Non-Designer Needs a Real Design! HELP!!!

Tim Huddleston

I'm Tim Huddleston, a freelance writer and editor, specializing in ghost writing (boo!) and content development. My clients include major publishing houses such as McGraw-Hill, Pearson Education, Prentice Hall, and many others. I have written and edited hundreds of books over the past 20 years, on topics ranging from computer hardware/software, to health and fitness, to pile driving (but not the kind used in wrestling). I also create help systems for software companies, such as Tivoli Systems, and write training manuals for use in the construction trades. I'm not an expert in any of these topic areas, but I offer my clients value through my ability to research and assimilate information and develop content designed for my clients' specific needs.

But I'm not a geek! My focus is "practical non-fiction," which includes how-to, reference, and tutorial content on a wide range of topics, presented in print, multimedia, and online. I love developing content that helps people learn and master new skills, and feel my work takes on extra importance during bad economic times, when people lose their jobs and seek new skills so they can find a better job.

My promise to all my clients: I can take an ordinary manuscript and turn it into a great one. Many of my products have become best-sellers in their genre, and I have coached many aspiring writers into industry-leading names.

Publishers of practical non-fiction, of all stripes. These can be educational publishers, "dummies"-type presses, hands-on/how-to/self-teaching publishers, and others. I also want to appeal to book agents in this market, who might be interested in pairing me with authors who have great ideas but little writing experience. Overall, I want to attract attention from publishing industry decision makers who understand how my skills can fit their needs; this audience includes publishers, publishing directors, documentation managers, executive/sponsoring/acquisitions editors, managing editors, and people in similar positions of authority.

For this logo, think simple yet elegant/sophisticated. But not flowery or fancy. A simple treatment of my initials (TH) is my primary interest. Something small but eye-catching that can be used as a "favicon" for my Web site, and in printed materials such as biz cards, brochures, letterhead, etc. It would also be nice if the treated initials can be worked into a logo containing my entire name (Tim Huddleston), but that isn't necessary. If the logo must stand alone, that's fine.

Also, please avoid a "techie" look (no "computer-ish" fonts). Although my background is largely in tech publishing, I'm trying to reshape my image to appeal to a broad range of publishers.

My key color choices are black (R, 0; G, 0; B, 0) and a dark red (R, 200; G, 0; B, 0).

File format requirements are:
High-resolution JPG
Transparent GIF, which can be placed over a colored background so the background will show through.

The images must be resizable an retain their resolution upon resizing. No EPS, TIF, or Targa-type files, please.

And remember: sophisticated, but not fancy or flowery.

THANK YOU!