# A new book from Frazzle



## frazzlehead (Aug 23, 2005)

The new book has arrived!









The Rookie's Field Guide to Supported Spinning is available here. 

Here's the blurb to explain what the book is about - see? I promised the next book would be more cheerful! 

This book is for anyone who's curious about spinning yarn with supported spindles but doesn't quite know where to begin. The Field Guide will get you started with information on making your own spindles, doing Quality Assurance testing on made (or purchased) spindles, drafting, plying, and finishing your yarn. Supported spinning is easy on the body, restful for the mind, and soothing to the soul. 

Not an exhaustive history of spinning (supported or otherwise), nor a description of The One Right Way to Spin Supported nor a definition of The Best Kind of Spindle ... the Field Guide includes instructions for making your own supported spindles from inexpensive and easily obtained materials, and provides guidelines for scavenging your cupboards or local thrift store for spinning bowls. To make sure you are off on the right foot, the Field Guide also contains instructions on Spindle Quality Assurance: how to tell if the spindle you've made (or acquired) will be good enough to learn on.

Then, since the whole point of this adventure is to produce yarn, the book includes suggestions for selecting and preparing fibre, several methods for spinning one handed, clues to help you wind neatly onto the spindle shaft, and some techniques for plying and dealing with your finished yarn. 

Like all of the fibre arts, the real learning happens when you hold the tools and fibre in your hands and practice the skills in real life. The Field Guide will suggest possible routes you might take on your journey, but the path you take will be your own.​
I'm really pleased with how the book came out, and it's been getting good response from spinners so far, so ... yay!

Anyhow, I don't think we have many supported spinners here, but if you are curious about this I'll be happy to tell you more!


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## frazzlehead (Aug 23, 2005)

Thanks, WIHH!

The supported spindling bug is a good one to get bitten by - even more portable than drop spindling, makes spinning fine laceweight super easy, and the tools can be made for super cheap from beads and DPNs or bamboo skewers so it fits the budget too! 

I love it.


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## Marchwind (May 10, 2002)

Yay :happy: :clap: I love following your progress with your books. It is not only fascinating to watch from afar but it is educational and entertaining.

I am interested in support spindle spinning. I will purchase a copy but I'm not sure if I want the e-book or the hard copy, hmmmm. Any recommendations? I almost always have my iPad with me these days. Also does it matter if we purchase from Smachwords or some other source. Does one help you achieve fame faster than another . Would thee-book by chance be interactive? That would be really cool with embedded videos, just a thought. Also, I have a Tahkli knock off spindle would this be covered? Is supported spinning all the same? Lots of questions 

Congratulations!


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## frazzlehead (Aug 23, 2005)

Hi Marchie!

A tahkli is a supported spindle, and yup, it's covered - though does yours have a hook on the top? I mean, same strategy essentially but I find the hooks really get in the way.

You can buy the eBook first and if you want the print copy, then you can get a discount on the print copy - so you end up paying only a dollar or two for the eBook, when it all washes out. As for fame, well, I don't rightly know! I think if you buy on the iTunes site, there might be some fame if like a zillion people did that, but I can't quite see that happening, so I'd say go wherever it's convenient for you!  Reviews *do* help ... wherever you purchase from, or on the Ravelry site if that is somewhere you might go too.

That's where the videos are, in fact - I wanted to keep the book short and simple and uncomplicated (and with a nice low budget) but we have a group on Ravelry (named for the book, so easy to find) and there we've got a thread of 'favourite videos' that people have linked to, and places to ask questions and get in person support, more or less. So you get the book and then get pointed to the forum where you can get more interactive help if you need it.

Thank you so much for your support of your "virtually local" author - it means so much to me!


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## stef (Sep 14, 2002)

Congratulations, Frazzle! 

A lot of us (day)dream about writing a book, but you've actually done it! 

I wish you much success. * *


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## frazzlehead (Aug 23, 2005)

Thank you Stef!

If anyone wants to write and self-publish, I say go for it! It's been a really rewarding experience for me.


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## frazzlehead (Aug 23, 2005)

Guess what?

A podcaster (whom I also know in real life) invited me to do an interview about the new book ... it got posted today! 

It's a great podcast, too - she talks about her Fibre Week Master Spinner homework, as well as the projects she's working on, and there's a really lovely intro to every episode that she's written and then reads. 

The podcast is called "By the Fibreside" and you can even listen to it right in your browser, without an iPod or anything! Cool.

The episode that has the interview with me is ... here!


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