You’ve decided to write and publish your book, you’ve even managed to find a publishing method that works for you—great, you’ve made it this far. But your publisher won’t be the only one responsible for selling your books; much of this will fall on you. If you are traditionally published, your publisher will give you some copies, but expect you to purchase additional ones at your own expense. P.O.D. publishers often state they will be promoting and selling your books for you; this is just never totally true. You should expect to have several books on hand at all times. Remember, regardless of common belief, books really do sell “just one-at-a-time.”
So how many books will you need on hand?
Ask yourself these questions:
Will I be attending fairs where I will be selling my books directly to the public?
Will I be responsible for selling and “shipping” my own books?
Will “I” be the one selling and delivering my books directly to book stores?
How many copies will I be giving as gifts or using as review copies?
How many books will my friends and family be purchasing?
If you are a self-publisher and printing your own books, be careful of how many copies you initially order. Book printers offer great deals on large quantities of books. For instance, you may pay $8 per copy if you order only 100 (hard to make a profit). But if you order 500, the price may be cut in half. Then if you double the order number again, the copy price could be drastically less per copy, making it very tempting to order more than you will need. A new author may order 2,000 books to save money but end up with a closet full of books collecting dust (I can show you mine from my very first book order—dusty!).
The average self-published author sells less than 200 copies of their book. Better to make a little less profit than be stuck with excess copies for your grandkids (you just won’t have that many grandkids).
Find out how much your book will cost to print and ship using the calculator at http://www.48hrbooks.com.
Authors, give us your input to share with newbie’s by using the comment section below.
Showing posts with label book printing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label book printing. Show all posts
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Oh Happy Day!
As a writer, I think our happiest day is that when we first see our book in print. Oh, joy to see our name on the cover—our picture on the back—months, sometimes years of working towards this fulfilling goal. Today is that day for me. Even though this isn’t my first “happy day,” my emotions overflow and I am inspired.
It’s easy to begin a new writing project; we’re filled with hope and excitement as we sit down at the keyboard and begin our new and wondrous journey. Then it happens again, somewhere dead in the mist of it, we abandon it and tuck it away only to be found years later as we mutter the same old remarks under our breath, “why didn’t I finish this, it would have made a great book?”
Is it only human nature that we don’t finish what we begin? Are we stuck in a rut of incomplete projects? It’s easy to do. When the hope and excitement evolves into a “working” project, we lose interest. But if we can simply keep on pushing forward we will eventually see the end of the tunnel and become inspired once again.
I personally found that inspiration and “did” finish my book and I can tell you now, it’s worth the push! I’m proud to say; my new book is “A Book Inside, How to Write, Publish, and Sell Your Story” and today is my happy day!
Be inspired, keep your hope alive, and sit down and write something!
It’s easy to begin a new writing project; we’re filled with hope and excitement as we sit down at the keyboard and begin our new and wondrous journey. Then it happens again, somewhere dead in the mist of it, we abandon it and tuck it away only to be found years later as we mutter the same old remarks under our breath, “why didn’t I finish this, it would have made a great book?”
Is it only human nature that we don’t finish what we begin? Are we stuck in a rut of incomplete projects? It’s easy to do. When the hope and excitement evolves into a “working” project, we lose interest. But if we can simply keep on pushing forward we will eventually see the end of the tunnel and become inspired once again.
I personally found that inspiration and “did” finish my book and I can tell you now, it’s worth the push! I’m proud to say; my new book is “A Book Inside, How to Write, Publish, and Sell Your Story” and today is my happy day!
Be inspired, keep your hope alive, and sit down and write something!
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Vol. 5 / Book length – Where do I go from here?
Some writers plan ahead as to how many pages their complete book will be. Others simply start writing and end when they feel their work is completed. Either way, before publishing, the number of pages will need to be decided.
Most commonly, the length of your manuscript determines what type of publication you have.
• Short story – under 15,000 words
• Novella – 15,000 to 29,999 words
• Short novel – 30,000 to 44,999 words
• Novel – 45,000 to 69,999 words
• Plus or super novel – over 70,000 words
There are some exceptions to these numbers. If you are writing a children’s book, you may have as little as 500 words, but many more illustrations, which might add to the total number of pages in the finished work. If your manuscript is less than 8 pages, it may not be worthwhile to publish as a book. In most cases, a minimum of 32 pages is needed for a hard cover book to have a solid “backbone.”
If you self publish and have your book printed, your layout and printing costs may vary depending on the books length. Many printers prefer a book to be set up with a particular amount of pages. Most books are printed on large sheets of paper which are folded into sections containing 8, 16, or 32 pages. Since printers generally set up the pages in segments of 8 at a time, keeping your book at an even number devisable by 8 can save you some money on printing costs. For instance, if your book is 144 pages in length, the printer may use 18 sheets to copy it (144 divided by 8 = 18). Printers may vary on the number of pages per sheet so it is important to discuss this with your specific printer.
When calculating the total number of pages in your finished book, don’t forget to add up the extra pages needed for components such as, your table of contents, introduction, index, etc. And by all means, don’t forget that book pages are two-sided.
Suggested Reading;
Modern Matriarch, The Ideal Length for Your Book
McGraw-Hill, Book Length
E-zine author; Carol Denbow
Author of; Are You Ready to Be Your Own Boss? (2006 Plain & Simple Books, LLC)
Stress Relief for the Working Stiff (summer 2008, Publish America)
A Book Inside, Writing, publishing, and selling your story
(Summer 2008 Plain & Simple Books, LLC))
Visit Carol’s new website at http://www.BooksByDenbow.Weebly.com
Click here to receive this e-zine every month!
Copyright © March 2008 by Plain & Simple Books, LLC
All rights reserved. The text of this publication, or any part thereof, may not be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the publisher.
We are always happy to share the information provided in our e-zine as long as credits are included. For reprint permission please e-mail The Editor
Most commonly, the length of your manuscript determines what type of publication you have.
• Short story – under 15,000 words
• Novella – 15,000 to 29,999 words
• Short novel – 30,000 to 44,999 words
• Novel – 45,000 to 69,999 words
• Plus or super novel – over 70,000 words
There are some exceptions to these numbers. If you are writing a children’s book, you may have as little as 500 words, but many more illustrations, which might add to the total number of pages in the finished work. If your manuscript is less than 8 pages, it may not be worthwhile to publish as a book. In most cases, a minimum of 32 pages is needed for a hard cover book to have a solid “backbone.”
If you self publish and have your book printed, your layout and printing costs may vary depending on the books length. Many printers prefer a book to be set up with a particular amount of pages. Most books are printed on large sheets of paper which are folded into sections containing 8, 16, or 32 pages. Since printers generally set up the pages in segments of 8 at a time, keeping your book at an even number devisable by 8 can save you some money on printing costs. For instance, if your book is 144 pages in length, the printer may use 18 sheets to copy it (144 divided by 8 = 18). Printers may vary on the number of pages per sheet so it is important to discuss this with your specific printer.
When calculating the total number of pages in your finished book, don’t forget to add up the extra pages needed for components such as, your table of contents, introduction, index, etc. And by all means, don’t forget that book pages are two-sided.
Suggested Reading;
Modern Matriarch, The Ideal Length for Your Book
McGraw-Hill, Book Length
E-zine author; Carol Denbow
Author of; Are You Ready to Be Your Own Boss? (2006 Plain & Simple Books, LLC)
Stress Relief for the Working Stiff (summer 2008, Publish America)
A Book Inside, Writing, publishing, and selling your story
(Summer 2008 Plain & Simple Books, LLC))
Visit Carol’s new website at http://www.BooksByDenbow.Weebly.com
Click here to receive this e-zine every month!
Copyright © March 2008 by Plain & Simple Books, LLC
All rights reserved. The text of this publication, or any part thereof, may not be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the publisher.
We are always happy to share the information provided in our e-zine as long as credits are included. For reprint permission please e-mail The Editor
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