Ian Cooper
That is just so cool.
My first two paperbacks have been produced, and are
available from Lulu.com at what sure
looks like cut-throat pricing. This is one attraction of the 4 x 7” format, (a
pocketbook.) The other is pure esthetics. If I have always wanted to write pulp
fiction (and I have) then putting them out in the regular ‘paperback’ size
makes some kind of sense. They are the modern counterpart of the dime novel.
Each file took a couple of hours to prepare, upload
and publish. We’re using existing cover shots, hopefully costumers on other
platforms are hip enough to read the product descriptions. On this project, we’re
using Lulu as a single, stand-alone online store. We don't have any ebooks on Lulu at this point in time. We’re not using their
extended distribution channels. For one, Smashwords
does a reasonable job of that, and we have gotten books into iTunes through OmniLit, (although it’s their only other distribution
channel so far.) We do sell books on OmniLit, so it’s important to learn every
site.
Using some pretty basic covers and Lulu’s older
cover creator keeps the investment of time and money down.
Both books are still processing through Createspace in the 5 x 8” trade
paperback format. This allows us to take advantage of Createspace’s six full expanded
distribution channels. We’ve published one of those titles directly through
Createspace into the Amazon website.
We just want to see what happens.
There’s a form for that at the end of the publishing
pages. This saves the uploading, although you have to sign into the account and
go through the publish pages, set prices and territories, etc.
There is some difference in formatting from what I
would have normally done. In that sense, any new thing has the potential to be a learning experience. For one thing,
going through Createspace probably
precludes internal and external navigation (hot links) in the ebook product.
That’s because there is no real good reason (we
assume) for Createspace to make provision for live links…my logic here is that
they are useless except as website names in a paper product. You could put them
in, I don’t know if they would be live in the ebook.
Going through Smashwords, for example, iTunes
insists on internal navigation, i.e. the table of contents, which takes a few
minutes to create. Some authors report good results with external navigation,
taking readers off to blogs, websites, previews of new stories, social media
interaction, etc. We have put some
thought into that…but perhaps not enough.
The paperbacks rarely have a web address or
anything. It’s just something we don’t tend to think about when making a paper
product. That’s backwards thinking, out of touch with the 21st
Century. Much food for thought there, but is really is a learning curve, ladies
and gentlemen.
Looking for Love
is something we all do once in a while. The results can be surprising, from
lonely middle-aged bachelors, to college boys with a plan, or Cro-Magnon
raiders and predatory beachcombers.
Here is the pocketbook
on Lulu.com. $4.49
Love, or lust, is a many-splendoured thing. Moonshine, a collection of
short stories by Ian Cooper, will raise the pulse rate and possibly the
eyebrows.
4
x 7” paperback for $4.99 (erotica.)
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