I need help! *bats eyes prettily*

[tc_blue]

And no, I don't mean mental help. This time. :P

Comments

[chris_smith_atr]

I'm about as clueless as you are -- but how about trying to sell the print rights to another small publisher before you go down the self-pub route? That way you'd not have the (and I'm sorry to say it) stigma of sitting in the booth wit self pubbed books. A couple of my friends have had this done recently on books that went out of print -- unsure if they had both electronic and print rights or only print rights, but the books have come out in print for sure with a different publisher.

[tc_blue]

Hmmm... see, I hadn't even considered that approach, mostly because it never occurred to me that a publisher might accept ONLY print rights. *ponders* And maybe they wouldn't, I suppose.

Any idea regarding which publishers your friends have signed on with? I wouldn't go knocking or anything, but I'd be able to check their FAQs and guidelines and such, even if they're not publishing within the same genre...

Thanks for answering, by the way! It's definitely food for thought.

~Tis

[pd_singer]

I checked with Cafepress, where a friend of mine does a specialty book, and the costs seem a bit steep if you plan to do a lot of them. The link is here if you want to look.

http://www.cafepress.com/cp/info/sell/index.aspx?area=products&page=books

Lulu looks a whole lot more reasonable - although I couldn't get it to disgorge a cost with a full color cover with my test file. It gives you costs as you make your choices. They mention quantity discounts. I didn't get as far as shipping.
http://www.lulu.com/author/wizard/choose_cover_type.php?cid=us_bk_wiz_txt_sizes

Disclaimer - I haven't personally used the services.

[tc_blue]

Thanks. :)

Yeah, I looked at Lulu. Not sure about them as I've heard many conflicting stories. Someone on a list I'm on recommended Createspace, which looks pretty good on the surface. Might need to delve deeper to get a better idea, though. *sighs*

Thanks for the info! :)

~Tis

[countrygirlxxoo]

You might want to check with mlrpress.com. They are a print publisher though I don't know if they do print only without the ebook rights. It couldn't hurt to check it out. Laura Baumbach is the owner.

[tc_blue]

Thanks, hon'. :)

I've a couple other options, as well, but that's a really good idea!

~Tis

[gs_wiley]

I just put out a print collection of short stories through Lulu (stay tuned for some promo next week!) I went for the "free package," so I didn't lay out any money up front. Of course, they take a percentage of each book you sell, but their costs seemed reasonable to me. For cover art, I went to www.sxc.hu, where you can download royalty-free stock photos for free. There are other sites where you can download stock photos for a price, although some are quite expensive.

Hope that helps!

[tc_blue]

Hmmm... I've heard varying things about Lulu, so I hope you'll keep me updated about your experience with them! :)

Oh, Lord. Stock photo sites (the pay ones) are definitely pricey, more often than not. I've made note of the free one. *hee*

Congrats on the print collection; I hope it does very well for you!

~Tis

[marasmine]

Sounds like a good idea to have print copies to sell. I haven't had any problem with Lulu (not a lot of sales either but I haven't exactly done any promo for the book I have there). They have got explanation pages for ISBN to help you decide if you want one. The print books can get pricey as there is a per page charge, but they don't seem too bad compared with other print prices. I was checking out a publisher site the other week that was begging for already published/expired work. It sounded too good to be true, but as I can't remember the name you can't check! It must have been a link from Preditors and Editors - might be worth checking their 2009 lists. I think there is a self-publishing thread on M/M Romance at Goodreads.

[tc_blue]

Thanks, hon'. :) I'll definitely look into those.

My understanding is that ISBNs and the bar codes are primarily so books can be sold via retailers, but it still might be a good idea. LOL

Thanks again! *hugs*

~Tis