Google Blogscoped has a great article up about Lulu, an online self-publishing shop that allows you to print your writing. I have always been interested in the idea of publishing a book, or even just a few of my longer writings as something bound nicely so I could hold onto it for a long time, but I really have not got around to it.
Everyone can be an author. You just need a time-out to write, an idea about what to write, and the motivation to finish. You are not restricted to novels or non-fiction books, you can also publish calendars, photo books, even comic books (take a look at what others have done on Lulu). If you ever felt like quitting your day job to do something different, maybe this is it?
Youâll pay for either black-and-white, or color pages on Lulu.com… you canât mix the pricing, that is, you canât have 2 color pages in a b/w book unless youâre willing to pay for color on all the other pages.
Anyone else try Lulu or another service? What did you think? I am really interested on your opinions on publishing a real book versus an e-book as well.
I haven’t used it, but I’ve researched it quite a bit. There are a few things that came when I looked at Lulu. First off, the site is so amazingly cumbersome and ill-designed that it is very difficult to find information about types of binding, pages, color vs. b&w, color mixing, inserts, dust jackets, etc. I also found that they could really do with a client application of some sort (like blurb.com) that would allow stylish layout, design, etc – for those who don’t have those skills and don’t want their book to look like it was designed by a monkey.
On the other hand, their terms are nothing short of awesome – all rights retained by the author, a fairly robust distribution system, fairly reasonable cut on their end. They also offer some additional services, such as ISBN numbers, and Books in Print listings that are very useful for the aspiring pro writer and relatively inexpensive.
LULU is the lowest among the companies in self-publsihing! plus, the people in the forums will make your life miserable! also theya ssociate with some magazines who are reviewers and they are very rough on reviews!
Hi there! Your site is cool, indeed!
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Hi there! Your site is cool, indeed!
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I have found Lulu to be simple to use. It is a step-by-step, follow the dotted line, process that results in a really good looking product. The compensation plan is good too. But, Lulu has some problems: Promoting the product is up to the creator and it is hard work. Designing a book cover, for example, could be simplified if they offered on-line design so text could be placed easily. The “Storefront” is mystifying so could also be simplified. On-line help is pretty good. In a nutshell. Lulu allows frustrated authors to publish, but the sales effort is not for the timid. Having said all that …. go for it.