duration or not.**”
For new or aspiring designers this is an important contractual issue to be aware of, so make sure you know where you stand in terms of your publishing rights if you are working with magazines and other publishers as this can vary. After all the work that goes in to designing an item, writing the pattern, and knitting up the sample (or paying a sample knitter to do this for you), it is a shame not to keep your creation alive well after the initial publish date.
It’s a good idea to have this in mind when submitting designs for publication, and when considering the commission fee offered, along with the contract Ts & Cs for if/when the publishing rights return to you. In many cases the rights (and knitted sample) will return to you after a set duration following publication. If this is not the case, then this should be reflected by a higher fee and you will want to be happy with how well this pays you for the time you’ll spend on the project.
Knit designers need to play the long game…
Making Knitting patterns to sell is very process heavy, with many steps needed from coming up with a design idea to publishing a pattern that knitters will love to use. This process will usually take several months, with many hours worked with no guarantee you’ll get a return on your investment of time.
The good news is though, a knitting pattern is essentially an evergreen product. You may need to refresh it occasionally, but if you self publish it’s possible it will keep selling for many years to come, particularly if you ensure you promote it regularly. One way to maximise your earnings for a design you had published in a magazine or book, is to consider self publishing once the copyrights return to you.
In this post I’ll explore if it’s really worth doing, and share a number of tips on how to go about this.
Is it worth self publishing knitting designs you’ve previously had published?
If your knitting pattern has been published in a magazine already, is it worth publishing it your self? Yes for sure! And asides from maximising your earnings to pay back all the work you put in over time, there are a number of other reasons why this makes sense.
Although a good number of knitters will have bought the magazine it was published in, there are plenty of existing knitters out there who won’t have, and plenty of future knitters who might enjoy your design further down the line.
Knit designs can have a long life and are not fireworks that just go off once and that’s it! As a designer they are one of your assets. As such they can and should have a life of their own.
It also adds to your back copy of patterns which can increase your sales of all your other patterns going forward too.
Other reasons it’s worth republishing relate to your own brand and approach to patterns, including the experience you like to provide for knitters , and the standard they have come to expect from you. A Publisher will have their own in-house pattern writing style you have to conform to, and due to space limitations, there may not be room to elaborate on certain points which might make it clearer for less experienced knitters.
You are also limited in terms of additional content you might like to include with your patterns, such as links to tutorials you may have created to support development of skills for knitters of you patterns.
7 Steps To Republish Your Knitting Designs
The steps below refer to republishing a design you previously had published in a Magazine etc, but most of them apply if you are wanting to refresh and reinvigorate one of your old, early self-published patterns. You’ll most likely have developed as a designer over the years, and/or had an update to your branding at some point.
Perhaps you now include more helpful tips or links to tutorials you have created to support knitters with your patterns, or changed you layout to one that makes more sense to you as you have honed your pattern writing skills. It's all too easy to think older knitting patterns are ‘done with’ but that is simply not the case, unless it was particularly on trend at a specific time. Many designs are timeless, like the craft of knitting itself, so it’s worth continuing to offer them, perhaps with the occasional refresh.
Although there are compelling reasons to republish a design you previously had commissioned for a publication, to do this successfully you’ll need put a little more work in.
There are several things to consider before republishing your knitting pattern which I’ve broken down to 7 steps below. I’ve listed these in order of makes sense to my ways of working, but it’s not set in stone - feel free to tackle these in the order that works best for you.
Step 1 - Make sure you check when your rights return to you
This will vary between publisher/magazines and and will be specified in the agreed terms and conditions of the commission. If this isn’t clear to you when you are offered the commission, then ask the publisher for clarification before you decide to accept. NB see also my disclaimer above. You must not jump the gun here and republish too early as you would be in breach of contract, and this would damage your professional reputation.
Step 2 - Don’t forget to republish your pattern!
Seems silly to say this, but it’s so easy to do (ahem), so check when your publishing rights will return. Then be sure to schedule it in to your workflow at a time that makes sense. For eg, I recently had my summery design Halcyon Daze Multiwrap published in Knit Now Magazine, and although I’ll have the rights return to me by the end of the year, it makes more sense to hold off on self publishing it until the Spring/Summer season.
There is no rush , however, so it doesn’t matter if you’ve left a bit of a gap, and depending on your worlkflow, sometimes that can work to your advantage. I recently self published my Treecreepers Mitts pattern (link to previous blog) which was originally published in Knit Now magazine in 2021. The publishing rights have long since returned to me, so I’ve been able to put this out for sale in my pattern stores.
Other examples include my Gradient Shawl, originally published in Simple Steps to Knitting (Future Publishing 2017 ) and the Lacy shell-edged Shawl originally published in Crochet for Beginners (3rd Edition, Imagine Publishing 2016).
Step 3 - Do you need a new sample?
This is not something to rush into, as it requires considerable further investment of time and money. However, you might consider this if the original yarn has been discontinued, particularly if your design was made in a non-standard weight. Even if it’s in a standard weight yarn, it may be a good idea to knit another sample (or as a minimum, work a swatch) in the new yarn so you can be sure it works well for the design.
If the yarn used is still current, you should be ok to leave it as it is, even if the colour has been discontinued. It might improve saleability if you re-knit it in a current colour as some knitters are really reluctant to knit in anything other than the sample colour. However this needs to be balanced against the additional expense of doing so, particularly if the design is a garment.
Another reason you might consider knitting a new sample is you may not like the colour the publisher has chosen and/or it may not align well with your personal brand/ aesthetic.
Step 4 - Take your own photographs
Unless specified you’ll need to take your own photos as the ones in the publication may be subject to copyright . You may want to do this anyway to fit in with your own style/branding, and if you have knitted up a new sample.
Bonus tip - When working to a commission deadline, make sure you allow time before submission to do a photo shoot for your sample before you send it in. This will save time and make it easier when you get to republishing, and you can even have your pattern ready to self-publish as soon as the rights return to you. Perhaps more importantly - this could be an absolute skin saver should your sample get lost for any reason which, although unlikely, is possible.
Step 5- Review and/or rewrite your pattern
As part of the publishing process your pattern will have been checked by a professional technical editor who may have picked up on some errors. In many cases they don’t feed this back to you directly so, before reworking your pattern, it’s a good idea to carefully check the version you submitted against the published version.
Then, start a new version and go through your pattern again, reworking it to your own pattern writing style and preferred layout. Add in any any additional content and/or links you want to include, and personalise it to your business, making sure it aligns with your current branding. Also ensure it has your website address, newsletter sign up invitation, and contact information so knitters can easily find you again after they have bought your pattern.
Step 6 - Get it professionally checked - Again!
Although your pattern will have been professionally tech edited as part of the publication process, as a minimum you’ll want to have your new version professionally tech edited again as you’ll likely have had may have had some new errors sneak in! This is essential to ensure the quality of your pattern, and avoid mistakes as much possible.
You might also want to consider having it test knitted, but….. There are pros and con’s to this (which I won’t cover here and is perhaps a conversation for another time) and whilst desirable it isn’t actually essential, though I know plenty of other people will have a strong opinion to the contrary. You may be lucky to find that by the time you come to self publish, there may be a number of knitter’s projects of your design listed by knitters on Ravelry which will be a great help in terms of it having been knitted in a range of sizes.
Step 7 - List, Launch and regularly promote your pattern
Just listing the pattern isn’t going to sell it by itself - be sure to let people know it’s available via your website, blogs, email newsletters and social media channels you may use. Even if it’s an old pattern, you should still launch it as you would for your new designs. It may feel ‘old hat’ to you, but it will be new to many knitters, and after your additions and refinements it is actually a new pattern.
Also , if you’re updating an old pattern you have published yourself already, those who may have bought it from you previously can now enjoy receiving the new version at no additional cost from you as part of your ongoing customer care.
In summary…..
Having your design published in a knitting magazine or book is an exciting achievement that boosts confidence and credibility, especially for new designers. However, depending on the contract you make with the publication, the journey doesn't have to end with the magazine's release. Republishing your pattern can extend its life and increase your earnings over time.
From checking when your rights return to you, to updating the pattern, and promoting it effectively, these steps ensure your creation remains a valuable asset for the longer term. Republishing not only maximises your initial effort but also helps build your personal brand and reach new knitters who can enjoy your creation for years to come.
I hope this has been helpful for new or aspiring designers, and given you some insights and ideas around getting the most return on your knitting patterns after all the hard work you put in. If designing isn’t your jam, I hope you have enjoyed having a behind-the-scenes glimpse into this aspect of the wonderful craft we love.
I’d be interested to know your thoughts and experiences on this topic, so do leave a comment below (or contact me here if you prefer).
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