Recently I attended a writers’ critique session in my home town of Denver Colorado. While there I met David Loeff. I was immediately impressed with his knowledge of graphic design. I am very happy David agreed to let me interview him and learn about his newly published book on graphic designs.
Can you please tell the readers about your background?
I am happy to say that my background has been quite varied. My first job out of college was with a sewn goods company, which manufactured kitchenware, pillows and stuffed toys. After several years, I was stationed in Taiwan as the company’s overseas buyer. I learned to speak Chinese while there, and gained familiarity with Chinese culture.
After returning to the States, I worked as a graphic designer and as a mental health clinician. During this time, computers began to play a greater role in graphics. I took courses in multimedia, database design and technical writing to sharpen my computer skills. This led to a second bachelor’s degree and a new career in technical writing and support. Being a computer technician at the Art Institute of Colorado further sharpened my graphics skills through frequent contact with instructors and students. Since that time, I’ve specialized in business writing and graphic design.
I understand you recently published a book as a paperback with CreateSpace, and as an eBook for Kindle — can you explain what the book is about and why you wrote it?
The book is called Graphics Essentials for Small Offices and it’s intended to help small organizations save money while producing good-looking graphics.
I have spent a lot of time helping art students with technical issues and advising clients about the pros and cons of different types of printing and about how to allocate graphics budgets wisely. I’ve found that smaller organizations often lack employees who are familiar with graphics. They don’t understand how to design materials to look good in print or what questions they should ask graphic designers.
I wanted to write a book that was both concise and easy to read. I realized that I couldn’t cover every topic, but I wanted to give a broad and practical introduction to graphic design. I haven’t seen any other books that have taken this approach. Most tell you how to use a certain software or how to become a graphics professional. I wanted to write something more broad-based and practical.
What other projects are you currently working on?
Since most of my work involves putting information together in the form of catalogs, brochures and manuals, I relax by working on fiction. Currently I’m writing a historical novel that takes place between 1859 and 1883, and between 1966 and 1968. I don’t want to give too much away but I can tell you it involves gold miners, merchant seamen, anthropologists and hippies. I hope to have it available by June 2012. In the meantime, I’ll be dropping hints on my Truth and Tall Tales blog.
Where do you see yourself five years from now?
As a child, growing up near Chicago, I enjoyed walking in the woods and exploring places on my bicycle. While riding, I daydreamed of someday visiting a lot of different places and writing about them. I’ve already written about some of the places I’ve visited in Colorado and Taiwan on my website. I plan to do more traveling over the next few years and when I do, I’ll tell you readers about it.
Where can one find more information about you and your book?
Both Amazon and Google Books offer information and previews.