Thoughts on Self Publishing
Posted on | October 12, 2009 | 3 Comments
We self-published Weeping Willow: Welcome to River Bend through a company called AuthorHouse. There were good and bad points to doing this, but overall we were very happy with the results and now we have a book that was a bestseller on Barnes and Noble! (Joe Vitale started out self publishing, and he also used AuthorHouse. We found that out after we’d already gone through the whole process.)
As I said, there were good and bad points. Some of the Author Reps were very hands on, some it took a little throat shaking to get a response from. Our main problem was one of our own making, I fear. Although we supplied the artwork for our cover, we let them design it. We weren’t thrilled with the result, but didn’t rattle any cages about it for fear of… what? I’m not sure. We’d never do that again. If we did allow them to design the cover, we’d keep sending it back till we were satisfied. You learn as you go, I guess, and it never pays to not express your dissatisfaction. In a kind, loving way, of course. Always.
Some things to consider when you self publish:
1) What kind of paper do they publish on? It should be acid free or your books will disintegrate fairly quickly. (Many of the Print On Demand houses publish with Lightning Source as does AuthorHouse. If they use Lightning Source, no problem.)
2) What kind of binding do they use? Some use inferior glue, etc. and the books will fall apart. (Again, if they use Lightning Source, no problem.)
3) Do they provide the ISBN number, which is the number used to sell the book? If not, it can be a cumbersome and expensive process to get one and you’ll need it to sell the book in book stores.
3) Do they list your title at all the on-line book stores and in brick and mortar indexes? (Many POD houses use Ingram Book Group, as does AuthorHouse, who does all this for you as part of the service.)
These are just a few of the things to consider when choosing a Print on Demand house to self publish your book. There are many more, such as knowing that, no matter who you use, you will be responsible for 99% of your own publicity and marketing.
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October 26th, 2009 @ 4:57 pm
Thanks for the info Geoff – it may come in handy when I finish my children’s book
May 14th, 2010 @ 10:16 am
Useful article, especially the observations about Lightning Source. Regarding the percentage in your last sentence: I’d up the number from 99 to 100%.
Thanks for sharing useful information with your readers!
Mohamed
.-= Mohamed Mughal´s last blog ..Engineering Boundary Conditions and the Outer Limits of Literary Permission =-.
May 14th, 2010 @ 10:41 am
Thanks for your comment, Mohamed. I take it from what you say that you have personal experience of the amount of assistance you get for your marketing and publicity. I understand it wasn’t always like that, but even Dickens self-published Christmas Carol so he could have control over its marketing.