Dear Writers and Publishers, I'm looking to make a one off print of my manuscript and am wondering on the cheapest options? Can you share your advice and experiences with me? I intend to make three copies, so that my proofreader, editor and I can go proofread it and go through the editing process. I do not need a ISBN or barcode et cetera. I just need to print a sample of how I would like my book to look, and to test the grey scale on some illustrations. This is by no means a publication of my book! I have heard Lulu mentioned by my fellow writer friends, though they are in America, and I am in the UK. I cannot access the support page on Lulu, whereby the pricing and shipping cost are given. Should I go with Lulu, or is there a better printer you can suggest? Thanks in advance!
A manuscript does not contain illustrations, nor does it look like the final book. A manuscript is double spaced, printed on one side only (therefore you do not need two-sided printing capability), with a one inch margin on all sides. Each paragraph begins with a half-inch indent, with no additional spacing between paragraphs. The font should be a fixed-size 12-point serif font, preferably Courier or Courier New. Publishers select their own illustrators as a rule. A smaller publisher may be willing to work with an illustrator recommended by you, but in any case, the illustrations are not contained in the manuscript.
Oh, this are by no means a submission to a publishing house or anything that like. I just wanted to see a sample that we could go through, and test a few things, as mentioned the grey scale, the inner margins et cetera. I have prepared one for submission, but I am also preparing to self-publish. The samples are namely for the latter. On your words about illustrators, I have not read much about the area, my best source the W&A yearbook doesn't have much to say on it. It's a children's book (9-12 as the yearbook describes?) I am writing, and as such I have included some of my own artwork inside it. Should a publisher take me on, would these be redone by a commissioned artist? Thanks
If you are consuidering self-publishing as a short cut to getting published, don't. You are competing against many established publishers who have spent years collecting the expertise and the business contacts to succeed. This expertise extends to marketing and adverising, layout, design, graphic arts, legal, printing, binding, and more. You can pay specialty firms to handle many of these, but you will also deal with predators ready to make a fast buck, and well-intentioned but incompetent providers. Do you want to put your time into writing, or into learning (and investing in) all the ins and outs of the publishing business? Your own artwork may be used as a reference point for a publisher's artist-illustrator, but it is very unlikely to be used in any direct way. The exception would be if you are already a celebrity, in which case the fact that it is your own artwork would be a selling point. But if your name isn't a household word, forget it/
Why would a publisher want to publish something that you've self-published already? I guess there is the notion that if you sell enough self-published you might get the notice of a major publisher, but the odds of this actually happening? If you self-publish, how are you going to get the work distributed, especially without an ISBN? No bookstore will accept/sell it. If you're going through all of this to see what the book would look like if published by a major publisher, I think you're wasting your time. The layout and art and design won't remotely resemble what you're putting together, I suspect. If you're looking to submit the self-published book to a publisher/agent to consider publishing/representing, that would damage, not enhance your chances. Just a few thoughts. In any case, best of luck whatever route you take. Terry
Have I not made myself clear? Perhaps bullet points are needed 0) This is not about publishing, just printing. 1) Please recommend a printer 2) Want to produce up to 3 samples 3) samples are just that, no need for ISBN, et cetera 4) Want to use them with my editor 5) These are not for submission. 6) I am not in the submission phase 7) I am not going to self publish unless my editor and I agree to as a last resort 8) We are both determined people, so the last resort would be the last resort 9) I am fully aware I would need a ISBN if I self publish, I have eight having used two 10) Thank you for your replies
all you need do is go to a kinko's [or whatever the equivalent is in the uk] and pay a relative pittance for your 3 copies... proofreaders and editors work on the ms, not a sample book... that's why mss are double-spaced...
