Conscious of Publishing

3/24/2012

I am so fortunate to have some "regulars" who frequent my blog. You are all so intelligent and I learn every time you comment on everything from politics to religion to writing.

Conscious At Last commented on my most recent post about literary agents. He/She (I will call her she for our purposes here) asked if anyone had experience with independent publishers.

Please weigh in if you do. I'd like to read what you have to say as well.

As most of you know, I am a proud indie author of an e-book that I launched on Amazon Kindle. I am part of what they call KDP Select which means, among other things, that my book can be borrowed for free in the Kindle Direct Publishing Lending Library. I am thinking of exploring the option of printing my book either through the Amazon owned Create Space, or perhaps through Lightening Source.

If you read this, please put CAL's question out to the universe and ask writers to share their wisdom with us.

And, I must emphasize how much I have enjoyed this blog, Passive Voice. Daily he has articles and links to other writers' blog posts on the ins-and-outs of the publishing world. I've linked here to one good article to start with. But I recommend getting on his daily email list.

Ingrid link

3/24/2012 05:58:07 am

Ok..this is for Conscious at Last. When I decided to publish my memoir, Hippie Boy: A Girl's Story, on my own, I went to a book blogging community (bookblogs.ning.com) and posted this question: "How can self published authors secure wide print distribution?" The answer that came back? Lightning Source. Lighting Source is a print on demand publisher that is a sister company to Ingram - a book distribution channel used by virtually all bookstores and libraries to purchase books. It takes a little work to publish with Lightning Source - you need to set up a business account with them and go through an application process. And you have to be prepared to submit print files to their specifications. They also leave it to you to determine retail/wholesale margins, whether you want only US or international distribution etc. I've been extremely pleased with LS. Though they print books on demand, the quality is amazing, they handle distribution (including through Amazon and BN.com) and fulfillment and enable me to order books to sell on my own. I highly recommend them.

Hope this helps.

Best,
Ingrid

Ottoline

3/24/2012 07:03:43 am

I too have heard only good things about Lightning Source. If you are not a publishing professional in your day job, I'd suggest hiring one -- editing your doc and formatting it just the way LS wants it is easy for such a person. The other companies -- Lulu, AuthorHouse, Llumina, etc. -- use LS too. They are the wholesaler that everyone uses, it seems. I sure appreciate your comment, Ingrid.

ingrid link

3/24/2012 07:49:40 am

Hi Ottoline -- yeah, I meant to point that out as well...that Lulu and others use Lightning Source and act as a middleman, taking profits from authors. And I agree -- hiring someone who knows how to professionally format a book and do it to LS standards is by far the way to go. I worked with a local guy in Seattle who is fantastic and very reasonable. One quick thing...LS says that gutters should be at least 1/2 inch. But in my experience..that is too tight. Most print formatters know to go at least 5/8 inch for gutters...and some go as wide as 3/4 inch.

Laura Novak

3/24/2012 07:07:10 am

Just a word about Ingrid's book: Hippie Boy. It's fantastic!! I have it on Kindle and in paper. And you would never know that it was not produced by a "major publisher." It's very professional looking and wonderful to hold. So that is a major advertisement for LS.

Perhaps someone can weigh in on the disadvantages to CS? I know some have commented on an earlier post of mine, but for this thread, all information is welcome again. Thanks again, Ingrid - your book is worth all those fabulous five-star reviews!

Ingrid link

3/24/2012 07:51:50 am

Thank you, Laura!!! And I personally can't wait to be holding a physical copy of Finding Clarity in my hands. I'm mean..I love my Kindle Copy..but I want a signed paperback copy, too!

Laura Novak

3/24/2012 07:24:51 am

I just found two excellent articles on CS and LS and how they compare. Here are the links:

http://www.thebookconsultant.com/LPMArticle.asp?ID=306

http://write2publish.blogspot.com/2011/02/why-create-space-is-better-than.html

I am bookmarking them to study in more depth later.

Ottoline

3/24/2012 08:44:36 am

Those are terrific links, Laura, and here's another one comparing CS and LS. I am still pretty confused after reading all 3, but they are good links.

http://www.newselfpublishing.com/CreateSpaceEDC.html

Laura Novak

3/24/2012 08:48:09 am

Okay, now I see you over here Ottoline. Wasn't sure if you had read this post. Thanks for this link. It is hard to sort out which is why I appreciate Ingrid's input. I know that it was very challenging formatting for Kindle, but I did it myself. I did, however, have to have a "web guy" do the Mobi Pocket Creator conversion. That was beyond me, and I work on a Mac anyway. Back to print versions if anyone has any more info.

FrostyAK

3/24/2012 09:07:01 am

A question for those with experience. For someone who has formatted for publication with Quark, are either of these alternatives (CS or LS) easier? I found Quark pretty straight forward AFTER the initial setup. But until the page setups were defined, it was abominable.

Thanks for all the information on writing/publishing coming through this blog. Many of us have things to say, but until now have not had the connections to get them in print. It seems we are just coming into the age of 'Freedom of the Press'.

Ottoline

3/24/2012 09:29:43 am

I would ask the same qu as FrostyAK, only for InDesign. But I guess you submit a pdf in the end, right? So you can use what you like? Or are there some tricky wrinkles there?

Bluerinse

3/26/2012 07:27:57 pm

Hi - I freelance making books for publishers. Indesign is industry standard, mainly because it is so much cheaper than quark and comes bundled with photoshop etc. But you are right, since it will be a pdf in end, doesn't matter what you make it in, but I would really not recommend using word, it is just not what is for. The latest indesign version has also been designed for easier exporting as an ebook.

If you are going to use file for an ebook as well, there are some things you need to do - e.g., you cannot have multiple returns between paragraphs, but instead must do it by putting in a space before etc.

If you or Frosty have any questions about how to set up a file, feel free to ask.

cheers

Ottoline

3/27/2012 01:49:44 am

Bluerinse (responding to your comment below): Thanks for the thumbs up for InDesign. Good to know that it's industry standard. I guess I'm just going to have to break down and buy/learn it. When you say you "make books" -- do you mean layout? composition? proofing? all of it?

Yes, I've just learned that we don't use returns anymore, just specify the space above and below with Styles.

Ottoline

3/24/2012 09:14:26 am

O/T but I bet other interested-in-publishing types will get a smile from this. I was surfing around the internet the other day (actually looking at before and after "face work" pictures of Linda Evans, unfortunately: insomnia is my excuse), and I discovered that Joan Collins got a $2M advance for two books from a big publisher. When she submitted the 2nd book, the publisher didn't like it and tried to welsh on the $1M advance for that book. It went to court and Joan prevailed. I mention this because the only other such case I had heard of was Barry Goldwater, who got a $35k? $50k? advance for his autobio, and when he handed it in, the publisher didn't like it and wanted the advance back. Similarly, Goldwater won in court.

This way too long video is just right for when you are combing serious snarls out of the dog's coat. Lucianne Goldberg testifying amusingly at 27:45. At 36:20 Joan discusses Joni Evans.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEyP-uJ6YN0&feature=related

bluerinse

3/27/2012 06:45:11 am

Hi, I mean the design and layout - usually I am sent a word file & after some Indesign "magic" it becomes a book, the final end product being a print ready pdf. I must admit to being ambivalent to e-books, though make files ready to be "ebooked" that I then send to someone else to do the final bits to.

If you know how to use style sheets, you are half way to mastering indesign, but if you need help setting up your template just holler!

PS - I looked at what Laura said about 1/2 inch gutters - that is too small (in Australia, so had to do a bit of converting to mm in my head), but like all book designers I am white spacist!

Ottoline

3/27/2012 07:40:29 am

Thx, bluerinse. I'm a white spacist too. Reminds me of a foreign friend who was getting a lecture on "rabid racists," and turned to me and said "I didn't know rabbits raced!"

Laura Novak

3/24/2012 09:34:03 am

Great video. Now I'm on to other Joan Collins videos. I seem to recall that the writers of the Nanny Diaries (I believe) had to give back an advance on the second book b/c it was so poorly written. I could be wrong; I'll have to look it up.

Good question, Frosty. And there are things about InDesign that are important to know. I know that my "web guy" who made the Mobi conversion did NOT use InDesign for whatever his reasons.

Hopefully someone can answer Otto and Frosty here. I'll check in again later.

Ottoline

3/24/2012 09:39:42 am

Of course one could use Word, right? and then pdf it. But my experience with Word is that a 100-page file risks getting flakey (corrupt; software glitches). Not always, but if it's a complicated design, or complex tables, or lots of changes. Yes, I would love to hear such details as this. I appreciate the gutter info, too, Ingrid. :-)

Ottoline

3/25/2012 02:05:57 am

Ingrid -- I see that "Hippie Boy . . ." is available in both paper and kindle.
-- Could you tell us in which medium you sell more?
-- And is the profit (even with such a low kindle price) the same?
-- Is kindle the way you would go again? vs other online options?
-- Does reader feedback differ based on which medium they read it in? Or is anything else different from the writer's perspective when publishing in the two ways?

Something I rarely see: Your used copies are posted as costing $40+! Perhaps autographed? This sounds like a very good sign.

ingridricks link

3/25/2012 03:22:36 am

Hey Ottoline - I'm heading out for a movie with my kids but will write a detailed note later. The quick answer, though? I recommend both paperback and eBook (and best sales definitely come through Amazon Kindle). Currently I make more off my $2.99 eBook than I do from paperback. But that's because I priced my paperback wrong. I will share everything I've learned in a few hours (Off to stand in line at Hunger Games). Best - Ingrid

Ottoline

3/25/2012 03:26:48 am

My 17.5-yr-old just saw Hunger Games and said it was not that scary -- which I can hardly understand after I've read the premise. Maybe, as dear A. Hitchcock said, blood is not scary for children, who know it's ketchup, but definitely is not good for adults undergoing analysis.

IngridRicks link

3/25/2012 07:18:25 am

Ok...Back from Hunger Games (I thought they did a good job..but I liked the book better).

Here's been my experience with Hippie Boy

1 - I sell a lot more eBooks than I do paperbacks (about 4,000 + ebooks so far, a few hundred paperbacks). Virtually all of those ebooks have been sold on Kindle and the sales have come as a result of participation in Amazon's KDP Select Program that launched in December. At $2.99, I make $2.04 per eBook. At $11.95, I only make around $1.30 currently on paperbacks. This is because to make it worthwhile for bookstores to carry, you have to give a 55 percent wholesale discount. And Print on demand pricing is much more expensive than off set printing because they are being printed one at a time (I think I pay $4.17per book). I recently put HB eBook back in BN.com and on Smashwords as an experiment, but I plan to put it back into the KDP Select program shortly because that's the best way I can figure out to drive sales and generate exposure. My paperbacks are starting to pick up though -- this is because of book clubs that are starting to read it and I think a couple of libraries have ordered it as well (also my local bookstore). I'm working on a couple of shorter books and I'll only put them out as eBooks because I can't really picture them as paperbacks. But HB has strong YA appeal and book club appeal so I definitely wanted a paperback for that. To address my paperback pricing, I was recently told that I should be pricing it at $14.95 -- which is where other books in my genre are priced. (my new pricing goes into effect March 31). Amazon will discount it regardless, but this way I can make $2.70 or so per paperback when it's been sold through LS. I make more, obviously, when I purchase the books and sell them directly. In case any of you find this helpful, here's a link to a blog I wrote on generating exposure for indie books. For those who aren't familiar...it explains Amazon's KDP Select program http://ingridricks.com/2012/03/10/ten-ways-to-drive-mass-exposure-for-your-indie-book/ I've still got a long way to go to get HB where I want it to be..and I notice that when I'm not actively marketing (e.g. for the past two weeks while I'm concentrating on finishing a collection of short stories) sales on the eBook side plunge so it's constant work. But I do love the control and flexibility that comes from self publishing. Hope this helps! Happy Sunday! - Ingrid

Conscious at last!

3/25/2012 02:58:53 am

Oh my, quite a kindness-- thank you Laura, Ingrid, Ottoline & Frosty.

This is very helpful. Let's see if others chime in.

Laura Novak

3/25/2012 07:51:46 am

Thank you so much Ingrid. I see your multiple repeats here so I'll try to go in and delete a few if I can. But your information is stellar. Thank you SO much again.

Conscious, I hope this is helping. I'd love to hear what you're thinking or what you're working on!

Ottoline

3/25/2012 10:06:19 am

Oh, Ingrid: Wow! You are so good to share all this info with us. It's exactly what I wanted to learn. One more qu: I have not liked using kindle (not as much as a book, but of course it's a miracle!), in part because the graphics are small. For a book with lots of photos that would not be informative when seen so small, do you have any other online thoughts? Some kind of pairing of kindle with "you can see it on your computer, too."

IngridRicks link

3/26/2012 01:58:46 am

Ottoline - I wish I did have a solution for that.You could offer it up as a PDF -- which you can do through Smashwords and through your Web site. The only issue is that if you offer it as a PDF, I don't think you can participate in the KDP Select Program, which at the moment is the best way by far to build exposure and generate paid sales. I'm sure that if you wait long enough - a solution will emerge because I know there are lots of picture books out there. At least Kindle Fire and the iPads make it easy to see photos. I'm sure it will keep evolving. Best, Ingrid

Ottoline

3/27/2012 01:58:42 am

Hey all: I am noodling the idea of putting together a short ebook that explains the Palin Hoax and why it matters. In the simplest and broadest terms. Sell it for zero profit, so it has a chance. If anyone wants to think this through with me, please email me via Laura, okay? I have an outline and a concept that I'd want opinions on, and then a little writing, and then a lot of review. I'm still hoping that revealing the hoax will further discredit this array of klown kar kandidates in the GOP and also reveal the fundie/big money implications of the hoax.

But I'm wondering if it's worth it? After all, the first 7 attempts didn't get the hoax revealed (Dangerous, Floyd, Dunn, Scharlott, Bailey, McGinniss, Shailey). Is there any hope left?

(I'm well aware that if all one has is publishing skills, everything looks like a book. At least I'd like to think this idea I have through more critically, with the help of any of you who want to, too. Email to me privately via Laura, pls.)

3/28/2012 07:44:29 am

Good luck with your project, Otto! An interesting link.

I'm now nearly as intrigued by the Truther brouhaha as with the hoax itself. Someone, or more than one someone, is leaving a trail of breadcrumbs. First Audrey and Fred, and now Patrick. (see comments to Floyd Orr's open your eyes post.) Not sure if it is a diversionary tactic, or someone with a grudge.

V-A

3/29/2012 01:38:28 am

Hey, Otto and Up. I'm not interested in self-publishing, but any reference to the Trig hoax always perks my ears. I tracked down the Orr reference (http://niafs.blogspot.com/2012/03/secrets-before-your-eyes.html). That guy is insufferable, but occasionally, something interesting creeps up from between his lines, like a mad man rambling on a street corner. The real difference in journalists and bloggers is that bloggers are often into a story for their own self glory or twisted agendas. (they're working on their own behalf. Orr is his own worst/best evidence of this.) It would seem to me there are two ways to tell the Trig hoax story. One is as straight journalism, based on the questions Palin's stories raise and their implausible answers, and why the msm never pursued the indiscrepancies. The other, equally viable, is the Trig hoax and the battling bloggers. (A larger view of the whole thing.) Now that is a real story. How bloggers took something that should have been news, and played it out for their own benefits. How sad (and intriguing!) if the Trig story was killed by the very bloggers who pretended to chase it. Is there any other precedent for this? Would the birther movement have had more traction if it couldn't have been pinned on Orly Taitz, who was clearly laughable and therefore made the theory laughable?

Ottoline

3/29/2012 08:13:00 am

I'm still not clear on what the subject matter of the bloggers' battles is supposed to be. Earlier, it seemed related to whether to reveal or hide the inconvenient backgrounds of Audrey and Fred, but I think that ship has sailed. Perhaps there is some other dirty laundry, but I'm not sure how much anyone except the principals would care about it, just like the Aud/Fred stuff. Why is Shailey not getting more support, is that it? If anyone knows, I think a clear statement of it would help us move forward, but it seems that clarity is not forthcoming, and various folks claiming to know more are just dancing prancing mincing around the subject, if indeed there is one.. And why? But I suspect the answers to all of the above are not so very interesting to most of us commenters.

Am I missing something?

3/29/2012 10:38:44 am

Ottoline, I find it an interesting cast of characters... The martial artist turned kindergarten teacher turned blogger, the dot com billionaire, the German criminal defense attorney and his mysterious Scottish companion, the good-hearted massage therapist, the brilliant author (h/t to the hostess with the mostest), the college professor, the famous true-crime novelist, a former politico (I think that was Bree Palin's background,) a lady in France, a purveyor of porn, a disgraced attorney, a witty former journalist who asks piercing questions, a lovable but curmudgeonly blogger willing to ask unpopular questions, the lovely younger sister who was a Playboy centerfold and the mystery commenter who got the whole ball rolling.

3/29/2012 10:49:33 am

the story has intrigue, shared efforts, backstabbing... As a reader from afar I don't know the details of the individual stories. Who was ArcXIX, and how did he/she have all tjose details?Why did Jesse and Patrick have a falling out over the ear post? Who blackmailed Audrey to keep her from blogging? Why does Floyd think she was a plant? How did RS McCain find the comment linking "Audrey" to the porn store? Why was a German attorney so interested in Palin? Why did Patrick and Regina have a falling out? What came between Floyd Orr and the Politicalgates? It isn't something immediately of interest to the world, but some writer might make an interesting story out of the varied characters and the twists and turns.

Ottoline

3/29/2012 12:59:04 pm

Up -- you DO make it sound interesting. But the reality -- from one who has watched it all along, as you have -- is not that interesting IMO. Yes we all have our different stories, each one fascinating to someone (perhaps only ourselves), but the aggregate reality is that we were interested in understanding, proving, and then getting acknowledgment of the Palin Hoax. And we have failed to bring this effort to its conclusion.

Did we waste too much time, while this one and that one kept details to him/herself? Did we underestimate Palin? who has been regularly ridiculed on the blogs, while we shout "Iceberg! Iceberg!" expecting the imminent victory that has eluded us for 3 yrs. Did we underestimate the power of media owners to suppress this story? It's been quite the education, for me at least. Is this infighting (the meat of which is still not at all clear to me) the Achilles Heel that has prevented us from succeeding?

I think it's probably too late now. As Palin recedes into a silly memory, it will be even easier to leave the hoax unacknowledged, and just as important for the enablers that it remain undiscovered. Palin, McCain and sr staff, the GOP, the fundies, and Murdoch and pals win yet again. I guess that's just the way it is.

Ottoline

3/28/2012 05:19:46 am

I just found this interesting site, which contains the following:
http://politicalwire.com/archives/political-books/

Archive: March 26, 2010 | Game Change 2012. John Heilemann and Mark Halperin, authors of the 2008 campaign best seller Game Change, signed a $5 million dollar deal with Penguin Press to write a book on the 2012 presidential campaign, Crain's New York reports. Said one executive familiar with the deal: "This is presidential memoir level money."

Archive: November 16, 2009 | McCain Asks Staffers to Stay Quiet. NBC News reports that Sen. John McCain "has specifically asked his former aides not to do interviews rebutting Palin's charges in her book -- to avoid escalating the feud between her and the campaign staff. Most are complying with his wishes, hoping it will die down." But one key player targeted by Palin in the book points to emails that contradict Palin's version of events. Said the former McCain campaign aide: "It is unrecognizable at every instance. There is not one truthful account as it relates to any conversation I ever had with her."

Archive: November 15, 2009 | Palin's Payback. In a review of Sarah Palin's Going Rogue, the New York Times notes "the most sustained and vehement barbs in this book are directed not at Democrats or liberals or the press, but at the McCain campaign. The very campaign that plucked her out of Alaska, anointed her the Republican vice-presidential nominee and made her one of the most talked about women on the planet -- someone who could command a reported $5 million for writing this book." "All in all, Ms. Palin emerges from Going Rogue as an eager player in the blame game, thoroughly ungrateful toward the McCain campaign for putting her on the national stage."

Archive: November 09, 2010

Which Politician Has Sold the Most Books? | The Daily Beast ranks the top-selling politicians in book publishing over the last decade:
1. Barack Obama -- 4,650,000 copies sold
2. Jimmy Carter -- 2,218,000 copies sold
3. Bill Clinton -- 1,899,000 copies sold
4. Al Franken -- 1,777,000 copies sold
5. Hillary Clinton -- 1,491,000 copies sold
6. Sarah Palin -- 1,455,000 copies sold
7. Newt Gingrich -- 1,098,000 copies sold
8. Al Gore -- 913,000 copies sold
9. Ted Kennedy -- 651,000 copies sold
10. John McCain -- 614,000 copies sold

Laura Novak

3/28/2012 09:15:08 am

Bluerinse, thank you for weighing in. It was Ingrid, not me, who delineated the borders, and I have no idea what it means, not having done a print book yet. But I've heard of ID and know that the guy who did my Mobi conversion for me decided not to use it. But I'm not sure what that means either!

Ottoline, you and Conscious can get together. I'll try to figure out how to get your emails back and forth!

Lots of stuff going on here. I'll try to get up a Tao post tomorrow!

Laura Novak

3/31/2012 03:20:08 am

Just finally coming up for some air. And am catching up on comments. V-A, great summary of the story within the story. You have the mind of a journalist! In fact, I hear a story coming out of you on this.

Up, I love your synopsis of the players! Who is the billionaire dot com person? Not me, that's for darn sure.

On the one hand I understand in part how it all fell apart. On the other hand, I don't understand it at all.

Um, I have to get a few of your emails to one another. I will try to do that soon as I catch up here.

Laura Novak

4/3/2012 02:23:00 am

Victoria, thank you for sharing your story. Wow, what a journey, and one filled with one disappointment after another. Brava to you and your colleague for forging ahead and never giving up. That's what matters and you turned out a fine book because of it.

Banyan

4/6/2012 07:33:16 am

This may have already been mentioned in previous discussion here, but "Game Change," the HBO movie, features many moments that strongly suggest Sarah Palin did not give birth to Trig.

My favorite of these "tells" is when "Game Change," book author, John Heilemann (the real John Heilemann, BTW) asks the Steve Schmidt character, "And just WHEN did [Palin's] water break?"

Most thinking people (including those in the MSM) know Palin's story is BS. The question is when and how will this fact be revealed officially to the public.

I think how/when the story comes out will be a matter of political timing and 11th dimensional chess.

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