There are several of my friends helping me right now on getting my book published, and I wanted to say thank you. Your endeavors are very much appreicated. Nothing is too little. I appreciate everything everyone does. Every little bit forward is one step closer to getting this accomplished. That is just how I view things.
I feel, for the first time, motivated to get this done. I always felt so small, and that if I wanted this done that it was too big. Now I am beginning to see the level of support I have, and that there are ways that I can get my writings published. It is still going to be tough, and it is still going to take time and effort, but I actually feel like all of this is within my grasp now. All I have to do is reach out and take it.
So thank you, everyone. You know who you are.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Conversation with CreateSpace
Well the conversation was definitely enlightening, to say the least, and it helped me get an idea of what they are wanting. Mostly my money, and I understand that. They are a business afterall, and the guy on the phone was a salesman. He kept trying to push me into buying a package there on the phone. I didn't like that. I don't like pushy people. He was just doing his job, and I admit, doing it well.
Here is the down and dirty. If I keep the word count at around 175,000 and 410 pages then the editorial fee is going to be around 3,000 dollars. Thats quite a bit. I told the fellow that was above what I was looking to invest in, and that I might have to look elsewhere. CreateSpace does have some pretty attractive offers until you get down to the editing price.
That leaves me a couple of options. I can look for grants that might help me pay for these fees. A friend of mine, Ross, suggested that I look towards the English department at a local college to see if one of those grads there might do the editing for me for a lesser price and near the same quality. I could also try to see if I could reduce word count, and that means more self editing. Either way, this fellow is going to have to hold on for a bit.
I am not going to place my money in a basket that I can't get back out again. He tried to say that there was a 100 dollar discount for the rest of the month. Yeah a few days. Nice. Also he said that I could have a free Kindle ebook instead of paying 299 for it. There is no cost involved in taking a PDF file and making it an ebook. That is ridiculous and isn't any real kind of savings.
In the meantime I am going to hunt down solutions to my obstacles. I am currently speaking with an artist on commissioning artwork for the cover. We will see how that turns out.
Here is the down and dirty. If I keep the word count at around 175,000 and 410 pages then the editorial fee is going to be around 3,000 dollars. Thats quite a bit. I told the fellow that was above what I was looking to invest in, and that I might have to look elsewhere. CreateSpace does have some pretty attractive offers until you get down to the editing price.
That leaves me a couple of options. I can look for grants that might help me pay for these fees. A friend of mine, Ross, suggested that I look towards the English department at a local college to see if one of those grads there might do the editing for me for a lesser price and near the same quality. I could also try to see if I could reduce word count, and that means more self editing. Either way, this fellow is going to have to hold on for a bit.
I am not going to place my money in a basket that I can't get back out again. He tried to say that there was a 100 dollar discount for the rest of the month. Yeah a few days. Nice. Also he said that I could have a free Kindle ebook instead of paying 299 for it. There is no cost involved in taking a PDF file and making it an ebook. That is ridiculous and isn't any real kind of savings.
In the meantime I am going to hunt down solutions to my obstacles. I am currently speaking with an artist on commissioning artwork for the cover. We will see how that turns out.
Researching Marketing Options
I spent the morning looking at the various options proposed by CreateSpace and other self-publishing companies. I also perused some various potential artwork on Deviant Art for the cover. I am sure that some of the coverart that CreateSpace might be good - I do not think that it would be talored towards my particular subject matter. I could be wrong, but I would like to see what my options are. It is always good to see what options are available to you prior to making any kind of decision.
I have posted on Facebook and a few other places about looking to commission an artist for coverart for the book I am going to publish. Coverart helps sell a book, and it also helps budding artists get noticed by others who might like their work as well. Its a mutual agreement. I want to invest in my work, and this is one place I am looking at right now. If I have the right kind of artist along with the right kind of coverart I believe that it will be mutually beneficial to the both of us.
To be honest, what this site is asking for is sort of steep of an investment. I understand that more markets are opening for self-publishing because of the reduced risk to publishing companies. It makes sense financially. It almost seems random what author or other artist will make it big, and what ones will not. Many times this is a gamble for publishing companies, and especially now with tough economic trouble, many of them are looking for ways to still make money in this market at the same time they reduce their financial risk. Like I said, it makes sense, and I would be looking into doing this myself if I were over a publishing company.
There is an investment the author must make into this, but that is true whether it is on the front end here with self-publishing or on the back end with a traditional publisher. I must admit that there are many options here that are not presented on the other sites I have looked at. Right now I am looking between CreateSpace and LuLu.com. Both seem to have a lot to offer.
Seppen Lake
Welcome to Seppen Lake, my blog on Blogger.com to write about my progress with my novels I am writing or editing. Currently I am working with CreateSpace and their consultant staff to find out what is the best avenue for me to take. I have reviewed several other publishing companies and so far I like the benefits that CreateSpace offers. I will be speaking with one of their representatives tomorrow afternoon about what they have to offer.
I have finished novel one of a series of books and I am in the process of self-editing the work before submitting it to a editor to rake it over with a fine tooth comb. I have began running the outline for the second novel. I will update the blog later concerning the novel and its progress.
For now I wanted to say welcome to my blog, and I hope that you enjoy my work.
Oh, and for those that are curious Seppen Lake, the name of my blog, comes from the first novel I have wrote. It also means something here, too. The word 'seppen' is Japanese for bits and pieces, fragments of things, and so it is with this blog. This blog will be the fragments and pieces of the story behind the writing of my books.
I have finished novel one of a series of books and I am in the process of self-editing the work before submitting it to a editor to rake it over with a fine tooth comb. I have began running the outline for the second novel. I will update the blog later concerning the novel and its progress.
For now I wanted to say welcome to my blog, and I hope that you enjoy my work.
Oh, and for those that are curious Seppen Lake, the name of my blog, comes from the first novel I have wrote. It also means something here, too. The word 'seppen' is Japanese for bits and pieces, fragments of things, and so it is with this blog. This blog will be the fragments and pieces of the story behind the writing of my books.
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