Hi all,

Quick question. I believe that some of you have tried self publishing... I'm after a couple of quotes to finish off "that document" so if anyone has any opinions on what the pros and cons of self publishing are, (to you as authors) or any anecdotes you'd like to share, (either openly or via PM) I'd be eternally grateful.

Thanks

How about "you can publish any old [LIFTED]"?

I think unless you have guaranteed sales it's an expensive business.
I've sold a couple of copies of my Iceland photo book and it is an expensive prospect. To spend that kind of money on a book takes either a) some dedication to the subject or b) it's a present.
Having said that, I have an idea for a smaller photo book involving a number of people, so I'm certainly not against the self publish culture that seems to be establishing itself.

Mark

Thanks Mark. One question, (for now) - When you say it's an expensive prospect do you mean the cost of the book, or the cost of publishing?

I used blurb.com and the expense of the book is the cost of publishing. Let me explain … you create your book and upload it to their site. You then have Two weeks (I think, can't quite remember) to order one copy of the book or it'll be removed from their site.
I used this to order myself a copy to use for proofing. After that, and if you're happy with the product, you can make it public and wait for the sales.
While I find the quality of the books to be very good, I think the price of the books is a little too high. If you'd like to print your photos (and it's only photo books I'm talking about here) for family and friends, or if you'd like to market yourself as a professional, Blurb presents a viable option, in my opinion.

Mark

Does it have to be a physical copy? Would e-publishing work?

I don't know if that was for me, but I'll answer it anyway … I'm currently looking in to getting somewhere with ePublishing, but books aren't like music, for example. A physical photo book is something that's not going to go away.
I watched a video with Moby talking about his first foray in to self publishing which summed it up really well. I'll see if I can dig it up and post it here.

Mark

It was actually meant for J_V, I don't know what "the document" is, whether it's for general public consumption/to make profit etc, so was throwing e-publishing out there in case it was suitable.

The second video embedded in this BJP article is the one I was talking about that sums up my thoughts on the physical photo book.

Mark

I am going to publish my "book" as an e-book this week on Amazon, for Kindle.

I admit that I haven't read all of the fine print, but unless I have missed something very important, I upload the story, write some blurb, add a picture and set a price. Amazon will sell it and I'll get 30% of the sale.

I can't help thinking that it's a no-brainer. I intend to set the price at 50p and if it sells, it sells. 2,000 copies would net me £300, which is far better than it sitting on my laptop earning [LIFTED]-all.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Thanks guys, lots of useful information there, which I can make use of.

I used the word "document" simply because I am sick to death of writing the word dissertation out... and I am looking at both paper and e-books, so either is valid.

Thanks again.