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Look into self-publishing before trying a vanity press. The risk with a vanity press is that they'll take your money and give you an inferior product, and then blame you if they can't get it distributed.
Talk to distributors and printers and do it yourself.
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Lulu.com has a $40 marketing package with an ISBN that gets a self-published book into R.R. Bowker's Books in Print. Amazon and Barnes and Nobles will eventually list anything published with an ISBN. Of course, Wheatmark offers that as well, but their basic publishing service rate is $1,299.00. Lulu is free until the book is ready for final proof approval and then to go to market. One or a thousand or more, at a per copy price with discounts at benchmarks, like 26 is the first break point. Then they cost a book production fee, a standard markup for Lulu, and whatever "royalty" margin the Lulu client sets.
Posts: 6037 | Registered: Jun 2008
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There's one that is somehow affiliate with Amazon - Create Space. You might want to look into that also.
Posts: 72 | Registered: Apr 2008
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Lulu recently changed their upload requirements. They now can accommodate Microsoft Word, Works, WordPerfect, and OpenOffice documents. They have a wizard application that converts a Word or RTF formatted book block file into a PDF for review, printout, and bookmaking. I believe CreateSpace requires a native Acrobat file as do the other POD book manufacturers. However, Word, WordPerfect and OpenOffice have an export to PDF feature, as does InDesign and Quark.
The help topics at Lulu have also been recently updated. Much more user friendly advice on book and cover design and layout is provided. xLibris and Lightning Source have setup fees and minimum orders. Lightning Source is a subsidiary of Ingram Book Group, leading book distributor in the U.S. CreateSpace has a faster track into Amazon listing than the others. A few weeks versus eight-plus for everyone else.
At Lulu, a 100 page, black and white interior with color cover, perfect bound, 6" by 9" U.S. trade paperback, one copy manufacturing cost, $6.50. Lulu's minimum markup is $0.19 per copy, or 25% of client royalty markup, whichever is higher. They've also changed their first break point to 10 copies, at $5.50. 25 is $4.50 for the above example.
A 14,000 word nonfiction title would occupy 55-60 pages of body matter, assuming no illustrations, and probably an additional 12 pages of front and back matter. At 72 pages, it's thick enough for perfect binding. 32 pages is Lulu's mandatory break point for saddle stitch (stapled) binding versus perfect binding.
Printer-friendly view of this topic
