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That's what a lot of people have said, which is why I'm not sure why Espresso hasn't become a really huge hit. It really is the simple solution. Though it's kind of expensive to get the machine, which is probably a contributing factor.

And it's book stores that have to buy the machine, which just changes the whole cost structure.


And printing doesn't have to be more expensive than you want it to be.

Printing

Printing your own books is undeniably the most expensive option in publishing; ebooks have only nominal cost, and those are per book sold, and publishing traditionally costs nothing in terms of actual money.

But printing your own books doesn't have to break the bank. Stay away from vanity presses, that charge a lump sum and then are POD or make you jump through hoops for reprinting. Find an actual printer, like Island Blue. They do nothing but print your books. If you're able to go in to your printer, sometimes they will have lists of local editors and graphic artists looking for work, but the printer does not have any business contract with them.

How it works is you format your manuscript properly, then send it to their FTP. It prints, and you pay them. Very simple. Island Blue in particular does an excellent job; they use bright white paper, and have environmentally friendly options. This is contrast to some paperbacks, where the paper is a little yellow even when it's brand new. Paper matters, so make sure you talk to your printer about the best options.

Payment is on a per-book basis, with price breaks at 250, 500, and 1000. But you can order as few as you like, and then order more printed as you sellout of the ones you have, and a lot of printers will give you the price break when you hit the total number of books. Like, if you only want to print lots of 50, because you're not sure how fast it'll fly off the shelves, with a lot of printers you can work it out so that on your fifth order of fifty (when the total of books ever is 250), they will give you the price break, and continue giving you the lower price on subsequent orders.

And, unlike a vanity press, a printer will never claim any kind of publishing rights for your book. You can up and go to another printer if you find a cheaper one; there is no contract.

<3

I have lots of random info, I just don't know what would actually be of any use. And I forget what I know.

And I get to go see a speaker on Speculative Fiction on Wednesday, which should be interesting, even if most of it's going to be directed to the majority of people in the group, who need the very basics of what it is.

It's going to be fun, too! It's put on by a group I kind of play politics in, which makes speakers who cover areas I'm more familiar with just that extra bit of fun (I'm kind of evil . . .).

I feel like it's the good thing to do, because it's so hard to find reliable information. A lot of people just further a lot of the same myths, and it's easy to believe them. And publishing in the last few years has been such a changing industry, with ebooks and ereaders and things like Espresso, and small-run/indie/self-publishing getting more legitimate. Staying on the curve is hard, and I want to help other people at least stay in the vicinity of it.

The idea that I actually am on the inside is new, and doesn't feel quite real. I am literally paid in bagels for my web design work.

Went to a really interesting talk the other night, about speculative fiction. The author who was speaking is published by a small house in Toronto, but she's been nominated for a Hugo award. That was kind of cool. And she asked to see my blog, which was awesome.

Lol.

Sad thing is it's unlikely to change if I keep reading thing's like Cory Doctorow's blog, I'll get caught up in free information faddishness and give everything away for free. I mean, all of my short stories already are, but the more I read, both about the Creative Commons stuff and in terms of free novels, both public domain and Creative Commons licensed, the more tempting it is to go that route.

See, the thing is, Cory Doctorow makes money off it. Partly because, well, he's Cory Doctorow, but also because dedicated fans will pay for hardcover, and a lot of people will pay to download just to support the artist. Charles Strauss and Richard Kadrey also make money at it, and those are only the two whom I remember off the top of my head because I've read their stuff recently. And you reach an audience - one that will take you a little more seriously for having decided to self-publish for optionally free rather than doing functionally the same thing but with more restrictive copyright on somewhere like Fictionpress.

It's like the difference between posting your stuff on Myspace and Trent Reznor posting his stuff and saying you could pay what you wanted for downloads. I mean, there's a fame/press element there, but it's still a matter of people being willing to pay for a product even when not forced to by a label that doesn't give as much to the artist.