Stone In The Surf

The "i" is for Independent or "Indie".  The iPub Check List is just what it sounds like.  It is a list of all of the essential components necessary for someone to become an indie publisher.  But, it's more than that.  It is also an incredibly useful tool for comparing your options and seeing the financial impact of different ways to reach your desired goal - becoming a published author.   You can use it to create a budget, forecast the monetary possibilities of different options and have a clearer understanding of the business of self/indie publishing.  Now you can compare the cost of a POD - Publish On Demand approach to doing it all yourself or a hybrid method.  At the end of the day, publishing is a business.  To be successful at a business you must understand the financial impact of the choices you make.  If I had a check list like this when I started, I would have saved myself thousands of dollars.   

I have also included a Mini-P&L (Profit and Loss) calculator which will help you to get a feel for the risks and rewards that will result from your blood, sweat, tears and hard earned money.

The iPub Check List and Mini-P&L are simple MS Excel spreadsheets that are easy to use.  There is one tab with the check list and one with a few instructions and one for distributors.  More detail about each item is on this page.  Like any tool, the iPub Check List should be used as a part of your decision making process, not as an indicator of a definitive solution - please read the disclaimer at the end of this page. 

There is also more information here about writing and publishing.  Follow the links on the MORE INFO section of the menu on the left.

If you find any of this information helpful, please support my love of writing and publishing by purchasing a copy (or copies) of my books.

Contact me with any questions or comments you have at

rich@richneumann.com

please put iPub Check List in the subject field.

Why a Finished Manuscript?

Rule Number 1.  Start with a completed/finished manuscript!

Dreaming of being in the spotlight on Oprah is far too seductive for most writers.  I count myself in this category far too often.  It is this desire to be recognized that forms the root of most of the mistakes I've made along the way.  Would I have changed anything that I did, knowing what I know now?  Maybe, but not the big ticket items.  The one thing I did do right, was never beginning the process of publishing without a finished manuscript.  Becoming an indie takes a lot of time, effort and commitment. It requires that you do things, many that you have little or no experience with.  Most of these things will be way outside your comfort zone.  Finding and working with a printer, building websites, writing press releases and marketing all take a phenomenal amount of time and effort.  This will take energy away from the creative mindset you had when writing your story. 

George Lucas had a wonderful vision when he created Skywalker Ranch.  A director could go to a quiet place filled with creative support and write a great story.  Then the director could go out in the world, raise funding, find a cast and crew, shoot in horrendous conditions, fight going over budget and countless other obstacles.  Then, instead of sitting in a trailer in the back parking lot of the studio, broke and tired, trying to jam the final edits together, you can return to Skywalker Ranch, the place where you created your dream.  In that environment, the story they first envisioned has it's best chance of becoming a reality.  Replicate the idea behind Skywalker Ranch in your own world. 

I use the word "story" not to describe a work of fiction, but any written work.  Be it an essay on the economic impact of the North American Alliance or the next great romance novel, you are telling a story.  Make it your best work.  Put your heart and soul into your words.  Let your passion express itself on paper.  When you're done set it aside for a week or two then read it cover to cover as if you picked it up in the Airport bookstore.  Ask yourself, "Would I buy this book?"  Did it flow well?  Were the thoughts and images believable?  Most importantly, did the writing make you want to turn the page and see what happens next?  If you find yourself wishing that your plane gets socked in over O'Hare so you can read the next chapter, then you've succeeded.  If not, re-write and repeat the process until you feel you have succeeded.

Then let a few close associates (notice I did not use the word friends) read your manuscript.  Give them a box of red pens and have them promise to be constructively critical.  "That's nice dear" or "This sucks" aren't going to help you polish your work and make it the best you can.  This is the most difficult and yet one of the most important parts of writing.  Unless you are some super human being, no one can write a book without making errors.  My first published novel, The Chronicles of Adrian Smith has approximately 110,000 words.  If I were an A student, that means I could probably skate by with a 99% accuracy rate.  That leaves me 1,100 mistakes give or take.  These can be anything from minor punctuation, to major plot failures, to inaccurate historical references (to which I admit only one).  If your book is factual in nature, have someone double check everything.  Review their suggestions, incorporate the ones you feel are appropriate.  Repeat the process until you are 100% satisfied with your work.

I heard this quote the other day on a local PBS radio show.  It sums up the spirit behind a writer and an indie so very well.

"So long as you write what you wish to write, that is all that matters; and whether it matters for ages or only for hours, nobody can say. But to sacrifice a hair of the head of your vision, a shade of its colour, in deference to some Headmaster with a silver pot in his hand or to some professor with a measuring-rod up his sleeve, is the most abject treachery, and the sacrifice or wealth and chastity, which used to be said to be the greatest of human disasters, a mere flea-bite in comparison." - Vigina Woolf

Why "∞" infinite as the cost?  As that giant financial conglomerate might say, "Cost to print books $495. Value of a finished manuscript, priceless."

Web Site

Why do you need a web site and why is the second item on the list?  No matter how much we may want to deny it, the internet has become the established means by which people post, search, and find information and products.  A web site is what a business card used to be.  When people want to know more about you, your writing, etc - they will first go to the internet.  Unless they were born before 1970, chances are if they don't find you there, they'll stop searching.  Having a web site is the single most important element of indie publishing.  It is your way to tell the world about you and your book.  And, best of all, it is probably the least expensive thing you will invest in. 

A web site should consist of three elements, a domain name, hosting and the web page.  To have a web site, you need a domain name.  But just because you have a name, doesn't mean you have a page or hosting.  Companies that offer you a web page as part of their package is fine, but that is not the same as a web site.  You will not have the ability to change the page, control the meta tags, have an email associated with it, etc. More importantly it is not yours to control, incorporate tools like Google Analytics, or take with you if you leave that company.

You can use the seven questions I ask Featured Idies for ideas on what information to have on your site. 

BASIC ELEMENTS OF A WEB PAGE

1. Your Name

2. The Title of your book

3. A picture of the cover of your book

4. A synopsis of your book (one good solid paragraph that would hook a reader)

5. Where they can buy the book

6. How to contact you

7. A brief Bio about you (one good solid paragraph as well)

8. OPTIONAL - A blog

9. OPTIONAL - A Calendar of your appearances and key dates

10. Don't Forget to list the ISBN !

A FEW DON'TS OF A WEB PAGE

1. Don't try any of the "old" tricks - same word lots of times, key words in the same color as the background, etc.

2. Don't use things that are not associated with your site, Naughty pics of Britney! will get people to your site, but not the ones who will be interested in your story.

3. Don't let your site go stale.  Find a way to add new info/content every week or so.  The search engines will look for this and if they see a site has not changed in a while, it will start slipping down the results of a search.

4. Never, ever SPAM!

ADVANCED ELEMENTS OF A WEB PAGE

These are things which will help search engines and people find your site

1. Meta Tags (the words that bots and spiders search for)

2. Info block (usually at the end of a page summarizes key words)

3. Traffic Blazers (provided by web hosting companies to help drive traffic)

What's in a name?  Everything.  The domain name is that stuff that follows the www. There are a zillion possibilities.  My rule, keep it simple and easy to remember.

www.mybook.com

is easy. 

www.agreatbookbyamiddleagedaccountantfromburbank.com

might be a bit of a challenge to remember.

Most website companies such as GoDaddy.com provide a quick tool for searching to see if a name is available.  If you have only one book, one name will do.  If you have a series, one name will do as well.  If you have several titles I suggest one domain for you as an author/publisher and one for each of your books.  For the money, it is the best way to promote your books.

You've got your domain name, now what?  You need to have it hosted.  That means that it resides on a computer where the internet has access to it.  Usually companies like GoDaddy offer a complete package; domain name, hosting, webpage, email, etc for a very reasonable price.  If you have a friend or associate who has a hosting site and is also helping you design the web page, etc, you can buy the name from one company and have it hosted by another.  Generally best to find a good package deal with a known company.  Almost all of these will offer a unique email address for your site as well.

Consider this a single piece of paper on to which you will put all of the information about you, your publishing company, and your book.  This is where I get to say, "Do as I say, not as I do."  or better yet, "Learn from my mistakes."  It's easy to get carried away with websites - if you saw the old Stone In The Surf site, you'll remember it had twenty maybe thirty pages with links here and there.  When someone got to my page it was impossible for them to figure out what it was.  People don't want to spend the time to figure out who and what you are.  Tell them quickly on one page.  As time goes on, you can add pages of information. To begin with, keep it simple.

What is an ISBN?  International Book Standard Number.  This is a unique 13 digit number that identifies your book throughout the world.  You can learn a lot about them from many good sources on the web.  Here are a few very important basics.

Do you need one?

Yes! Unless you are only printing a few books, you will need an ISBN.    

No distributor or bookstore can or will inventory your book without one.

Do I need to pay a lot of money for a block of 10?

No.  You can buy a single ISBN form a number of good companies that offer single

numbers.  They have purchased large block of numbers and are selling them off one

by one.  Shop carefully.  You may find some limitations to a single number.  These

shouldn't effect your entry into publishing.  See the next Question.

Can I change ISBN numbers and keep my title?

Yes! Remember you are only printing a short run of books initially.  If you find that

you need a different number or a larger publisher picks up your title, it is easy to

change the ISBN the next time the book is printed.  Your distributor may treat this

as a new listing and their could be additional costs associated.

What are these?  UPC is Universal Product Code, EAN stands for European Article Numbering code and Bookland bar code, are all versions of that block of vertical stripes on a package commonly referred to as a "Bar Code".  This has become the retail and commercial industry standard for marking products. 

Do you need one?

Yes! Unless you are only printing a few books, you will need a bar code.    

No distributor or bookstore can or will inventory your book without one.  For books, the bar code will contain the ISBN, the price and the country of currency.

Do I need to buy one?

No. Absolutely not.  Every printer I have ever worked with can print one for you. 

Even if you purchased a bar code (often times with a single ISBN) the printer will  

have to print and test that bar code, which takes them longer than it would to produce

their own.  Providing you with a bar code should be included in the cost of printing. 

Design Note:

When designing your back cover, allow enough room in the lower right hand corner

for a white square that will contain the bar code.  Your printer can give you the

exact dimensions and location that they use. 

Copyright

A US Copyright means that your written work is registered with the Library of Congress on a specific date.  It lets the world know when you created the work and that you are the owner of that work.

Do you need one?

Many debates have been made over this.  I figure it doesn't hurt and it is an

inexpensive form of protection.  Besides, there is a degree of personal satisfaction

when you know your book is now in the Library of Congress.  

Do I need to pay someone to register for me?

No. Unless you have tons of money to waste and can't write your name and address on a piece of paper.  Seriously, it shocks me at how much people will pay to have someone fill out a Copyright form. 

How do I get one?

Go to their website, download the appropriate form, fill it out, put the form, a copy

of your book and a check for $45.00 in the envelop.  Address the envelope and put

enough postage on it to get it to Washington D.C.

http://www.copyright.gov/

Do I need one before I print my book.?

It depends on the subject matter of your work.  If it is a current event or something

that has the potential for being re-created by other people, you may want to consider

registering your idea with the Writer's Guild - WGA or some similar organization. 

You can register your manuscript and then each iteration, but it will cost you.  In

general a single registration will be sufficient.  If you are working on a project that will take a long time, here's a suggestion.  If you have a lawyer, send her/him a disk with the manuscript file on it.  Simply have them drop that into your file.  It will do two things, it will have the last modification date on the file AND your lawyer will stamp the material with the date it was received.  This works fairly well and most attorneys won't charge you for this.

For most authors, all you need to to is have the copyright information printed on the first page of your book.  When your books arrive from the printer send a book, the completed application and a check to the address indicated on the form. 

Will a copyright protect me?

No.  It will not prevent someone from copying your work nor will it prevent someone from claiming they created the work first.  The only thing a copyright will do is to set a date in stone as to when you created the work.  This is one piece of evidence your lawyer will use to defend your claim or protect you.  Copyright battles can be very very costly and time consuming.  Registering your work is a good practice, being original in your work is the best.

Printing

This will be one of your most challenging and frustrating aspects of becoming a publisher second only to distribution.  You are selling a tangible product that is a representation of who you are.  It will probably sell for between $15.00 and $30.00 and needs to be of a quality that will make a customer feel that they have received

their money's worth.  Take time, be patient, learn all you can and ask lots of questions.

Editing

This is one area where I could use a warehouse full of editors working over time.  I cannot spell, punctuate or correctly structure a paragraph to save my life.  I had a good friend edit The Chronicles of Adrian Smith and Charlie's Treasures.  Both of these books are fairly good from that aspect.  I made significant changes to When Then Force Isn't With You and it shows.  English teachers, publishers and editors are going to hate me for this.  Here's my philosophy, balance the cost and value of an editor carefully.  To edit a full length novel, you are looking at $5,000!  You've got to be fairly confident that you can sell a lot of books.  Remember when you start out I recommend only 100 books to test the waters.  That means your cover price is probably going to be $75.00 per book.  That rarely makes sense.  Instead, edit the book as best you can.  Hand an associate or two or three a box of red pens and have them do the same.  You can always change the book when you reprint the next batch.  If you sell out the first 100 books and it looks like there is a huge demand, AND you feel the book would gain from the expertise of a good editor, then it makes sense to invest in one.  One last thought on editors.  It will be a very personal relationship that you develop with an editor. Interview them carefully, check references, make sure they can see your work in the same voice you do.  Oh and never ever trust spell check.

Printer's Formats

You should picture a finished book in your mind.  What size is it?  How many pages? Are there pictures along with the text?  What font size and type do you want?  What does the cover look like.  This will help you to tell the printer exactly what you need from them.  If you are not very computer savvy you may need to find or hire someone to help you.

Number of Pages

A rough generalization is that there are 250 words per page for a novel type book.  Most word processors have a word count tool.  Take the number of words and divide by 250, this will give you and approximate number of pages.  Then, take that number and divide by 16 which is the multiple of pages that are printed at on time.  See the example:

Remember this is a rough estimator.  If you have a lot of pictures and charts, this can impact the page length.  Most printers will have a template you can use to prepare the text for them. 

Binding or Cover

Here you have several types to choose from.  Hard cover, perfect bound (also referred to as Trade Paperback), board, etc. Trade paperback is by far the most economical and the most accepted for books.  The cost for hard bound is much higher and it is also far more expensive to ship as well.  It used to be that a hard cover book was the way to initially publish and then re-released in paperback.  Sort of like a film coming out at the movie theaters and then on DVD.  Not so anymore with books. For your first venture, I highly recommend sticking with a trade paperback.  If the book takes off, you can print a "special collectors edition" hard bound.  Unless it is absolutely essential to your book, stay away from spiral bound, note books, etc.  Book stores hate these and will rarely if ever put them on the their shelves.

Cover Art and Format - Color

Most printers will print the text in black and white and offer a 4 color cover for a very reasonable price.  Why 4 colors?  C-M-Y-K stands for Cyan (blue), Magenta (reddish pink), Yellow, and Black.  From these four colors you can make about 60% to 70% of all of the colors you might want.  Some printers will offer two blacks which will give the text and bar codes a much sharper printed image.  When you leave the world of 4 colors and move into 6 and 8 colors the price will go up exponentially.  Make sure it is worth the cost. 

A word of caution.  Most computers work on a color system of R-G-B or Red Green Blue.  This can create colors that are far more vibrant than a printer can.  Consider RGB as lights and CMYK as paint.  You can't recreate the luminosity or brilliance of an RGB image with CMYK.  Be sure that your graphics software or your designer is working with CMYK, this will give you a better feel and a more reasonable expectation for the final cover look.  I tried to recreate the green color of an old CRT computer screen on the back cover of When The Force Isn't With You.  It looked great in RGB, but the color muted and looked horrible in CMYK.  It took a lot of work for the folks at Alexanders to get the color as close as possible to what I was hoping for.

Cover Art and Format - Size

There are a number of standard sizes in the book industry. 

5.5" x 8.5"

6" x 9"

8.5" x 11"

The more you can adhere to a standard size for your book, the more economical it will be to print, ship, etc.  Bookstores also prefer books that are within these standard sizes.  Books that are larger or small are more difficult to handle and fit onto a shelf. Carefully consider your choice of size, then make sure it is a size format that your printer is comfortable working with.

Cover Art and Format - Content

Layout templates are available from most printers.  These will allow you to design your cover so that the printer can easily print the cover.  What should be on the front?  Something that will catch the eye of your potential reader.  The title, and the author's name and no more than a single tag line.  Cover art is key.  "They" say you can't judge a book by it's cover, but many people will buy one because of it.  I think the art I chose for Charlie's Treasures and When The Force Isn't With worked well for what I wanted to achieve.  Although the cover for The Chronicles of Adrian Smith is very detailed and has some amazing elements of the story incorporated into it, when finally printed, the sepia tone turned everything the color of stale chocolate milk.  I now use the back cover art to promote the book.

The spine is an often neglected part of a book's cover.  It will however be the part that is most often seen in a bookstore or on a shelf.  Keep your local bookstore happy and impress them with how well you know the industry.  Spines are printed such that your read them by tilting your head to the right.  Or, another way of looking at it is to imagine the book is on a table cover up.  You should be able to read the spine. From the top is AUTHOR - TITLE - PUBLISHER.  Do this and your local book store will be impressed.

The back cover is your place to sell - sell - sell.  Why?  Your potential reader is going to see the cover or the spine grab the book and do what?  Flip it over and read the back.  Why?  Because we have been trained that this is where we will find out about the book.  Don't tell them about the book, excite them about the book!  It's the old elevator speech idea.  Chance has placed you standing next to a top network celebrity in an elevator.  She has pressed a number that is 6 floors above you.  She looks at you sighs and says, "I'm about to step into a programming meeting and I need to present the next best selling book.  Only problem is, I haven't found anything that I like.  Have you read any good books lately?"  You have 4 and a half floors to hook her on the book tucked under your arm.  What are you going to say?  That's what needs to be on your back cover.  Nothing more and definitely nothing less.  Ding!  She stepped off the elevator and heads to her meeting.  Is your book now tucked under her arm? 

If you are going to publish a series of books you may want to consider creating a back cover that has a consistent look and feel.  I designed a back cover for Over The Wall Publishing that gave all of their books a very nice "branded" look.

A few final notes on terminology:

Bleed is when the printed area extends beyond the final cut.  Printers do this so that they can make a final trim on the cover.  Just make sure your art, test, etc has no essential material that can bleed over the edge. 

Text area is usually 3/16ths of an inch from all sides of a cover.  More space is better.  Depending upon how the book binds and trims, text or essential art that is too close to the edge will look bad or worse yet - be cut off.  The more centered your text and art, the easier it is for your printer to produce something you will be pleased with.

Gutter is that extra area on the page that is taken up by the binding.  It adds a little space to the left side of odd (facing pages) and to the right side of even (back) pages.

Choosing a Printer

Next to your distributor choosing the right printer can be the most important decision you make.  It can also be the most difficult.  There are many sources of good printers on the internet.  There are even consolidators like www.printellectual.com which is a good place to submit one bid and get many replies.  You should get at least 5, preferably 10 bids for your book.  Printing is a highly competitive commodity market.  It is entirely possible to find a good printer who is willing to take on a job at a very low rate (often at below cost) just to fill their press capacity. 

Once you have narrowed the possibilities down to two or three, ask them for references you can call.  They should also be willing to send you examples of their work.  If the printer won't send you samples or give you references, drop them from your list and move onto the next one.  They should also be willing to tell you what type, make and model of presses they use.  Then do your homework and find out if their equipment is state of the art.  Once you start, they should give you the name and phone number of their pre-press artist who will be making sure your files are correctly prepped for the press.

CAUTION:

1. The better you prepare your manuscript for the printer, the easier the process will be and the less it will cost.

2. Be very very cautious of companies that offer multiple services, such as editing, distribution, etc.  Good printers print.  Companies that offer multiple services tend to have an ulterior motive of selling you services you don't need.

3. If you have your distributor set up by the time your books are ready from the printer, be sure to instruct them to drop ship a case or two to your distributor, this will save you shipping the books twice. 

PRINTER RESOURCES:

Check out my resource link for more on printers.  I was very impressed with the price and quality I had with www.alexanders.com when printing When The Force Isn't With You.

Freight

Ah, that ever elusive element of cost.  100 books can weigh a lot.  Shipping them can cost as much as the printing.  This is something that is seldom in the quotes.  With POD's this can double your cost.  When Charlie's Treasures looked like it was going to miss it's first Christmas, I had several cases FedEx'd from China.  Ouch.  Plan ahead, always give yourself plenty of time for reasonable shipping.  Be smart, see #3 above under Cautions for Printing.

100 Copies

Why am I so adamant about 100 copies of your book?  Why is this the magic number?  After publishing a number of my own books, books for Over The Wall and for R&E Research Associates, I've learned that 100 is the minimum number of books you will need for a first run.  Here's why;

Are these numbers set in stone? Of course not.  But, you can see my point.  100 books will go fast.  Then why not 200 or 500 or 15,000?  Think of it this way, the first 100 is your prototype test market.  It's enough to get your book viewed beyond the people who will say, "that's nice dear".  It will give you a good idea of the public's response to your book without investing a lot of money.  If the first 100 go like hot cakes - call your printer and ask for a second printing - then go celebrate!  Those 100 first editions are going to be worth a fortune on eBay.

Just a note: Always, always carry books with you where ever you go, take them to work, to the grocery store, on vacation, etc.  You never know when you'll meet someone you'd love to hand a copy to.

100 books also is the minimum run that is economical for most printers.  Some won't quote on volumes less than 250.  For an average length novel such as When The Force Isn't With You, the price per book should be in the $3.50 to $4.00 each range.

100 books breaks most of the POD models.  Take their services, add your cost from them for 100 books and you can be looking at spending close to $3,000 or more!  That's why I created the checklist.  You are now in the business of publishing and it is a business.  Be aware of all of the costs.  This check list will help you do that.  When you understand the process, you can make an informed decision.

What's the difference and why do I need it?  Next to printing, this is the single most important business relationship you will form and by far the most exasperating. 

read the fine print

If I only knew then what I know now, I could have saved myself thousands of dollars.  So what is the difference and why do I need them?

Distribution

This is your B to B side of the operation.  Most bookstores don't want to buy books from a zillion little publishers.  You can imagine what a pain the backside that could be.  Instead they prefer to deal with a very few large well established ones like Ingram and Baker & Taylor.  Ingram and Baker & Taylor have a similar philosophy.  Unless you are a well established publisher with lots of titles and significant sales, they don't want to deal with you.  This is where a second tier consolidator comes in.  These are companies who will take books from small and indie publishers and present them to Ingram.  A lot of this is driven by ... returns - see below.

If you want your book to be available in any book store in the world - you will have to use a Distributor.

Talk about a world of piranhas.  I'm sure you've seen the websites who warn about editors and predators.  They need to add Distributors to that list.  Be very very cautious as to who you choose to work with and

read the fine print

Many 2nd tier distributors know that by the time you get to them you are desperate and often times not business savvy.  They count on this.  I consider myself fairly knowledgeable when it comes to contracts and I still got myself into a world of hurt with my last distributor.  There are many legitimate companies out there and many more who will have lots of hidden costs and fees designed to get every penny out of you they can.  They do not have your best interest at heart.  Watch out for transaction fees AND cancellation fees.

So here's a perfect example - these are actual numbers from my former distributor for Charlie's Treasures.  Notice the one time fees!  That's just to get set up.  On a per book basis it would have taken me years to cover the set up cost, and yet they sold me on how wonderful their marketing and support system was.  What they failed to mention and what I also failed to take into account was their marketing was my book listed in their catalog (wonder who ever read it) AND the additional $55/month admin fee they charged and the 10 month cancellation fee and the cost of having my books shipped back to me which was about 10 times higher than what I paid to ship books to them.

Ask lots of questions.  On paper run a few mock transactions and they should tell you exactly what it will cost.  With fulfillment, watch for the little things like extra charges if a customer calls vs buys directly from their website, cost per call if the customer has a question, extra charges for returns and restocking, etc.  Have them walk you through each type of transaction and specify the costs and fees for each.  If they are not upfront and forthcoming with information - run do not walk away from them.

Does this make any sense?  My average cost to print books was $2.00 each for Charlie's Treasures.  This means if an individual purchased a book from this company (Fulfillment) my net would be $9.95 - $2.00 or $7.95.  I would need to sell 206 books to cover my set up fees and with a monthly admin fee of $55/month I would need to have sold 7 books per month just to break even.  An enthusiastic me thought that shouldn't be too difficult. 

Now what happens if I only sell Wholesale (non chain book stores, gift shops, etc.)?  I'd make a whopping $.88 per book.  Now it would have taken 1,854 books just to cover my set up fees and 63 books per month to break even.  This is looking a bit more challenging.

So let's just say Charlie's Treasures hit the big time.  Oprah loved it and it's the talk of Good Morning America.  Every big chain bookstore wanted to fill their shelves with my book.  I would only have LOST $1.12 each on a book with a retail price of $19.95! 

What was I thinking?  Me, with far too many years as a CFO should have been wiser.  I'll admit it was a time in my life when I wasn't thinking as clearly as I should have.  I was also blinded by my desire and belief that Charlie's Treasures was going to be an enormous success.  But, I won't take all of the blame, these guys sell sneakers to snakes.   It took all of my business acumen to exit the contract with minimal pain.  Please, learn from my mistakes, read the contract, run the numbers, re-read the fine print and learn from my mistakes. 

No Load Distribution

OK, so Rich has made his point, but who should I distribute my books with?  Look for a "no load" Distributor.  By "no load" I mean one that doesn't charge monthly fees, or outrageous per transaction fees.  Book Clearing House www.bookch.com is one such company.  They charge a one time fee of $150 to set up the first title and $50 for each additional title. Mind you these rates may change and I use them here strictly for discussion purposes.  There are no monthly admin fees, storage fees, etc.  How do they make any money?  They charge a slightly higher percentage per sale than other distributors.  In actuality for an indie it turns out to be far less than any other option.  They have a very simple website and they do very little if anything as far as promotion goes.  But, they get you into Ingram and Baker & Taylor and that is a very good thing.  The other thing it does is provide a method for bookstores to allow returns, a very essential part of the book business.   

Fulfillment

This is your B to C side of the business or retail.  This would be sales you make to the public via your website.  Basically you want to offer the person in Oshkosh who logs onto your website the means to buy a copy of your book right then and there.  Without ever having to leave their chair, they can order a book and in a few days it arrives at their door.  There are many ways you can handle this kind of a transaction.

You can become an Amazon retailer, set up an eBay store, handle each order yourself (which means you'll need to set up a merchant bank account or NOT take credit cards) etc.  I'll admit there is a certain amount of satisfaction from receiving an order in the mail, taking the check to the bank and sending off a copy of your book.  With this comes the need for a business license and quarterly reporting to your state sales tax office.  Or, you can have your distributor handle the fulfillment side of the business.  After doing the fulfillment myself, I soon realized that my time would be better spent promoting my books, than fulfilling orders.  My only recommendation here is to consider how best to spend your time.

RETURNS

This is the crux of the book world.  Bookstores survive on their ability to return books that aren't selling.  The larger the bookstore the more they monitor their business on dollars per square inch of shelf space.  If a book isn't selling, they are loosing money.  Most bookstores have a policy that if a customer doesn't like a book for any reason (with the exception of special orders) they will offer a full refund.  The bookstores expect their distributor (Ingram or Baker & Taylor) to do the same and Ingram expects their distributors to do the same, etc. etc. etc.  This is how the industry works and to be a part of it you will need to play by these rules until those rules change.

If you have a 2nd tier distributor who has actual books in inventory and who can and will process returns - all is good. 

Most POD companies and one off services such as Lulu aren't set up to handle returns.  It's not part of their business model.  Author House recently began to offer this service, but at the time the cost was something like $600/year!  And you would need a minimum two year agreement to make Ingram happy.  Wait a minute, your no load distributor will do that for free!?!  That doesn't mean your sales won't get dinged for the return book, but it's far less than $1,000!  It is important to note here, that while these companies may claim a customer can buy your book from any bookstore, it will only be as a special order and not off the shelf. 

This is why you need to know how the book industry works and all of the costs (obvious and hidden) that are involved with each decision you make.  Ask lots of questions.

DISCOUNTS & INVOICES

Discounts are the nature of the industry.  I've heard some authors say they don't want to give the big box bookstores all of their profit.  To that I say, then only sell off your own website or out of the trunk of your car.  Someone has to pay for those big boxes and the minimum wages for those kids behind the counter who have no clue who Edgar Rice Burroughs is.  Discounts are the nature of the industry.  Like anything they are subject to change and negotiation.  I list these here as a reference only. 

So, if your distributor gets an order from Barnes & Noble or Amazon, there can be as much as a 55% discount off the list price plus their fee of 35%, which leaves you ... 10%.  Why is this a good thing? It's not fair, but it is the nature of the industry.  You can fight it, or learn to make it work for you.  They way I look at it is, I am more concerned about getting my stories out to the world than making an additional five cents on a book.  I'm very happy when my books sell and delighted to see a check.

Independent Bookstores are great and unfortunately an endangered species.  They are one of the few places where you can still walk in the door with a bag of books under your arm and speak directly to the owner/buyer.  That's why, not only do I always travel with a stack of books, but a stack of invoices as well. 

Consignment means, you give the books to the store to sell.  If they sell, the bookstore will send you a check.  If they don't you get them back.  The standard terms are a 40% discount off list for consigned books.  I offer a 50% discount if they pay cash in advance with no returns.  I find that independent bookstores are split about 50/50 on the consigned vs cash.

MARKETING

Selling you and your book will be your most difficult job.  No one, no company, no publisher or distributor, no one will sell you and your book with as much passion and enthusiasm as you will.  I wish I had the answer to the question, how to successfully market your book.  So much of this depends on the nature of your book and current events.  Over The Wall published a very opinionated book about terrorism titled On Our Door Step.  It would have been a number one best seller in the months that followed 9-11.  Unfortunately by the time the book got to press, many of the people discussed in the book were deceased or no longer names in the press.  Timing can be everything as far as taking advantage of an opportunity.  Be creative, be diligent, be persistent, but always be polite and professional. 

Oh and ... run the numbers.  I can't tell you how many emails I get asking me to buy space in a partial ad in the New York Times.  It's easy, for me to do this in my head, but lets run the numbers.  The ad would cost me $1,500.  If I make $2.00 per book I would have to sell 750 books just to break even.  If 1% of the people who look at that ad buy a book, that would mean that 75,000 people would need to read that ad.  I could be even more critical and point out that my book would be only one of 20 on the page.  So assume that only 1/20th of the people who look at the ad actually see mine in the lower left hand corner, it is going to take 1.5 million people looking at that add to buy enough books to make me $0 - zero dollars.  Doesn't make sense to me.  Add to the fact that I have never purchased a book by seeing a 1 inch picture of it in a newspaper ad and my personal library is well over one thousand books.

On the other hand, a well placed ad could be very effective.  Say you know that the National Veterinary convention is being held at the Holiday Inn in Topeka, Kansas.  You've just published a book on the recent out break of purple mouse foot disease.  You also know after taking your family for a week long vacation in Topeka that every morning, the hotel provides a complimentary copy of the Topeka Capital Journal for every guest.  For $500 you can buy a quarter page ad on the upper right side of page 3.  Chances are a lot of people who would be interested in your book will see the add.  It's targeted vs shotgun marketing.  Shotguns work well if you are shooting fish in a barrel.  When that barrel is the size of a major city or a country the odds of you hitting a fish, let alone them even noticing you are shooting at them is very slim.

Whenever you are considering purchasing marketing assistance, ads, radio shows, press releases, etc. Don't be afraid to ask the tough questions; "How many people will this ad reach?  What is their proof?  Is the ad targeted or shotgun?  What is their success rate - meaning how many books have sold because of their campaign?  What is the proof?    And ask for at least 3 references you can call.  If they hesitate, or sound like they are bamboozling you and definitely if they are not forthcoming with references - drop them immediately. 

Then ask yourself this, if you saw that ad or heard that radio spot for your book would you buy it?  Have you ever considered buying a book from an ad similar to what you are considering?  If no, why are you doing this?  If yes, what prompted you to buy or not buy the book?

Then, before you commit any money, run the numbers!  Ask yourself the difficult question.  How many books will I have to give away (sell) to break even.  It is a simple equation;

Cost of Ad / Net Dollars per Book = Number of Books

Does this still make sense?  Is it worth the risk to you?

And, one last very important question; If you didn't sell a single book, zero, zip, nada, zilch, not one single copy, would this effort be worth it?  Will it get you more exposure?  Will it drive more traffic to your website?  Will the experience benefit you in any other way?

Ask yourself these questions.  Check the companies references.  Run the numbers.  Now you can make an intelligent decision.

Do You Have To Spend Money To Market Your Book?

The answer is most likely, yes.  But, there are a lot of "free" or inexpensive things you should do first.  These will help support any efforts you pay for and should be done well in advance of the marketing efforts you invest cash in.

PRESS RELEASE

Write a press release every time you do something noteworthy.  There are many services on the internet which will post a press release for free.  Don't pay for the upgrades, in a week or two it will be all over the web.  For example you are Jane Smith, mother of 5 and have just written a book on how to successfully motivate your kids to clean their room, do chores and do their homework.  No publishing house would give you the time of day, so you've decided to strike out on your own, dig into the kid's lunch money and go "indie".  Right there you have a lot of newsworthy material. 

You need to know two things, format and schedule.  The format is fairly straight forward, the who, the what, the where, when and how to find out more.  The schedule is important as well.  Always allow at least two weeks before the event, and several months if you want to get on a calendar page.

Here's a very simple campaign;

1. Press Release about you starting your own publishing company

2. Press Release announcing the release of your book in print

3. Press Release announcing that you will be at a local book store for a signing    

4. Mention in the local calendar section about your book signing

A press release might look like this:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

January 26, 2008

Bugnutts, Kansas

Mother Of Five Launches Publishing Company

Jane Smith mother of 5 was frustrated with repeated failed attempts to interest the giant corporate publishing houses in New York in her new book about motivating children, "Wow Their Room Is Clean!".  Determined not to give up, Jane Smith has decided to take matters into her own hands and launch her own independent publishing company  JS & 5 Press. 

"With the few dollars stashed away in the cookie jar and help from friends, I did something I have never done before.  I invested in myself." says Jane Smith, CEO of JS & 5 Press.  She got help in starting JS & 5 Press from searching on the internet, and the Kansas State University Business Department in Hayes, Kansas.  The students at KSU helped Jane to prepare a business plan and to develop her website, www.js&5press.com.  The company will open it's doors on February 1, 2008.

JS & 5 Press plans to release their first book, "Wow Their Room Is Clean!" by Jane Smith on February 15th, 2008.  Discounts are offered for early orders.

For more information contact

Jane Smith, CEO

JS & 5 Press

123 Flatterthanheck St.

Bugnutts, KS 67548

785-555-1212

www.js&5press.com

See!  It's really not that hard.  Give them (the media) the pertinent details, be short and concise.  And give them a few good quotes to choose from.  Give them several ways to contact you for more information.  Do a press release for everything you do, anything, starting your publishing company, release of your first book, the first book sold, etc.  The more you are out there, the more likely you will show up when someone is searching for you.  It also helps to send the same press releases directly to local newspapers, radio and television stations.  And if you have a reporter who covers local news - send a copy directly to them.  And, guess who you will send copies of your book to?  How many marketing copies do you have left?

EMAIL

If you have your own email or better yet, now that you have your own domain and an email account that is tied to your site, send out an email to everyone you know.

 DO NOT SPAM

Spamming is the nick name given to mass emails that advertise useless stuff.  I'm sure the folks at Hormel have a love / hate relationship with that word.  You know the kind, emails advertising weight loss, real imitation Rolex watches, and ways to enhance your manhood.  If those guys were really that concerned about me, they'd buy a book. 

Here's a couple of simple rules I try to follow;

1. Only send emails to people who you know or have contacted you.  It is ok to invite your readers to be on an email list.  I'm on one for Christopher Moore and Dean Morrissey.  I'm always eager to learn what's new with them.

2. Make them short and informative.  Tell them what's new, where your next signing will be, etc.

3. Always have a link to your site on it.

4. Always offer a way for them to be removed from your list and if they ask - please take them off.

5. Be polite and professional in your communication. 

6. Spell Check.

7. Use BCC for your mail list.  BCC is Blind Carbon Copy.  For those of you born after 1970, go ask your folks what carbon copies are.  BCC means that the recipient will only see their address, not everyone else on your mailing list.  This helps to protect them and you from spammers and hackers getting hold of that list and making life miserable for your faithful readers.

WEB PAGE

Learn about Meta Tags (the words that bots and spiders search for) and Info blocks (usually at the end of a page summarizes key words).  Your Web Page designer or hosting company can help you with this. 

The Do's: Make sure you include key words that cover all aspects of you and your book.

The Don'ts: DO NOT include words that don't have anything to do with you and your book.  Bots and Spiders now check for relevance and will black list you for being misleading.  Also once is enough.  Listing a word 50 times will only get you black listed.

Web Pushing software or Traffic Blazers are options usually provided by your web hosting company such as GoDaddy.  They use industry accepted means of maximizing search results so that people are directed to your site.  Be very cautious of any third party package.  Many of these are scams or spammers.  These can get your website permanently black listed.  Saving a few bucks is not worth the risk.

GOOGLE

Google is the monster of all search engines.  If you learn how to tame the beast, it will bring traffic to your door.  Ignore the beast and you will wander aimlessly in an internet limbo.  Anger the beast and you will be cast down into the bowels of internet oblivion.  It's not difficult to tame the beast,  easy to ignore it and if you keep a few simple things in mind, very hard to anger it.  Google makes their money by delivering relevant search results to their customers - which is everyone in the world with access to a computer.  In November of 2007 the world populations was roughly 6.6 Billion people, the number of those with access to the internet was 1.3 Billion and growing.  Wow, that's a lot of customers.  If they can Google, they should be able to find you. 

There are a few things you can do to help Google searches find you.

1. Google Books is a repository for written works.  When your book is printed, sign up and send them a copy.  Then forget about it.  I say this because they get zillions of books per day to add.  It may take several weeks or months for your book to show up.  There is little fear that the world will download your book and therefore not buy one.  You control how much if any of the text that is available.  My logic is this, if you are part of Google Books, then they want this function to be successful and it will therefore increase your chances of showing up at the top of a search page.    

2. Google Analytics is a cool tool that is super easy to use.  Once you sign up, you can see how much traffic comes to your site, where it comes from, etc.  Warning, it can be addictive.  To make it work, you have to add a very simple piece of code to your web page.  It was easy for me to figure out.  If you need help, your web hosting company, your web designer, or a 13 year old kid can help.  Again my logic is, if you are part of the Google community ....

3. Google Base used to be called Froogle.  It is simply a place to register your publishing company and list the products that you sell. 

These things are free, but do take some time to figure out how to register and get set up.  I highly recommend you invest the time and effort to register with these tools.

Yahoo Links is similar to the Google functions.  Login, register and become part of their community.  It's free and ups your exposure.  It's silly not to take advantage of these tools.

Featured Link

Featured Link is me.  More precisely it will be a listing of your book on the Stone In The Surf website.  One of the tools bots and spiders use to test the credibility and relevance of your site is how many sites you are cross referenced to.  Once you have launched your site and published your book, answer the 7 questions below and send me an email with a pic of you and your book cover.  If I feel that your story meets our criteria, I will post it on our Featured Indie pages.  I would appreciate a link back to www.stoneinthesurf.com.

As I was building my original site it occurred to me that visitors might want to see examples of other publishers who have successfully made their dreams come true and read a little about what worked, what didn't work and a few words of encouragement.  Each one of these people has overcome great obstacles to becoming successful.  I have asked them to share their experiences by asking them these 7 questions:

1. Summary of the book
2. Author Bio
3. Story about the story, why you wrote the story and some interesting highlights about the process
4. Why you choose to go “indie”, (1,000 reject letters, etc.)
5. Biggest mistake(s) you made along the way
6. Best thing(s) that happened
7. Word of encouragement to other upcoming “indie’s”

Over Runs - Cover

Often times a printer will print more covers than books.  They do this to insure that they have enough good quality covers in case something goes wrong.  Since the cover is usually the most expensive part to print, printing a few extra makes sense.  Ask for the over runs.  A printer may toss these in for free or for a nominal charge.  You can easily trim them with a paper cutter and they make great give always at book signing, etc.  As I tell my son, it never hurts to ask.

Business Cards

Business cards, like books, never leave home without them.  Believe it or not, they are still a very common way to pass very important information. 

Do you really need business cards?  Yes!  They are cheap and incredibly helpful.  I have two very simple formats.

1. Have the cover of your book on one side and on the back all of the information necessary to find you and the book.  This is essentially a mini-postcard

• Title

• Author

• Publishing Company

• Your Name

• Mailing Address

• Phone Number(s)

• Email,

• Website

• ISBN - VERY IMPORTANT Always include the ISBN number for the book.

2. Or you can go with a more traditional business card format, company logo, contact info, etc.

Postcards

I like postcards over bookmarks.  They are great advertisements to hand out, leave at conference tables, send along with press releases, etc.  The price to have them printed is similar and you get a lot more real-estate out of a post card.  A postcard should be a mini-web page.

On one side should be the cover of your book.  Use the artwork from your cover page - it's perfect for this.  On the back you can use the back page of the book.  There!  Your design work is done.  You can get more sophisticated with the back of the postcard if you are actually planning to mail them.  Always be sure to have all of your contact information including the ISBN number on the back.  If someone picks up the card it would be a waste if they couldn't figure out how to buy your book.

Business Card and Postcard Printing

Smokey Robinson and the Miracles said it perfectly in 1961, "... you'd better shop around..." Printing is a highly competitive market.  Prices change daily.  Shop around, a lot.  Often times you can find companies that will print business cards for free!  Don't go to that giant copy conglomerate down the street until you have checked prices on the internet.  The same is true for postcards.  You should get at least 3 if not 5 quotes before you decide on a vendor. 

Whew!  Do all of the above and you are now ready to market your book.

If you have questions - please ask.

I wish for you the best of success.

Sincerely,

Richard Neumann

But Wait - There's More!

After building the check list I realized that I had failed to finish the story.  The bean counter in me needed to add a piece that brings this entire process to a conclusion so I added the Mini-P&L.  Now you can quickly see if the investment of your hard earned money will be worth the results.

The Mini-P&L

In those famous words penned by Douglas Adams, "Don't Panic!".  You might be afraid that this is getting far too businesslike.  Let's face it you're a writer not an accountant.  Then again, an accountant is merely a story teller who tells their tale with numbers instead of words.  If you are going to be an indie publisher, you need to understand the results of your venture.

P&L stands for Profit and Loss.  In simple terms it is all of the money (sales/revenue) you make less what you spent to make it.  Profit is a good thing, loss is not so good.  In accounting the parenthesis ( ) are used to indicate a negative number instead of a "-" sign.  The top portion of the Mini-P&L calculates the revenue (sales) from the 100 books you started with.  I used When The Force Isn't With You as my example.  Then I pull the total costs from the iPub Check List.  I then subtract my revenue from my cost and calculate my profit.  In this case loss of $(163.00). 

Wait a minute!  You mean I'm going to go through all of that work, time and effort just to loose money!?!

The answer is, most likely yes.  But that's not the way to look at this.  No one knows if a book is going to be successful.  We've all seen books that shouldn't hit the best sellers lists rise to the top and we've all known books that are fabulous that never make it.  Now imagine that there is a way to see into the future and get a glimmer of what is in store for your book.  Would you pay $2,663 to know the future?  For most people that's an expensive investment.  What if I could offer you the same glimpse for only $163?  You could probably find that buried under the cushions of you couch or put it on your VISA card and pay it off with 36 never ending payments. 

The very last line calculates the number of books you would have to sell in order to break even.  Breaking even means you recoup your costs and have $0 zero profit.  160 books is one thing, 1,000 is something else again. 

The point is, after you finish your manuscript your story leaves the world of literature and enters the world of business.  Business decisions are based on weighing risk and reward.  Companies do this all of the time, it's why we have new products.  They carefully run the numbers and determine what they need to invest in the next product.  They make an informed decision that it is worth $X dollars to see if a new product is viable.  Sometimes you get an Edsel, sometimes you get an iPod.  You will get neither if you are not willing to risk some money up front to develop your product.  That is what you are doing.  The important thing is to know your costs, understand the business you are entering and make an informed decision that is right for you.

Why is this called a Mini-P&L?  I call it that, because it lacks many of the details that would normally go into a complete Profit and Loss statement.  For instance no where do I include the cost of postage, envelops, labels, stationary, printer ink, etc to mail copies to reviewers.  Nor does it include the cost of transportation, gas, phone calls, bridge tolls, etc.  The list goes on and on.  The idea is not to give you an accounting package, that's what programs like Quicken and QuickBooks are for.  Consider this more as a slightly automated back of an envelop or the financial version of an elevator speech.  In a very abbreviated fashion it will give you some idea of the costs involved in the options you have.

The Second Printing

Many of your costs are fixed.  This means that they are one time costs that you won't have to repeat when you order your Second Printing.  With a little knowledge of accounting and excel, you can create your own spreadsheet that picks up where the Mini-P&L leaves off.  This will give you an idea of the financial risks and rewards as your business grows. 

DISCLAIMER

This Check List and Mini-P&L should not be used as the only source for making a decision that involves the investment of your money or the money of anyone else.  It is designed to help you ask the questions that will allow you to make a more informed decision about your publishing options.  Your final decision must be based on numerous sources of information, your own analysis of the facts and consultations with your financial and legal advisors.  I make no guarantees as to the accuracy and completeness of this check list and Mini-P&L.  The amount you invest and returns if any are based on factors that are outside the scope of these tools.  Information presented here is the opinion of the author.  The content of the check list and Mini-P&L and the calculations are subject to change without notice.  Only you can make a decision about how to publish your book and you must be willing to accept all of the financial risk and consequences associated with your decision.