Choosing A Cheap Self Publishing Solution
As many of you know, unless something really strange happens (like a publishing contract falling from the sky) I’ll be self-publishing Oasis after I get it done and clean it up a little. Because I don’t have extra money to burn, I’m limiting my self-publishing choices to printers that do not require any setup fees. Here’s what I’ve been looking at.
You can set up a book for free at each of the following places, you just pay each time you want a copy. They’ll also sell the book for you. (as in take payment and print and send it to your customer) SO, yeah they’re all print-on-demand places.
I hadn’t heard of this one before I started googling around for print-on-demand places.
Cost: I couldn’t find this plainly listed anywhere (maybe I’m a dork), so I used their cost calculator and my mad high school algebra skilz to figure out the prices. So I figure it costs about $4.35 as a base price and $0.021 per page.
Pros: There is a nice little cover wizard. In fact, it’s a fairly painless process to set up a book altogether. There are also discounts for bulk orders (as I could figure it - 10% off for 100+, 20% for 1,000+, and 30% off for 10,000+ copies)
Cons: Requires you to upload in Word .doc format. I don’t use Word, and I make use of some stuff in OpenOffice.org that doesn’t export well to Word. I couldn’t see a way to upload custom covers. It may have one, though. Correct me if I’m wrong. Also, I tried to go back in recently to make sure I had this all correct. I forgot my user name, and when I tried to use the automatic user name recovery thing, it gave me an error, which bummed me out.
Lulu is the most established and easiest to use POD (print on demand) solution I’ve found. I’ve used it a few times in my day job, and to give my dad a hardcover copy of the book he wrote several years ago, but never got published. It will take Word .doc files, Excel files, wordperfect files, pdfs, MS Works files, and rtf files. I use openoffice to generate pdfs, so I’m set.
Cost: $4.53 + $0.02 / Page
Other Fees: Their royalty is 25% of spread between printing costs and the retail price, which you set.
Pros: Good cover wizard, you can use their templates, upload your own front and back covers, or upload your own custom wraparound cover. You can upload in many formats. There are a lot of different projects you can make, and I think the interface is very friendly.
Cons: If you want your book to be available in Amazon, or through Barnes & Noble, or through really any major bookseller, you’ll need to pay the worldwide distribution fee (currently $99). And that still isn’t a guarantee you’ll be included anywhere.
CreateSpace is owned and operated by Amazon.
POD Cost: $3.15 + $0.02 / page
Other Fees: 20% of spread between printing costs and the retail price, which you set. 30% when your book is sold through Amazon.
Pros: Automatic inclusion into Amazon.com (You have to order and approve a proof copy first). You also get a free ISBN for your book (The little 11 or 13 digit number every “real” published book has) You can get a bulk discount, too. 10% off for 50-99 copies, and 20% off for 100+.
Cons: You need to create a print ready pdf for the interior and cover by yourself. THis isn’t too difficult If you know what you’re doing, but for non-techie users, it can be a deal-stopper. It does automatically generate a cover template for you, though, so that’s a little helpful. A cover wizard would be better. And to produce a print ready pdf with OpeOffice is easy, just click the export to pdf button and you’re done. For most versions of Word (I’m not sure about the newest one), you’ll have to install a pdf distiller (Works like a printer, except you save the printed file as a pdf, rather than pick it up off your printer.) The full Adobe Acrobat can be pricey, but there are several free pdf distillers out there. (see PrimoPDF and CutePDF)
In Conclusion
For non-techie users, I’d definitely suggest Lulu.com over the others, it’s easy to use. If you are capable of making cover graphics and making pdfs, I’d suggest CreateSpace.
I’ll be going with CreateSpace for Oasis.
Tags: pod reviews, Self Publishing
January 8th, 2008 at 2:41 pm
Bryce, are you sure you don’t want to try getting this out for a few agents to look at first? I’d really hate to see you have to invest in publishing and promoting the book yourself, which can be a) a lot of work and b) costly. I think this book’s the equal of any other in it’s genre I’ve read, and think you could get it published by a house. Of course, that’s going to take time, patience and a lot of rejection, but I do believe it’s publishable.
BUT, if this is the route you’ve chosen and you’re set on it, I want to help. Let me know what I can do to support you and I’m happy to pitch in. Best of luck!
January 9th, 2008 at 2:22 am
I just heard of a place called Publish America. Their website is, coincidentally, http://www.publishamerica.com I haven’t done any research on them but maybe they might be worth a shot.
Hope you guys are doing well and had a nice holiday season.
January 10th, 2008 at 4:35 pm
Thanks for the kind words.
My mind is made up.
Here’s the plan:
1) Become an internet author superstar.
2) Publish my book using createspace, so it shows up on amazon
3) Work my (by this time) thousands of loyal readers into a book-buying frenzy, taking me to the top of amazon’s charts.
4) Have hollywood license my creative work for enormous sums of money.
Only 4 steps left to go…
January 10th, 2008 at 6:46 pm
Your plan is brilliant, Bryce — no arguing that! Oh, and if you don’t know it yet, keeping those four steps in order and manageable is easily done by this really nifty little software package called “List of Six” … get it over on babykatiemedia.com.
January 11th, 2008 at 6:16 am
Well i wish you all the good luck in publishing it and ill buy it if i can couse i cant order it online (im 14 years old and myparents wouldnt give me the money) The book is genious and i enjoyed every second of it. You have any other books i could read couse i need time to fill until the next chapter
January 19th, 2008 at 12:06 am
Could you upload a blank .odf of a template for using createspace, a base that I can start from?
And also, to get your createspace work submitted to Amazon.com you need to order, and pay for, a proof copy???
January 24th, 2008 at 10:53 am
Jack - Yes, after you purchase a review copy of your book, it gets listed in Amazon. There are other ways to do this. You can join the Amazon advantage program for $27 a year and mail them copies of your book (of course, you’ll have to get the printing done somewhere). Or you can go through Lulu.com and drop the $100 bucks for the “global distribution” option. Getting your proof copy shipped to you shouldn’t cost more than $12-$15 total. Or you can get published by a regular publisher and have them do it all.
Also, It’s fairly simple to set up your document in OpenOffice. A while ago, I found a template for Lulu that would work just as well. Just Google for Lulu OpenOffice.org template.
February 4th, 2008 at 2:41 am
Just a quick thought regarding Vanessa’s comment on Jan. 9, 2008:
I’ve heard nightmare stories about PublishAmerica. You might want to do a web search for reviews on their products and their customer service. Sooooo many bad reviews!