What inspired this project?

This whole thing started totally by accident. One day, just for kicks, I asked ChatGPT to create the girl in "Girl with a Pearl Earring" with a dog. To my surprise, it looked awesome right off the bat. So I kept playing around, swapping dogs into famous paintings just for fun. Before I knew it, this little joke of mine had taken on a life of its own, and I was deep into creating an entire collection of paintings.

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Did you encounter any challenges when making the book?

Sure, there were a few challenges. Not being able to use artworks not in the public domain was a big one; there are so many iconic pieces and artists I wished to include but couldn't. Another challenge was trying to capture the unique style of some painters, like El Greco. It was tough, possibly because the AI algorithms aren't quite there yet, or maybe El Greco's style is just that unique. Finally, some paintings have unique compositions that are really hard to recreate even with a detail prompt. There's a whole section in the book's appendix where I dive into these issues.

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What tools did you use and how much did they cost?​

This project was surprisingly cheap to put together. I used...

• ChatGPT (20 USD per month)

• Wix.com for the website (about $260 for hosting/domain for a year)

• Staples to print a manuscript (about ~$90)

• Canva to design the book (free)

• Stable Diffusion (Free)

• Amazon's Kindle Direct Publishing (Free)

• ISBN (Free provided by Amazon)

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What feedback have you received so far?

My friends and family were both amused and surprised that I managed to turn this idea into a book. It's been interesting to see how people connect with specific paintings; there's a sense of joy and recognition when they identify the original works behind the canine recreations. It seems that part of the fun comes from discovering these familiar artworks reimagined in such a unique way.

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Tell us about the publishing process...​

I went through Amazon's Kindle Direct Publishing for this book. The process is surprisingly straightforward and user-friendly, although their interface could use a bit of an update. What amazed me the most was how efficiently they manage to print a hardcover book with color illustrations on nearly every page, all for less than $35USD, and still turn a profit.

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As you might guess, this efficiency means authors receive a relatively small amount per book sold—in my case, about 80 cents per unit. But going into this, I was well aware of that fact. Honestly, just having the hardcover book displayed in my living room brings me immense satisfaction. It's like running a long race; the joy comes not from winning but from the journey itself. I'm really happy with the learning experience this project provided. With that in mind, I've decided to donate any profits to dog charities.

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How will you pick the charities where you will donate the profits? 

I plan to begin by donating the profits to the MSPCA in Boston. They hold a special place in my heart because they saved my rescue dog, Milton, who had a spine injury when he was a puppy. Should the profits turn out to be significant, my intention is to support other smaller charities involved in dog adoption. My approach is to give back to those organizations that make a tangible difference in the lives of dogs, much like they did for Milton.

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I have a dog related charity and would love to get profits from this book, what I can do to make that happen?

In an ideal scenario, I'd love to provide a link to directly track purchases attributed to your efforts, passing on 100% of those proceeds. Unfortunately, from what I understand, setting up such a system might not be possible. So, we might need to adopt a more informal approach, like allocating profits from sales in a certain month to your charity. If you're interested in exploring this arrangement, please reach out to me. You can email me at my Yahoo account, which is 'comiteage'. I'm avoiding typing the full email to prevent it from being picked up by bots.

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Are there any plans for a sequel or related projects?

Currently, there are no plans for a sequel or related project. I'm starting a full-time job next week so this book was essentially one of many pet projects (pun intended) I undertook during a transitional period. Given my upcoming commitments and career focus, it's unlikely I'll return to this particular creative endeavor anytime soon.

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