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From time to time, I notice authors on the site who are using Lulu.com for self publishing and distribution. I would like to get some feedback from people who have used it whether you have only used it to publish or with the pay features for distribution etc.
I would also like to know how you formatted your book for them to publish. I am a little confused about how to layout a book to be converted to Adobe. Any info is appreciated from margin sets to photo insertion, etc.
I will try to keep the thread bumped for a few days so that I can hopefully get some feedback from those who have experience with the service. -
I use lulu.com, but I've yet to see my finished product from there. I have friedns who have ordered, and they say it looks all right.
To format my works, I decided on which size I wanted, based on what they offered, then I changed the page size of my document(I use Office 97). I think I went with 6x9. Then, I went through, page by page, making sure things lined up properly, chapters ended and began where they were suppose to, and added a few blank pages at the end and beginning for 'thanks', copyright info, and to make it so that the book didn't start as soon as the cover was opened. I've never done the photo insertion.
One thing I've noticed though...if you upload a newer, refined version of your works, make sure you delete the older version...or else it may treat it as a 'chapter', and put them both together. -
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did you just go with 1 inch margins? I am not sure what margin adjustments to make from what I normally use in Office.
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I think on my first novel, I went with the margins that were on the document. On the second one, I made them a little wider....not really sure what I used though. I know I did use 'justified' for the spacing. I don't like jagged line edges, and I didn't want to go through it all and break words up.
I'm going to buy my own books before I do anything like purchase an ISBN number for them, and see what they look like, and make any changes. -
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I am thinking of starting with something simple, like a book that incorporates short simple pieces of poetry into a continuing theme. I may initially go with paperback or the spiral binding and perhaps later do a hardback. It seems like the spiral binding would not required as much margin as the others.
Oh that reminds me of another question. Do you have to do a separate book listing for each type of binding you choose? Since I haven't listed one yet, I don't know if you are given multiple choices in one listing.
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Lulu.com is a good for the first time author and if you just want to get your work out there. But basicly it is a very low grade of self publishing and you have to do all the leg work yourself. You should really try to go with Whitmore publishing or Publish America -
If your a little shaky about me mentioning Publish America. Due to I read someone in this forum bashing their company. Beleive me P.A. is far from what people say it is. I know authors from their who have made no complaints, had success with book tours, sales, etc. and some authors, their novels have been picked up by Hollywood for film projects. Don't always beleive what you hear or read until you experience it yourself. People love to talk and follow the crowd and that's all it is!
So if you have enough for an entire book, I suggest you submit your work to either publishing house I mentioned. They market the book for you, you will have a great cover deign, it will be professionally edited, plus it will be distributed on amazon, barnes & nobles website book stores, etc. -
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You have your own book listed at lulu.com, so it must have something you like.
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No I don't have a book listed at lulu
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http://www.lulu.com/kevinbrianwright So that isn't you?
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Lol, there is a slight resemblance :)
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Why do people never come back to posts???
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Lol, I think they did. The photo dissappeared :).
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:)
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Seems to have reappeared.
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I will certainly check out the publishing companies that you mention. What I am not entirely sure that I am ready for, it to have a publisher prohibit me from posting what I write, when I want to. I realize that many publishing companies require that all published material no longer be available "for free" on the web. While, that may make good buissiiness sense from a publishers stand, I am not ready to give up my rights to my own work or have them limited. I may be ready for that eventually, but I prefer trying to find another way that gives me option of deciding what I want to do with my own copywrited work.
I do sort of like the fact that Lulu requires the author to do the legwork. It gives me a chance to see how much work actually goes into publishing and it may change my attitude about publishing companies who seem to just take over your work. Nothing like a little "hands on" experience to change an attitude. :)
Thanks for the response and the additional information. I will be checking out all my options. -
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I have found that people tend to like self-publishing (where they do not have to pay anything to publish it and get a royalty, of course.) to the course of Publishers who pay you. I know that sounds quite queer but those I know tend to prefer the self-publication to the other based on the editing rights. Publishers, like movie producers, wish to see things that express their company so they can turn a profit - so having the writer have free reign would seem improbable for such a feat for them.
If I published I tend to go with those I know: I would only want edits for certain areas in grammar and punctuation/spelling if need be and not anything else. I would not want to be told to rewrite something just because it'd be in their best interest and could earn me money.
I have a job, that earns me money, writing, if I wrote, would be for the experience and the philosophical foundation I'd want to set for the future on those who would read my work.
Most in this day-and-age are about the monies they can receive; while it's good to get paid for accompishments I feel there's no real gratitude in it.
Myself and some of those in the circle I tread in are rare breeds; we've been told.
I read once that hundreds of years ago it was an insult and unhonorable to be paid monies for one's poetry.
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I would not want to be told to rewrite something just because it'd be in their best interest and could earn me money.
that would also increase your exposure
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PublishAmerica is one of the worst publishing companies one can go with.
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That is what I have heard. Also one of the reasons I am considering Lulu for a first run at it. I have done some of the reading up on Publish America and it seems one could get caught in the contractual fine print. From my own perspective, it is better for me to keep things simple while learning the ropes.
One thing I do like about the prospect of going with Lulu is that there is no contract to sign that requires me to forgo posting my own writing on the net if I want to. I hate being told what I can do with my own things so I am hoping that it will be a viable way to learn the ropes and what is involved in publishing before I ever approach basically giving away the right to do what I want with what I created initially so that a publisher can let it sit in their back log.
I think also that going through the process may give me more respect for publisher rules and regulations. At least I will have some concrete knowledge to base my oppinions on rather than my own imagined speculation. :)
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Still looking for feedback from anyone who has experience with Lulu.com. Feel free to share any experience you have had with them. :)
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Well, I dont have any personal dealings with LuLu, but I know several publishers personlly who do. All the people I know that have published their works through LuLu have been happy with them. Most the people I know that publish through LuLu are small press role-playing game publishers. Beign that LuLu is POD company it allows for about the lowest start up cost that you will find anywhere. On the other hand their fees/charges are much higher than if you printed your book through a more traditional printer. For the amount you pay to print 1000 books through LuLu you could likely print 1500-2000 through a traditional printer. Printing through traditional printers does require the puublisher to come up with a lump sum where as LuLu generally doesn't unless you want personal inventory. As much leg-work as LuLu requires it is still much less than if you self-publish via tradional printers. Lulu lists your book all over the place for a relitively small fee and takes care of the distribution. you self-publish traditionally and you have to worry about fulfilment houses,storage, and distribution yourslf.
The POD print quality is close to regular print quality, but I have seen a few high resolution pictures that din't come out to well.
Sorry about the rabling post.
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but there some things Lulu doesn't tell you upfront. you have to read the fineprint to find out. a: all publicity is on your dollar. they also add the price of printing the work on the price you set. ...and if your a retailer..they add their cut also. so by the time it gets to the public... the public can't afford it. C: if you want a connection to the main retailers it also costs you.
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Actually, they tell you the cost of the printing upfront. It is up to you to set the price of the book. For instance, an 80 page book might have a cost to you of 7 dollars, and you might add 1 dollar to the price to represent your "royalty" on the book - this would make the total cost to consumers 8 dollars - that is not unreasonable at all for an 80 page poetry book (nor is a royalty of 1/8th too out of line with the norm in the publishing world - although it is probably a tad high). Now, you could make the final cost of your book 12 dollars and collect a royalty of 5 dollars per unit, but that would be you deciding to take a larger cut, not Lulu gouging your customers.
It is true that you will pay additional fees for promotion of your work, but they are voluntary, and they are not at all exorbitant. All in all, Lulu is a pretty good way to get your work published - the rest is up to you - and that is the real difference between POD publishing and mainstream options: the writer must promote his/her own work aggressively. (Come to think of it, that really isn't that different from ANY form of publication - one does not become a bestseller by hiding out in Bemidji.) -
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you have to read it in the fine print and look for it. for them telling you upfront they don't. what I was telling people is the absolute truth. My book was set at the cost of 10$ ...at Lulu... when it's sold to the public it's 22$. when you are a retailer trying to order it they also have to add their cost. and if you you order it for others you get no money at all for the
royalties. by the way if you want it at any of the major distributors that also costs you. On top that do you truly think paying for your book there to be published is any better that having it better than a subsity publisher? or what is known as a vanity publishing house? -
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Again - you aren't paying them a dime to publish your book - nothing upfront unless you want to pay for certain promotional services. I have two books published by Lulu, so I am not talking through my hat here. I paid 35 dollars to list on Amazon.com and receive a ISDN number. Once I had input my book, I was told (and not in fine print) what my cost would be and then I set the retail cost. When I order the book for someone, it is at MY cost - it is then up to me to collect the retail price for the book.
I SET THE PRICE. I DECIDED THE ROYALTY THAT WOULD BE PAID TO ME.
You talk about the fine print as though it is somehow hidden, but they have numerous FAQs and help pages that spell it all out for you - as in ANY publishing venture, it is up to you to educate yourself.
Lulu is a fair deal and everything is upfront if you just do your homework. If you want someone to spell it all out for you, you will need to get a literary agent. Best of luck getting ANYTHING published that way. -
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no... for the ISBN number it cost me 32$...and what did it cost you to get on amazon? from what I understand that does cost. as well as any other promotion
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That was all - just the initial price got me onto Amazon.com for one year. This is a feature you need to activate through your Lulu account. You should check with them to see how to do it.
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something else are you being treated by the publishing community as a published writer... or do they look it as a joke?
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I have a little sad and shocking news for you: about 99% of the living poets that are published do it through POD publication. And virtually every writer published by a conventional publishing house will look down on POD publication. However, for a poet to see his/her work in a book format, this is it, pal - there ARE no other options. Just go to any bookstore if you doubt me. Look at the very small section devoted to poetry, and count how many living poets are represented there.
This may come as a shock to a lot of people around here, but poetry is not a for-profit enterprise, and, as such, Houghton-Mifflin, Penguin, Dell, Avon (or any other mainstream publishing house) has NO interest. I'll say it again: THEY HAVE NO INTEREST.
If you want to publish a book of poems, POD publication is not just your best option - it is all you have short of vanity publication (wherein you pay for a certain amount of units upfront (usually 500 or 1000) and ALL marketing is left to you. -
http://www.bookmarket.com/selfpublish.html has a list of some famous authors who decided to self-publish through the years.....and most are taken rather seriously. I noticed that a lot in the list are from the 'past', but further down the page are a lot of current authors. I didn't count the poets, though, but I noticed a few names.
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I purchased a poetry sister's book on lulu, it was glossy paperback, well made, about 50-75 pages... (I even mailed it to her to have it autographed!)
One guy proposed to his prospective wife via lulu- he set up a production run of one book...
so you'll get a well-made book, but I don't think anyone except polite family and friends actually purchase books from lulu; and your writing won't have stood the test of professional editors... -
I have yet to have any complaints from the three whole people who bought my books
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lulu aint bad- another is iuniverse.com! you can pay to have your book go through "professional editors"- it just comes down to what you want done with yer book! you can have all the backing of an "professional editor" though it comes down to you. you can have all the great editing you can buy- but come out with something crappy- i'd perfer a book that was soully done by u with a few mistakes- it's not the mistakes that matter- but the ideas behind everything you write! the non literals usually make a better poem anyway- but i perfer BUkowski to Connelly- poetry aint about money but about soul it is!
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I myself have gone through Publish America and the book looks great! and have had an enjoyable experince with them so far. This has been a great experience for me! I am set to submit my second book next month. There is link on my page to my home page on Publish America. Good luck with your ventures into the world of publishing.
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I think their commission is the $5. My book is only a little more than yours is, and I only get .25.
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No, wait..I looked, and you have it for e-book only, which would give you a bigger slice of the pie than regular print would.
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you can use word
I used word to set up my book. I was having some trouble getting it to set us right. there were pages with too much headroom and some with the opisite problem. then I looked closer at the site there is a section that tell you how to set up your book. You need to allow for gutters and you need to mirror the pages. Here is a link to the page where you will find the information.
http://www.lulu.com/help/
It is in the midle of the page and says Book Formating. Click on that link there is some very useful information there.
I am very pleased with LULU, and would recommenmd them highly. I am only using them for the printing I haven't paid for ony of the distribution services.
Any Questions just IM me I'll help all I can. -
This may help you
When you send your books through make sure you leave enough room for margins and pull all your work as far left as possible. I have had so much trouble with that until I found out that they use different printers and some will work ok others not. So keeping everything left and leaving enough end of page and start of page space will help solve the problems
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Actually, on even-numbered pages (left side) the margin on the right should be larger to allow for the binding. On odd-numbered pages, the left margin should be larger. In most publishing house poetry books, you will find a top and bottom margin of at least an inch and a half.
If you are writing prose, the same left- and right- margins would apply, with only an inch top and bottom.
The best way to ensure the appearance of your book is to format it to the exact size using Wordperfect (or some other word processing program) and then convert it to a PDF file using Lulu's conversion program. Then you can preview the book by downloading it (free) and viewing it on Adobe.
The printers use the PDF file to set up the printing electronically - so if the PDF is right, the printing should be (and always has been for me). There is no typesetting involved, so errors in alignment originate electronically.
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I used lulu.com to publish my book of poetry. It took my about three months to perfect the manuscript so that it would print right, but that involved a great deal of trial and error. I didn't convert it to the pdf myself, I let lulu.com do that for me and it turned out well. lulu.com is a great site for first time publisher. I know I'm happy with my book.
About inserting photos, just go to insert picute from file in your word processing program (I used MSWord) and resize it in the document. It needs to be part of the document for lulu.com to be able to print it. I think I used .5 mirror margins. -
I am very pleased with lulu ...
You set your revenue...you can make as little or as much as you like. No minimum....and it's online for people to review. I published two books with them so far....End Time Chronicles: Hawaii and Star Children One: The chosen.
I am very pleased.
*PEACE*
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Violet Moodswing
Jun 6 4:53 PM 2006
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