Self-Publish Now!
Less Time, Less Effort, Less Money!

Compare Then Choose Wisely.

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Self Publishing Made Easy

Technology has advanced in the publishing world. I love it! I have been greatly helped to realize my publishing dreams. I think it’s wonderful that aspiring authors have a greater range of choice. Now you may choose to pursue traditional publishing or quantum leap into self-publishing. Perhaps some would never have the opportunity to see their work in professional print without the arrival of publish on demand or POD Publishing.

What is Print-On-Demand or POD?

Print-on-demand means exactly what it implies: the company print books as they are ordered. They use modern technology to store and print your book in electronic form, removing the need for a warehouse and large print runs.

In my opinion, POD book publishing does not take the place of its proud elder brother “Traditional Publishing.” As with anything, there are pros and cons of each method. Here’s a couple I found interesting: Pros and Cons of POD Publishing by Frank Marshall and the Traditional Publishing vs. Self-Publishing at Scribendi.

With that said, I won’t attempt to convince you whether POD publishing is a good choice for you. There are lots of good reports out there on that subject. Back in 2002 when I chose to self-publish my first book, I compiled a report comparing the top 3 companies. It helped me make my decision. I have recently revised that report for you and included Xlibris. If you have decided to publish POD, here are ten top things to consider and compare.

1. Book Cover? Covers sell books! Of course it’s not the only selling aspect of your book but it is one of the most important. One shot at a good first impression to capture the interest of your potential reader is all you get.

Sponsor - Self-Publishing Power Box Tired of waiting to Get Published? Why not take destiny in your own hands. Get the ebook 'Self-Publish Now' & discover how to self-publish, POD publish & market your book with less time, less effort & less money. Stop waiting to get noticed by the 'Big Guys.' Join the ranks of other successful self-starter publishers. Visit http://www.selfpublishyourbooknow.com for all the details.

2. Contract? Most Publish-On-Demand or print when ordered companies are not considered publishing houses but publishing service companies. Therefore, you should expect a non-exclusive contract period.

3. Setup Fee? If you are like most self-publishers you are budget conscious of the initial setup fee of your book. The basic package of the 4 leading companies I researched average about $500. For my first self-published project, I let the other options determine my decision more since my 3 contenders’ basic package was about the same.

4. Book Distribution? Make sure they list their books in the leading wholesaler database as a part of the package or at least have an add-on option to list in & distribute through the two leading book wholesalers in the United States: Ingram and Baker & Taylor.

5. Book Royalty payments? You may be wondering like an author friend of mine asked, “Shouldn’t royalty be the first thing I should ask about?” Not necessarily, the traditional publishing company industry standard is 5-8% quarterly or bi-annually. The industry average for POD companies is about 15-20% at the time of this writing. Even so, tt’s good to know when to expect your royalty and how much. Most pay quarterly or monthly.

6. Book Price? Find out if they are pricing their books at a competitive market price. It will probably hurt your sales if your book is priced too high above its competitors.

7. Author Support? Know what kind of support the company you contract with will provide. One on One support, representative assigned, phone support, email support are among the options. Find out so you can know what to expect. Make sure you are comfortable with what they propose to provide if you have any problems in the publishing process.

8. Book Proof Ready? Although most POD companies provide proof way ahead of traditional publishing standard of 1-2 years, its still good to know.

9. Books Returnable & Discounted to Bookstores? Do you plan to sell many books in the bookstore? Books aren’t automatically stocked on the precious shelves of bookstores, you know. You should know upfront, if you publish POD publishing more than likely your books are unreturnable.

Author’s Note: Though that is rapidly changing – there are still lots of companies that still go by this policy in their contract.

Why is this important? Bookstores expect full trade discount and anticipate buying books on a returnable basis. This includes museums, gift shops, libraries, schools, etc.

10. Author Purchase Discount? This is important for your marketing campaign. Yes, you do have to market your book. With any self-publishing project, all marketing is considered your responsibility. Even with the econimies of traditional publishers you only get a portion of your publiscist attention (may be assigned to 10-100 authors) for about 30-90 days.

Author’s Note: Let’s assume you are an excited author that just finished your book-your labor of love, decided to self-publish, saved $2500 but feel daunted about all the things you have to learn about to self-publish. Things you must do like hire a cover designer, book editor, someone to professionally layout your book, hire printer, purchse barcodes & isbn number, etc.

We haven’t even gotten to the work of marketing. Why not consider a POD publisher who handles all of those stages and steps for you? You are only left with investing in your book at the lowest price possible to re-sell to your readers at whatever price the market will bear.

Now compare the Publish On Demand companies and choose wisely.

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Comparing Top Publish On Demand Book Service Companies

Sponsor - Self-Publishing Power Box Tired of waiting to Get Published? Why not take destiny in your own hands. Get the ebook 'Self-Publish Now' & discover how to self-publish, POD publish & market your book with less time, less effort & less money. Stop waiting to get noticed by the 'Big Guys.' Join the ranks of other successful self-starter publishers. Visit http://www.selfpublishyourbooknow.com for all the details.

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Excerpt Marketing from POD Publishing Websites:

1. iUniverse Publishing
The Select Publishing Package $459 $99 extra for eBook format
http://www.iuniverse.com

Included w/ this pkg
The Select publishing package is an economical choice for authors just entering the self-publishing arena. With the Select package, you'll receive a custom cover—including artwork or photographs—at no extra charge. Your book will be available for order from the iUniverse online bookstore, Barnes and Noble.com, and from over 25,000 bookstores and e-retailers worldwide. Plus, you can customize your publishing experience by adding a wide variety of optional services both during the production process and after your book is completed.

The Select Package Includes:

• Marketing toolkit
• Custom designed cover
• Paperback formatting
• eBook formatting
• Volume discounts for author book purchases
• Five (5) free paperback copies of your book
• ISBN assignment
• Worldwide distribution
• Inclusion in the iUniverse online bookstore
• One-on-one author support
• Non-exclusive contract

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2. Author House
Standard Option $698
http://www.authorhouse.com

Included w/ Standard Option
Join the growing community of over 20,000 authors who have made AuthorHouse their source for premier self-publishing services. Let AuthorHouse guide you through the publishing process and tailor your manuscript to meet your vision. Standard Paperback Publishing is ideal for chronicling your life in an autobiography, capturing savory recipes in a cookbook, composing a book of poetry, writing your first novel...or your fiftieth!
Program Details

• Full-color cover design. Match the beauty of the written word with a cover proposed by you and created by AuthorHouse.
• Black and white interior format. Whether in scholarly libraries or on relaxing beaches, readers will have your book in the format they have come to love...the classic paperback. Or, upgrade to hard cover and give your book the distinguished look it deserves.
• Full interior text layout. Control the look of every page with a text layout of your choice.
• ISBN distribution number.
• Technical Details
  Formats available: 5" x 8", 6" x 9" and 8.25" x 11"
  Page counts: For the 5" x 8" and 6" x 9" formats the allowable page count is from 48 to 740 pages. For the 8.25" x 11" format the allowable page count is from 48 to 828 pages.
• Hard cover upgrade: If upgrading to the 6" x 9" hard cover with dust jacket, the allowable page count is from 108 to 740 pages.

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3. Xlibris
Basic Service $500
http://www.xlibris.com

Included in basic service:
Overview
The Basic Service allows you some control of your book's look by giving you choices of cover and interior templates. Choose from 8 Cover Templates and 5 Interior Templates to customize your book. This service comes in paperback formats. The price of the Basic Service is $500.

• Your choice of 8 Cover Templates
• Your choice of 5 Interior Templates
• Ability to supply an image for the cover of your book
• Ability to submit an Author Photo for your cover
• A trade paperback Author Review copy
• Availability in e-book format (Adobe Acrobat Reader)

Also Included:

• Book Formats: trade paperback
• ISBN Numbers and UPC barcode
• Registration with: Amazon.com, Borders.com, BarnesandNoble.com, Ingram, Books in Print, and more than 200 online stores
• Electronic galleys
• Paperback royalties: 25% of cover price (direct sales), 10% (Distributor/Reseller sales)
• Author discounts of 40% on trade paperbacks
• A public Author Web Page
• A public Book Web Page
• Control over your book excerpt viewable in Xlibris' Online bookstore
• Online Book Sales Reporting
• Custom book URL registration
• You can purchase Add-Ons to add corrections, images, and more

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4. Infinity Publishing Company

Basic pkg $499
http://www.infinitypublishing.com

Included in basic pkg:
In the publishing of your book, we charge a one-time setup fee of only $499. For this, your book will be entered into our printing and publishing system, registered in "books in print", get a custom-made barcode, be assigned an ISBN, get a top quality cover design, and be shipped to you as a real, hardcopy book in about 8 weeks from submission.

It will be made available for sale on our ecommerce Web site, submitted to amazon.com and others, and sold to bookstores on a returnable basis (which is usually one of their requirements). We will then pay you royalties each month on all sales of your book. There are no hidden charges.

Extended Distribution - $149: Our basic publishing service will make your book available to consumers in a wide variety of places. However, ordering this additional package will see it submitted to Ingram for inclusion in their LSI (Lighting Source Incorporated) printing and distributions systems. This means that your book will be available to consumers at even more stores and retail web sites.

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Other Publish On Demand Companies

Some other companies (alphabetized) to consider are:

• AuthorHouse

• Aventine Press

• Black Forest Press

• Booklocker.com, Inc

• BookPublisher.com

• Cold Tree Press

• First Books

Sponsor - Self-Publishing Power Box Tired of waiting to Get Published? Why not take destiny in your own hands. Get the ebook 'Self-Publish Now' & discover how to self-publish, POD publish & market your book with less time, less effort & less money. Stop waiting to get noticed by the 'Big Guys.' Join the ranks of other successful self-starter publishers. Visit http://www.selfpublishyourbooknow.com for all the details.

• Infinity Publishing

• iUniverse

• Llumina Press

• LuLu

• PageFree Publishing, Inc.

• Publish America

• Tabby House

• Universal Publishers

• Unlimited Publishing

• WinePress Publishing

• Xlibris

• Xulon Press

I hope this report is helpful to you. It helped me make an informed choice when I knew nothing about the industry of publishing. Here’s to the success of your book publishing dreams!

*Disclaimer: This report Compare Then Choose Wisely does not warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness or merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose of the information contained in this directory.

This report Compare Then Choose Wisely does not, in any way, endorse the individuals or group practices described in the report. In no event shall Arrow Productions/Earma Brown or any of its web subsidiaries be liable for any decision made or action taken by you in reliance on such information. AP or its owner shall not be liable for any damages, including direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or any other type of damages, arising out of the use of this information even if AP has been advised of the possibility of such damages.

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ABOUT AUTHOR
© Earma Brown, 13 year author, web developer and business owner
helps small business owners and writers who want to write their best book now! Author of Self Publish Your Book Now, she mentors other writers and business professionals through her free ezine “iScribe” Visit her at http://www.selfpublishinghouse.net

Enjoy Your journey. Life Made easier,

Author, Write to Win Series

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