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Author - Illustrator Likes BookLocker
by Tina Field Howe
Snailsworth, a Slow Little Story, by Tina Field Howe
Print on demand by BookLocker. (They're quick, inexpensive, personable, and very professional. Ingraham does their print fulfillment.) My first children's picture book, "Snailsworth", was a labor of love. I wrote and illustrated it long before I settled on a publishing strategy. Then I tested it with a small-run prototype produced in my area. I began to look for publishers. I found several PODs, the first one being BookLocker. But I didn't submit Snailsworth just then, as I was still selling the prototype. I was a little fearful of the process. I produced a novel ms. in 2006 and submitted that to BookLocker. (Just put Book Two in the series up there, which has just now become available.) One of the things I like about BookLocker is that they don't accept work that's not ready to publish. And you only get one chance to submit the ms. This gives them more credence, particularly because they're not like a lot of other PODs that are big into the biz of upselling authors with editing services, etc. By doing the "trial run" with the novel and learning more about the publishing process, I was ready to publish Snailsworth for real. I found several "traditional" possibilities and submitted it to the one that seemed to be the best choice for the book. The pub claimed that they would respond in one month; finally, six months later, they rejected it. I decided I didn't want to wait 10 years - maybe never - to find a pub (who are now bent on finding people - and not necessarily authors - with a "name" already), so I turned to BookLocker. I submitted Snailsworth to them in 2008. The color is fantastic! Much better than my prototypes. And their designers are great to work with. Another thing I like about BookLocker is that they very quickly put books on virtually every online bookseller out there - Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Borders, etc. My books have turned up on sites I've never heard of. That kind of legwork is invaluable. BookLocker does provide a web page for each book; but even if you have a "traditional" publisher, you still must do constant self-promotion. I still have to do a lot of my own marketing, signings, talks, radio interviews, and now I've begun conducting writing workshops. Best of luck to anyone who chooses this route; I think you will find it very rewarding! Visit Tina Field Howe's Snailsworth.
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