Tips, Tricks and Articles

Author Nancy Beaudet tells us about her publishing experience and why she chose this publishing route

10/28/2016

Did you publish through a traditional publisher, self-publishing, print-on-demand?
I self-published.

Why did you choose this route?
I did some research and discovered that ebook publishing was an affordable way to get your books out there your way.

How was the experience?
The first time I did run into trouble with a different company, but with 4 Paws it has worked out.

Would you do it again and why?
Yes, because I’m going to be a best-seller someday.

My latest book is called "Remember Me Now, Part 1. Since I was young, I've looked for ways to write about the bullying I suffered growing up. As I got older and started to forgive, I realized that the most healing way was to write about the pain. Is to create beauty. That's why I wrote Remember Me Now, that's where the first sentence came from. Painful truth, and memories I've blocked out that I want to be able to gain access too. I wanted to create a love story, because when I was young and was constantly being told that I was ugly. I knew that those people didn't think I'd ever find someone to love me. I started writing for Ansley, and for Chase.
I created beauty.
"Remember Me Now, Part 1" is now live on iTunes.
iBooks http://apple.co/2c2FL0y

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Author Katherine E. Tapley-Milton tells us about her publishing experience and why she chose this publishing route

9/27/2016

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Copyrighted Material

Katherine's Website

Katherine's Book on Amazon

1. How did you publish? Please keep out publishing companies names but let us know:

Did you publish through a traditional publisher, self-publishing, print-on-demand?

I started part of my book, "Disappearing Mailboxes of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia" with a magazine article published by Saltscapes. At the same time I sent my book to 4 Paws Games and Publishing.

2. Why did you choose this route?
The response to my magazine article was enthusiastic, so people may like the idea of a book on that theme.

3. How was the experience? Did you run into troubles? Did you find it easy?
At first I self-published "Disappearing Mailboxes" with lulu.com. It looked nice, but there weren't any sales. Hopefully, 4 Paws will help me sell my book.

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Print-on-Demand Publishing

8/3/2016

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Most print-on-demand printing services are in the U.S.. It is one of the most affordable ways to get your book/e-book distributed worldwide. If you are thinking, “you get what you pay for,” think again. The books in most cases are as good of quality as those in your local store or library.

CreateSpace
CreateSpace is an Amazon.com company. There is no setup fee or charge unless you order books from them. Book prices are fairly low for printing rates. Royalties are fair and higher than most in some cases. The books are of the same quality as you would find in a bookstore. They also offer free ISBNs, free distribution some templates to help you get started, a cover creator, and plenty of visual proofing to get an idea of what your book would look like. The color and quality of a book is high, customer service is great and helpful, and they also offer paid services should you require them. Colored ink costs more to print than a black-and-white interior would. The negatives here would be, that shipping to Canada is by courier (either way) and costs fees to cross the border (I usually let the courier handle the paperwork). The other would be that the distribution royalties are lower than a few places. E-books are available to complete through their sister company, Kindle™.
Source: http://www.createspace.com

IngramSpark
This company works in USD. There is a charge for setup and a yearly fee to keep your book in the distribution market. Ingram itself is a well-known American distributor of books. They have now branched out and offer printing and a large range of distribution throughout Canada, the USA, Australia and New Zealand. They offer online tools: print cost calculator (even figures in shipping), a cover template generator and some guides. They do everything from paperbacks, hardcover, business and textbooks, and graphic novels. They offer a large range of sizes, dust jackets (hardcover only), gloss or matte finish, paper size choices, and more. The book quality is good. Printing is best in CMYK colors. Colors seem a little darker when I tried it, which may partly be because of how CMYK works and the fact that my images were not in CMYK format. They do offer the option of placing your book (for a price), in one of their widely distributed magazines. The book quality is very good, but they are still lacking in customer service. You have a better chance of getting help over the phone than by email, which is quite slow.
Source: http://www.ingramspark.com

Lulu
These guys offer discount prices on larger quantities. One good thing about them, is that they list in Canadian dollars. One 36-page color book comes to $15.95CAD while going through CreateSpace, the cost would be $3.65USD (conversions: $4.75CAD). That is a huge difference in cost. They do offer a variety of formats, such as hardcover, coil softcover, photo books, calendars, perfect bound and saddle-stitch. Services are available at a cost, to help you if you need it. You have the options of adding your own ISBN, no ISBN (no distribution this way), or use one of their free ones. Setup is free for both e-books and books, and they even have a cute thank you note area that you can add for when you sell a book. I wasn’t able to see, which places they distribute to, aside from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Ingram. These may be the only places and by far, a lack of distribution.
Source: http://www.lulu.com

Blurb
This is another company with Canadian dollar listings. They publish photo books, trade books, magazines, and e-books. The company does offer discounts if buying in volumes, however, the costs are even higher than Lulu. Formats for covers are anything from basic to dust jackets, luster or matte, Proline uncoated, Proline Pearl Photo, and image wrap. Books are in hardcover or soft. To remove their logo, add another 25% on to the cost per book. Most of the do-it-yourself is free. There are some charges for things like converting the e-book if you want this done. Sizes for each category of book is limited.
Source: http://www.blurb.com

Print-on-Demand Pros

If you know what you are doing, then it’s quick.
Costs vary, but you can find some with good distribution and lower costs.
It is usually free.
Quality printing at lower the cost.
Order as many as you want.

Print-on-Demand Cons

If you don’t know what you are doing, it will either take you some time, or you will have to pay for the service if available.
You have to do all the marketing yourself.
Some have to be shipped from the US and are in USD.
You won’t have a bunch of books to try to sell.

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Author Meg Welch Dendler tells us about her publishing experience and why she chose this publishing route

3/22/2016

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Copyrighted Material. Shared with the author's permission.

Meg's Books on Amazon

Meg's Website

ARE YOU A WRITER?
Answers for Meg Welch Dendler

1. How did you publish? Please keep out publishing companies names but let us know:

Did you publish through a traditional publisher, self-publishing, print-on-demand?

I have published both ways. My middle-grade alien rescue cat series is self-published through CreateSpace and amazon’s kindle program. The paperbacks are print-on-demand, which is an excellent way to work and avoid having to purchase 1,000 books. Besides the cost of that, you are bound to find errors after the first printing. Smaller chunks are better. My women’s fiction novel, “At the Corner of Magnetic and Main,” went through an independent publisher.

2. Why did you choose this route?

Self-publishing was the best route to go for the children’s books because getting an agent or attention from a major publisher is almost impossible. This is considered the hardest market to write for. I didn’t know that going in, of course, but it wouldn’t have made any difference to me. I did send out many inquiries on the first book in the series, but I mostly never got an answer of any kind. That’s typical. The ease of self-publishing and connections I had made along the way to support me made that a logical next step.

For the adult book, I chose to go through a publisher because I wanted the street cred. It was really that simple. If someone else was willing to invest in my book, that gives it a step up with libraries and other groups. Anyone can self-publish. It’s just the current reality. Having a publisher of whatever size invest in you is a badge of approval.

3. How was the experience?

Did you run into troubles? Did you find it easy?

I’m very grateful that I had already self-published four books by the time I worked with the publisher on my adult book. Being fully aware of every step of the process from my own experience helped me give worthwhile input when necessary. I’d dealt with formatting and cover design and editing. I knew what to expect, when to let them do their job, and when to try to share my own ideas.

Self-publishing in a totally professional way (as in, no one picking up your book would guess it was self-published) is a huge undertaking. You are becoming a publisher. It’s not enough to just stick your book into whatever formatting CreateSpace or Kindle offer. It shows if you do that. But doing it well can get expensive. I had help with my first two books, and each ran several thousand dollars through the whole process of publication. I’ve learned how to do the formatting myself now (for the paperbacks) and have cut down the expenses, but you still need to pay a good editor and cover designer, at the very least. I work as an editor, and I still hire an editor. It’s vital. And don’t skimp on the cover. That is what sells your book.

Publishing any book is not easy. There are always going to be delays and challenges that you never saw coming. Working with a publisher, you can wait well over a year to see the final book in print. That’s totally standard. Even doing it yourself, editing and revising and cover design can take months—and it should. Rushing the process to get your book out there is the worst thing you can do. Let it rest. Work it over until you are so sick of it you want to scream. Seriously. Do it right and be professional. That will help cut down on the drama and problems later on.

4. Would you do it again and why?

Absolutely! I am just getting ready to publish the 4th book in my cat series (self-published) and have a YA biography of Betty White in the works with the same independent publisher. I’m also shopping another middle-grade book to agents and large publishers, again because of that street cred thing. I may end up self-publishing it, that wouldn’t be the end of the world, but I also want to take a try for bigger things. Self-publishing still has a big stigma attached to it of being lesser, and that’s not going away any time soon. By doing both, I keep control of some of my books and also prove the value of my books to a larger audience.

All of Meg’s books can be found at her amazon.com author page
and at her website http://megdendler.com.

Thank you Meg for sharing your honest experience with us and the different publishing routes you have taken! We wish you continued success.

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