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Book Update 3/22/2010

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Wow. The book has been out one week – though as I've been busy with many things I haven't done as much as I'd like with it.

Updates:

  • I've submitted it for worldwide distribution via Lulu.com.  I just have to approve it and was frankly waiting for a few people to look at their copies.
  • I actually had some people buy copies already.  That felt pretty good.
  • I gave a few away to people who have been supportive, and one as a prize at Chibi-con.

Findings:

  • Lulu.com's printing works good in multiples, though in a bulk order I placed, one had some odd detritus on the back cover.  I'm checking into a return.  It doesn't harm the book, but it's annoying.  However it is probably a case of "stuff happens."
  • Lulu.com's bulk printing is also shockingly FAST.  It came as fast as single printing.
  • The global distribution option at Lulu.com is pretty easy – but it does cost $70.00 so it's not free.  However, you do get a lot of opportunities – you end up on Amazon.com, other sites, etc.  It will take me a few more weeks to end up there.
  • People take you incredibly seriously when you have a book out, even self-published.
  • There is something very heady about finishing a book.  I want to rest, but I have some others I want to start . . .

So it's done.  Now to move on and do some promotion.

Oh, and feel free to buy the book.

– Steven Savage

Book Update 3/15/2010

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And now the latest update on the Fan To Pro Book:

  • It's done and available at lulu.com.
  • It'll be available internationally through other stores in about 5-7 weeks.

 . . . and that's about it.  I'll be bringing copies to Chibi-Con for sale if anyone wants to buy an autographed copy.

Now what did I learn?

  • There really is a point to stop editing.  There are five errors I found in the latest copy of the book, one an arguable use of plurals, another an appendix subheading sizing, and three where I violated some of my preferred header punctuation rules.  I looked at this, realized that I'll be editing this thing forever, and just pushed the button to publish it.
  • In editing for style, I recommend going in "sweeps" – pick a style issue and spend time troubleshooting it throughout the book.  If it's headers sizes or formatting questions, etc. pick a subject and if possible do it in one go.  It's easier to focus on one thing.
  • In formatting and setting up a book know your word processor and take advantage of every time saving tool especially styles (for the non-word processing, styles lets you assign a style to parts of a book then with one go change that style and thus alter every part of the document using that style).  By using styles in Microsoft Word I was able to do all sorts of experiments with formatting fast.
  • Always assume a second edition – I did.  I even have a to-edit version ready to go and will probably do a second edition early 2011 to correct any errors and add any new information.
  • Lulu.com is overall easy to use – it reminds me of LinkedIn.com with some seriously impressive formatting and publishing tools.  It's practical, actually simple in many cases, and is focused on doing whats important over flash in most cases.  In a few cases some of the workflow seemed clunky and the design philosophies didn't seem consistent, but that's a minor argument – the company, to put it simply, built an entire web-based publishing system, and when you see it work, it's impressive.
  • Covers are still a pain.
  • Again as I harp on the fear that self-publishing will produce a wave of lousy stuff (well more lousy than some of the stuff out there) is an illusion.  It takes a lot of effort and commitment and knowledge to get a book out there.  That's a filter for both quality AND dedication right there.
  • I need to start buying more small press books.  There's all sorts of neat stuff out there.

So there you go.  Now will I continue this update series?  Probably intermittently, ramping it up for the next books.

Books?  You got it.  Stay tuned . . .

– Steven Savage

Book Update 3/1/2010

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The latest update on the book:

  • I got a copy from Lulu.com.  I'm pretty impressed with the POD quality – it's pretty good overall.  Layout work, cover worked (except for some brightness/contrast on a photo which I miscaluclated).    Print quality is VERY nice.
  • I then proceeded to go through it with a highlighter and find anything that looked wrong and correct it.
  • I changed the font, it was too small – I had gone with ten point which looked horrible.  It's much better in 12 point, which makes the book bigger, but won't affect the final sales price when it goes commercial.
  • I also changed some page breaking and organization – it's amazing how you can forget things like "Chapters are best starting on odd pages".
  • The next copy is coming to me.  If all is well release will go on end of month if not earlier.

What I learned:

  • You need a copy of your book to truly appreciate it if there's a physical copy.
  • Twelve point, maybe even eleven point, but ten point is NOT a good idea for most books.
  • Underlines can look bad in books too.  I understand they're frowned on.
  • Converting to PDF's is quite an adventure.  This time I had to make sure my formats were right for large-scale distribution, which meant learning about embedded fonts.
  • Book layouts have TONS of subtleties that you have to learn either via study and practice or painfully experiencing it yourself.  I've learned from the latter.  Among my findings are: chapters should start on an odd page (right-hand).  Table of Contents also starts best on odd/right-handed page.  Changes in font size, even a small amount, change the acceptable amount of whitespace in formatting, and appendices somehow flow better when you have a simple "Appendices" labeled page to break them off from the main body.

So far, a lot more work than I thought.  Then again I learned a lot.  And, of course, this will be used in the next book – and there will be more to come . . .

– Steven Savage