Rising Star 2:how can Adam become a publisher on a shoestring?

Technology has changed the playing field,and most established publishing houses seem to be very slow to catch on.

Here is how publishing used to go:

1. Find the right book,knock it into shape,deal with all the design aspects.
2. Pay a printer to print it. The more you order at a time the less each one costs,so be optimistic about numbers. For each sheet they print there’s a master copy that cost money to create (in the really old days it was guys with trays of lead type –I know,I saw them do it at the paper I used to write for.) If you wanted the master copies stored in case of a second run it would cost you. If you wanted to make even a minor change to the text …
3. Take delivery of the printed books and store them,which can cost a lot of money. Self-publishers used to have piles of books all the way up the stairs of their home.
4. Persuade bookshops to stock the book,but they’ll want to get the book cheap,and want to be able to return unsold copies for a full rebate. Often it was cheaper to have them chuck the remainders away because they were shop-soiled.
5. If you were lucky the book would stay on display for three months,unless it sold well. If you wanted bookshops to promote it in any way –like putting it on show rather than just on a shelf –you’d probably have to pay them. The book is on a single shelf in the shop,so if people aren’t looking for it they probably won’t spot it.
6. If you could afford to you paid for publicity.
7. At least nine books out of ten failed to make a profit,and that was only the big publishers. Small publishers probably did worse,self-publishers were unlikely to get any money back.

Some books were really successful. Some did okay. Most sank without even leaving a trail of bubbles to mark the spot.

There have been two significant changes:the Net,and print-on-demand machinery.

The Net

Where do you go now if you want to buy a book? If you fancy browsing and a coffee then Waterstones or one of the other high street book shops is a great destination,even though they have stopped playing classical music. But if you know what you want you know it’ll be on Amazon,and the chances are they’ll be offering it cheaper than the high street.

Anyone can make their book available through Amazon. Although that does not guarantee any sales except to family and friends,it does open up the possibility of tapping in to some of Amazon’s promotion systems. You just have to get the initial sales high enough and Amazon do the rest.

But the Net is more than just a new location for retailers,it’s a thriving community. Treat people with respect,be ingenious,offer value and fun,and you just might get word-of-keyboard publicity. TV ads are expensive and intrusive,but working on the Net is virtually free if you’re prepared to put in the time,and to learn. Mind you time is not free,but it doesn’t require cash up front like a billboard does.

Print on demand

Most of us use inkjet printers at home these days,but have probably encountered laser printers –you know,the ones that print stuff you can spill your coffee on,but don’t do photos as well.

Where I used to work they have fairly large laser printers called ‘networked photocopiers’. They use ready cut paper up to A3 size,and print on both sides. They’ll even compile and staple booklets. But they’re just grown-up laser printers.

Now step up the laser technology,make the machines far more robust,far faster. Feed them with rolls of paper,that helps too. Print three or six pages at a time because they can handle more than A3. Chop the pages apart,compile the result,add a full colour cover printed on another machine,and guillotine to size. Wow,you’ve got something that looks like a real book!

Excuse me?

‘Like’a real book? It is a real book you idiot,just printed using modern technology.

Yes of course there are limitations. If the initial print run is to be in the tens of thousands then traditional offset printing is going to be better and cheaper. But how many books these days start with a big run? Some,but quite a low percentage. Unless the author’s already well known,don’t risk it.

That’s where small publishers come in.

They use resources like Lightning Source,who own many print-on-demand machines,and provide a service tailored to professional publishers.

Here is how it can go now for low-volume publishing:

1. Find the right book (but it needn’t be expected to sell massively),knock it into shape,deal with all design aspects. On a computer using software like Microsoft Word or Adobe Acrobat lay out and finalise all aspects of the book,and create a pdf file.
2. Send the pdf file to the printer –by e-mail,of course. Tell them how many copies you want. They store the pdf on their computer for a small registration fee,and whenever a few more copies are requested they just print them.
3. There is no stock (apart from promotional copies). Lightning make the book available on Amazon and elsewhere.
4. No need to bother with high-street book shops. They’re not interested in stuff that may not sell from their shelves anyway. No wastage because Amazon stocks very small numbers,or orders from Lightning when they receive a customer order. No postal expenses because the purchaser (via Amazon) pays for that.
5. The book stays on Amazon pretty much as long as you like –after all it could take a few years to get the word out properly about how good it is.
6. The book cover has been designed with Amazon’s thumbnail system in mind. Add an author page to Amazon. Add a web site so anyone buying the book can interact with the author. Send out review copies to carefully selected people you’ve already made initial contact with.
7. And the total start-up cost apart from time is under a hundred pounds.

Well yes,of course there’s more to it than that,but if you’re willing to do your homework,and then to sweat over the background work …

So where have Adam and I got to? Catch you in the next post.

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