Survival and success in the design world rely upon creative talent fused with keen business sensibilities. Artistic skills are essential for anyone considering entering the world of freelancing including graduates of graphic design degree programs, but in today’s competitive market it is also fundamental to be able to manage one’s career, promote work, respond to client requirements and cope with the legal and financial complexities the contemporary designer faces.

This post brings together 18 books that are essential additions to the bookshelf of the self-employed freelance designer, texts in which established figures share their knowledge and experiences to guide freelancers on the path to success.

1. Becoming a Graphic Designer

- Steven Heller and Teresa Fernandes

American designers Steven Heller and Teresa Fernandes are experts in the field, and the Third Edition of their acclaimed Becoming a Graphic Designer is considered by many to be the definitive guide to carving a career in the graphics world. The book covers the major design industries including printing, publishing, architecture, interactive design and moving image. It is also an invaluable guide to digital and electronic media, with the latest information on this rapidly evolving area of design. The guidebook is bursting with illustrations and samples, complimented by interviews and advice from major players in the key disciplines of contemporary design.

2. Graphic Artists Guild Handbook: Pricing and Ethical Guidelines

- Graphic Artists Guild

The content of the Graphic Artists Guild’s handbook clearly demonstrates its mission statement: “To promote and protect the economic interests of artists.” All aspects of project planning, design briefs, pricing, planning, budgeting, copyright and legal issues are covered in the handbook’s concise and clearly presented format. This is an essential investment for anyone pursuing a career in the visual arts.

3. Inside the Business of Graphic Design

- Catharine Fishel

Inside the Business of Graphic Design is based on 60 one-on-one interviews with design business owners, in which they reveal the secrets of their success, and lessons learnt through failure. Any creative considering running a design business should follow the wisdom contained in these pages.

4. Starting Your Career as a Freelance Illustrator or Graphic Designer

- Michael Fleishman

Graphic designer and illustrator Michael Fleishman presents a guide to beginning a career in design, from getting started, making a portfolio, to planning, promoting and selling work.

5. The Business Side of Creativity

- Cameron S. Foote

The author of this book spent six years researching the experiences of over 4.000 design professionals; Foote’s text charts the process from becoming a freelancer, running a design studio, to eventual retirement into comfort after a successful creative career.

6. The Graphic Designer’s Guide to Pricing, Estimating and Budgeting

- Theo Stephan Williams

Creative types are not always the most business-minded individuals, and for them this book is a fantastic resource on the financial aspects of graphic design. Award-winning designer Theo Stephan Williams lays out insider knowledge to help businesses achieve productivity and profit.

7. How to be a Graphic Designer Without Losing Your Soul

- Adrian Shaughnessy

American designer and writer Jessica Helfand explains the practicalities and pitfalls of establishing a career in graphic design.

8. The Little Know-it-all: Common Sense for Designers

- Robert Klanten

This book offers essential information for designers, divided into seven concise and informative chapters covering the fundamentals of the industry: Design, Typography, Digital Media, Production, Marketing, Law and Organisation.

9. 100 Habits of Successful Graphic Designers

- Josh Berger

Josh Berger’s book explains in straightforward and practical terms the best approaches to design processes and projects. Crammed with samples and illustrations, the book itself is a wonderful design object.

10. Talent is Not Enough: Business Secrets for Designers

- Shel Perkins

In Talent is Not Enough, Shel Perkins presents real-world advice for designers, explaining how to translate artistic talent into business success.

11. The Graphic Designer’s Guide to Creative Marketing

- Linda Cooper Bowen

Linda Cooper Bowen is an expert designer and marketing consultant; in this book she sets out a complete guide to finding, winning and maintaining lucrative client contracts. Sample business materials and helpful interviews accompany step-by-step instructions on how to get by in the design world.

12. My So-Called Freelance Life

- Michelle Goodman

While not specifically concerned with careers in design, Michelle Goodman’s guidebook provides helpful advice, along with humorous anecdotes, for anyone looking to pursue a creative freelance career.

13. The Graphic Design Business Book

- Tad Crawford

This book provides comprehensive advice for early and mid-career designers, complete with sections written by industry experts. All the key elements of the design business are covered, from the practicalities of completing client briefs to the thorny subjects of copyright and taxation.

14. Freelance Design in Practice

- Cathy Fishel

This book addresses the financial and legal ramifications of establishing a full-time freelance design business.

15. Selling Graphic and Web Design

- Donald Sparkman

Veteran international designer Donald Sparkman reveals the strategies for success in the creative market. The book is an extremely useful resource for designers of all levels seeking information about marketing and production management.

16. Creatively Self-Employed

- Kristen Fischer

This book explains what happens when the freelancer enters the exciting, and often daunting, world of creative self-employment. Author Kristen Fischer explores working from home, coping with the occasional rejections and loneliness of the enterprise, and building confidence in one’s creative and business activities.

17. The Savvy Designer’s Guide to Success: Ideas and Tactics for a Killer Career

- Jeff Fisher

In this book, Jeff Fisher uses his own and numerous other designers’ experiences in a friendly, conversational text, useful for creatives at all stages in their careers.

18. Careers by Design

- Roz Goldfarb

Recruitment specialist Roz Goldfarb offers a headhunter’s perspective on the design industry, explaining what clients look for in a designer, and the secret strategies for freelancers to get themselves and their work noticed.

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About the Author

As a freelance writer and designer, Tom knows from experience the challenges of working at home while maintaing productivity and growing a business in the creative industry. He writes for a supplier of HP Laserjet cartridges called Cartridge Save who are based in Manchester, England. You can read more of his writing about design and art on their blog, CreativeCloud.