More work than I ever Suspected

Well, if you've made it this far, I commend you. You will soon have a book in your hand that you have written. That alone is an accomplishment that not everyone shares. I have been working on the cover for a couple weeks and am still not finished. I know what it is going to look like, but I'm not sure about the colors. So many colors, so little time. I am going to put finalization of the cover on hold until I finish the book's layout.

Each chapter must be laid out how I want to look in print. Once the files leave my hands, there will only be one more chance to change things, but changes aren't free. They charge fees for changing things once you submit your prints. The printer will send me a proof to approve, then it's off to the presses. Once the book is in my hand, I can make revisions before I print the next edition. I shouldn't have anything to change, because I have complete control, but mistakes happen. If the book isn't ready then printing will have to be delayed. But I have to take into consideration that I have set a release date and until the book is printed, I cannot start full scale advertising and marketing.

I am using Adobe InDesign for the layout the of book. I have been watching the Lynda.com training videos. It is also a program that can be used to create a cover, but I have choose to use Adobe Photoshop for the cover. Krissy and I have laid out all of my printed chapters and have begun working away at editing and placing each chapter where it should go in reference to the book. Certain chapters flow into the next. If I have them all out there for me to look at, I should be able to put together the puzzle more easily. I won't be able to get a feel for the layout until all of the chapters have been rewritten and place in the book document. So far the each page has seen my eyes once and her eyes once. Before the book prints, I'm sure we will both be sick of reading.

Sponsorship & Business Cards

Today we contacted a few companies, asking if they would like to sponsor my book. We sent off some emails and created a letter that detailed exactly what the company would gain from the sponsorship. We got this tip from Bookmarket.com. It is a great idea, I'm hoping the companies realize this. It may have been better to contact them earlier, because this gives them just enough time to think about it. We'll see what happens.

I also designed some business cards with a program I have, Business Card Composer. It is really easy to use and they came out great. I printed them from home, but eventually I plan on taking them to a print shop so they will look more professional. You can get 100 printed for about $50, maybe even cheaper if you shop around.

This is one I had printed for Djing while I was in Austra

lia:

This is the one I made today:

It's simple, but effective. I may change it a bit later, but for now I have other things to focus on. I still need to finish the cover. I may use Krystal's picture, after I play around with in in Photoshop. I don't want everyone to be able to recognize her. She's my future wife, so of course I'll make it very tasteful.

Since I am laying the book out myself, I am going to watch some training videos about Adobe InDesign. By next week I should be a professional book-layer-outer.

Creating your Cover

For the last few months I've been playing around with Photoshop on my Mac. There are tons of tutorials online, explaining how to do anything you would ever need. I decided to use this program for my cover design.

A couple months ago I got some quotes from printers. I let them know what I was looking for and asked them to quote me based on my suggestions. I got a few back, but Transcontinental was the cheapest. I decided to go with them and met with a representative. He acquired some samples for me and sent me the design templates because I was interested in laying out the book myself.

I had previous designed a quick cover to post on websites and facebook, but never finalized anything. Since the printer will be using these files to print the cover and the pages, they need to be at a higher resolution and quality. My book is going to be 5.5 inches wide by 8.25 inches high. I searched for answers about creating covers and found this site, Wordclay. It answered most of my questions.

I created a canvas on photoshop using CMYK color instead of RBG. Apparently the colors print better that way. I also made sure that the resolution was set to 300 dpi (dots per inch). This makes the file very large, about 25 MB. Remember, you'll have to design a front, back, and spine. Get the measurements from your printer and go nuts.

People do judge a book by its cover so don't just slap something together. If need be, hire a professional. I intend to create a few variations, then email subscribers of my newsletter, asking for feedback. I also intend on setting up a table at the local shopping centre, offering entrance to a raffle draw for anyone who gives comments on their choice of cover. The prize will be a gift basket designer by my finance and a signed copy of a first print book.

The cover should have your title, subtitle, an author name on the front. On the back it should have your ISBN barcode, your publisher (in my case Fozzbooks), your price, BISAC (Book Industry Standards and Communications) or subject heading, and a summary of your book that closes the sale. Look at other popular book covers and take notes. You may also want to include your website and a photo of yourself. I will be getting Krystal (my fiance) to take one with her fancy new camera. Don't rush the design, I plan on taking a few days to get it right, then ask for feedback.

Getting your ISBN & Barcode

Yesterday, my fiance and editor, Krystal realized how much work is ahead of us when she picked up my heavy stack of writing. I have printed all of the pages of my book, double spaced, so they can be edited more easily. We will go over them several times, first focusing on grammar and flow, before the book is ready for it's final edit. The book will not be ready for print until it is gone over with a fine toothed comb, after the layout is complete.

A few months ago, before I was finished writing, I applied for my ISBN (International Standard Book Number). By the way, I am Canadian, so this process may be a little different, depending on the you reside in. I went to

http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/isn/041011-1030-e.html and joined CISS (Canadian ISBN Service System).

*By the way, all these links are on the side of this blog.

Once you join, within a few days you will be given a login and a password. Then you will be able to assign an ISBN to your book. You will be required to submit all of the information you have about your future best seller. All of your book information may not be finalized, but you can update it later.

Once you have your ISBN you can purchase a barcode for $25 from Simply Barcodes,

http://www.upccode.net/barcodes_for_books.php. There may be other websites who offer this service, but I used this one. I received my barcode the same day. You'll need to include your ISBN in the information you send them, along with your suggested retail price and preferred currency. Now I have a barcode that can be placed on my back cover.

To figure out what your suggested retail price should be, you'll have to do a little research. Check out bookstores and find out what price books on your subject are selling for. Make sure you are competitive but not too overpriced. There are also other things to consider when pricing your book. If you intend to sell locally or from your own website, you will pocket most of the profit. If you want your book to be available in bookstores you may have to sell to a distributor or the store itself. They usually buy the book from you at a 40 - 50% discounted rate. The Self-Publishing Manual by Dan Poynter goes into more detail about pricing your book.

A few months back I designed a 'working cover.' I posted this on my website and other social sites. Today, I will focus on finalizing the cover.

Self-publishing ~ One month until Print

Being the procrastinator I am, I have waited until the last minute (in book publishing terms) to finalize my project. I have one month until I am scheduled to print my book, Let Them Come To You - A Guide to Women, Life, and Relationships. I have been writing for over a year and my story is finally coming into fruition. Now I have one month to finalize the books layout, cover design, and website. Each chapter will have it's own webpage on http://www.fozzbooks.com. The chapter web pages will feature photos, links, and videos, not included in the printed version of the book. I have a lot to do, so I better get cracking. I will try and update my blog everyday, so progress can be tracked for upcoming self-publishers.