Neopoet.com

As indicated in my last entry, I had decided to self publish.  CafePress.com offers an easy path but, even with bulk pricing, can get expensive fast with a per book cost for my collection at nearly $6.  The nice thing about CafePress, though, is that you can get a proof copy of a book for around $15, depending on manuscript size and shipping option, of course.

So I got a proof copy, saw a couple of errors, corrected them and then had to make a hard decision.  Should I go with CafePress and pay more but have no minimum run required (bulk pricing only kicks in after 15 books, saving almost $5 per book), or should I take a chance on another on-line publisher. 

After much soul searching and questions, I decided to take a chance on InstantPublisher.com.  They had an on-line quoting system and accepted manuscripts in either a proprietary file format or a PDF.  They had an option to submit a full color cover, go with a black and white cover, or work with them to design a cover.  They could even print the entire book in color, something I did not need at this time but having the options available was reassuring.  Additionally communication with the support team prior to my submission was timely and informative.  And lastly the production time was quoted as 7-10 business days plus shipping. 

So I went through my manuscript one last time, corrected a typo in a poem, missed one in the forward (MS Word says it’s OK but I knew better once it slapped me in the face in print) and created a PDF and uploaded it to InstantPublisher.com.  I followed this by sending the cover file to customer support with my order number in the subject line and received, within one (1) business day, acknowledgement that the cover had been received and sent to the art department.

And then, daily, I could log into InstantPublisher.com and check the status of my project. 

I submitted everything on July 3, 2008, I received my shipment of 50 books on July 14, 2008.  As they were not scheduled to arrive, according to the quoted turn-around and shipping time before the 18th at the very earliest and the 21st  as more realistic, I was ecstatic.  But the nagging questions is quality.  Would the quality be sufficient to my requirements.

I had specified a 4.25 X 7 format - about the size of your standard paperback.  I had them perfect bound, 56 pages total on off-white paper with a card-stock light laminate color cover. 

All I can say is:

"Damn."

The books are nice.  The cover is a nice card stock and true to my very simple design.  I was worried about the spine printing but that came out fine.  I will probably decide to work with them on a different cover if I get a re-print but I don’t need to, it’s just something I may want to do.  The printing on the paper is crisp and clear and it looks exactly like the layout I had created.

Now, I made certain I used their Word Template for my format choice.  I basically followed all of the directions and as such there were no snags in setup, printing, or binding.  But I have to say that the entire process, aside from the nagging quality question, was simple to follow and never resulted in any surprises.

As stated in my last blog post I did purchase an ISBN and bar-code from a different company but I could have gotten the same from InstantPublisher.com for about the same price, $95 for the number and code combined.  I also registered my book with the US copyright service.  You can now do this entirely on-line for $30 including uploading your work.  This step is not absolutely required but is a safeguard and a reasonable step to take at a reasonable price.

I’ll be taking my books to a Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA) event in a couple of weeks and upon return have been invited to do a singing at a local coffee house.  Hopefully I will have to do a reprint.

And I’m already about half complete with Volume 2 so, sometime next spring, I’ll be doing another run of another book and, from there, may branch out to collaborate with other poets interested in a shared risk project.  and if i could find an artist who is comfortable with the surrealist style …who knows, perhaps some special editions.

But technology has progressed to the point where the option to professionally self-publish is available and can all be accomplished in such a manner that rivals large publishing houses.  Those old enough to remember self-publishing in the 1970’s may  understand the wonder I feel.

As for whether or not this is financially successful, well, that remains to be seen but, at least, I’m moving forward.