Tuesday, March 15, 2011

So Much To Do, So Little Time

I thought I was on the home stretch, but I was quite wrong.

Currently I am working on the final stages of formatting 'Released' as an eBook for Amazon.  I literally have very little left to do on it before I can publish it in that format.

However, formatting the paperback version has proven to be more time consuming than I had originally thought.  I had expected it to be much easier than the eBook, but so far it hasn't.  That could very well be, because I am using a template provided by CreateSpace.  I also can't decide what font I should use.  I know everyone will say, Times New Roman, but I really don't love that font.  I know I will have to relinquish my desire to use another font, but for now I am still deciding if another font will be acceptable.  So, this weekend I intend to fully format 'Released' for paperback format and then send my measurements to my cover artist so she can get to work on my paperback cover artwork.

I also need to start researching other vendors and see what their formatting requirements are.  All I can say about that is - Good Grief!

Aside from Amazon, I want to publish to as many different avenues as possible such as; Amazon UK, Barnes & Noble, Borders...  am I missing any?

If and when I overcome this formatting aggravation, I still have to figure out my ISBN's.  Should I go with free ones or should I buy?  Should I spend the obscene amount of money for 10 numbers or should I take the offer of purchasing one for $10?

These are all questions that I am sure every author has to face and it is no easy task.

I also want to start organizing a contest to celebrate 'Released' being published.

So... unless I can clone myself I don't know how I am going to get everything done in time, but I am going to work as hard as I can to have everything ready by the end of the month.  Wish me luck everyone!

9 comments:

  1. I'm at work, so I gotta make this quick ;)

    Don't forget to put your eBook on Smashwords.

    I think for my book I am going to go with Bookman Old Style. Easy to read and looks good!

    Angeline Kace

    ReplyDelete
  2. I always like Garamond for font. =)

    As for ISBN's, here is the question: are you going to put out more books in the next year? If not, go with the free ISBN's. Individual ISBN's are expensive but if you buy in bulk, like say 10 at a time they become reasonable. If you don't plan on putting out that many books in a short time, don't worry about it.

    As for formatting, did you get that program Book Design Wizard 2.0? It's at http://www.self-pub.net/wizard.html

    ReplyDelete
  3. I got that wizard, but I wanted to try the free template on CreateSpace before purchasing one. The only problem I am having with formatting the paperback is getting the page numbers in the footer correct. It is such a simple thing, but for some reason I can't remove what was already on the template so all the page numbers are wonky.

    ReplyDelete
  4. You have your work cut out for you. It's a learning process.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Good luck with your decisions! I know it's a stressful time, but once you do it you'll know more for next time. Use it as a learning experience for better efficiency in the future.

    And try not to hate too much on Times New Roman, he's a good guy ;)

    Shackled
    Cheat

    ReplyDelete
  6. lol Medrick, you just made me choke on my oatmeal! :-) I am sending out the good vibes into the universe that today will be a good day. Plus I have Released uploaded to Amazon as an eBook, so I just need to finish the paperback! So exciting! hehe And my mom got a kindle for her birthday yesterday so I know I will sell at least one copy :-D

    ReplyDelete
  7. Font: Keep it simple. Times 11 single spaced is what I chose for my CreateSpace paperback and it is perfection. You can of course use what font you fancy. If you want something a little different try Georgia, it’s bigger but more compact. But remember fancy fonts usually take up more page space meaning a higher page count overall, and that pushes the cost of manufacturing your paperback up (we’re talking POD not mass production remember)! I managed to get my retail price down to $10.99 USD (£6.99, which is the average cost of a paperback over here in UK). Follow Amazons formatting guidelines to the letter, don't deviate, and use their template, don’t amend it. At all. I sound crazy but it took me TWO proof copies before my book came back perfect. Oh and be obsessive about your cover image quality. Obsessive.

    ISBN's: If you don't own it yourself it will be registered to whoever who got it through (Smashwords, Createspace, etc). Not a biggie really for an eBook or stand alone title. I didn’t bother buying any when I first did my print editions, but I am switching from POD it on Amazon and Lulu to offset printing with Lightening Source, so I'm buying the ISBN’s now (plus I have committed myself to releasing many tittles opposed to one) and it makes sense for where I am in my Indie journey. It depends on what your long terms plans are I guess. Amazon extended distribution gets you into B&N, btw, and on Amazon.com (you can search for mine on B&N so you can see how all the detail shows up). Lulu extended distribution seems good as well as you get stocked at Ingram, and actual book stores can buy if you mange to sell to them (but I didn’t end up doing that as I am switching to Lightning Source – so that last comment is just what I have read not experienced with Lulu).

    This was a bit of a ramble but hopefully it helps a little! Good Luck.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Wow thanks for all the advice! I haven't heard of Lightning Source, so I am definitely going to look into that, nor Ingram for that matter. Lulu looks like a really nice site and pretty user-friendly so I will be looking into that this weekend as well. Thanks for sharing your wisdom. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  9. Do you happen to know where I can find the formatting guidelines for that Lulu site?

    ReplyDelete