Lulu and Self Publishing

I suppose I am vain enough to want to see a story of mine in print. Trouble is I wouldn't dream of forking out large sums of money for the privilege. Does anyone know if those spanking stories on Kindle actually make a profit!? They seem to vary hugely in price.

When it comes to self publishing (also call vanity publishing) you never make much money. The sole exceptions are established authors who are using that process to get their back lists out there (I've bought some of them) or established author who are releasing books that their publishers aren't interested in buying (Lawrence Watt-Evans comes to mind - he wants to publish more Ethshar books but his publisher doesn't see a demand for that world).

Most of the buyers are family and friends - and friends of friends.

Then there are the hidden fees. You can put together something on your own, but they will sell you editing, proofreading, page setting, lay out, art, and every other thing that we've come to expect to from a book. They also charge you for a book number, and that's something you'll need if you want to see your book in your local bookstore.

But if you want to see your name in print, Lulu.com is the most reputable print on demand self publishing site.

Goodgulf

There is a LinkedIn creative people group (I forget the exact title) that has loads of tips about self-publishing and also publishing via the internet without hard copy, and loads of self-publishing businesses and web designers introducing themselves.

Blimp,
Lulu is probably ideal for you. Unlike vanity publishers, they don't try to make money off of their authors, but by selling books. Assuming you have a work in Word or PDF format, they will publish it for you in either or both downloadable or hard copy version. If the latter, they will sell you one copy to proof read. As far as I know, this is the only out of the pocket expense to the author. If you want to try to sell some hard copy books thru your local bookseller or by mail order, you buy a set (by you) number of copies from them and you become a book distributor, or horrors, a publisher. CF has done this with three books and has had no complaints or nasty surprises.

Thanks CF!

What is the quality like? Is it fairly basic? I take it they can reproduce artwork in colour?

Getting rights to the artwork could be a problem. You can't just lift something off the web. There is some stuff I'm reasonably sure would not present a problem due to its age or provenance. How have others dealt with this?

Copyright lasts for 70 years but I am not interested in lifting anything (although I wouldn't mind lifting a fat cheque for royalties)!! I was thinking of including one of my own paintings as a front cover if it wouldn't put the buyers off. I shall probably chicken out anyway or wait until faber suggest a signed limited edition!

I am afraid that my left brainedness extends to color and art, i.e., I tend not to notice such things, the books CF has published thru Lulu have no art and the material I have purchased has been downloaded and printed on my black and white copier/printer. I am reasonably sure that they can reproduce artwork in color but for an evaluation of the quality of reproduction, you will have to consult another person or you may be able to tell by roaming about their website.

Please note that although retired, I am still an academic. I have just taken four and a half lines to say "I don't know."

If you're going to self publish through Lulu you might as well spring for the ISBN - that will allow it to be listed by other booksellers. And if bookstores in your area have "local authors" sections you might have a chance of being carried there - but without the ISBN only Lulu will list the book.

Goodgulf

It would be interesting to learn about the reactions of the neighbourhood when they realise about what topics their "local author" is writing.