I self published and created my own book printing business

Get Notified About the Latest Posts!

I self published and created my own book printing business

by Sandy Wilson
(Dallas Texas)

You Don't Know What Love Is

Four years ago, I sat down at my computer and started writing a movie script about my relationship with my ex husband. While writing one day, my husband suggested I write a book first. He said, "how can you create a movie script without at book." At the time, I looked at him strangely, but..in a matter of minutes logic began to sink into my brain. Right away, I started a new file and began writing my book, You Don't Know What Love Is, A Toast To My Dead Ex-Husband.

After three years of writing, I was ready to research the publishing world. I wanted to find out where I was going to publish my book. I read everything I could get my hands on. It wasn't long before I was shock and disturbed by all the information I found on the internet about traditional publishing. It was very discouraging. Like most writers, I was excited that my book would be accepted and I just knew before long I would be basking in fame and fortune. Not so much...

Then I read that if I published through the big houses, I would lose my copyright, only receiving royalties of 8-15%. Some articles said, I could lose the rights of any movie deals I got. I started paying attention and kept reading more and more.

Before long, I was convinced that I wasn't going to give up my copyrights to anyone. So, that left self publishing. I perused the internet and found myself swept into all the vanity presses and POD's not understand how it worked. At first, it looked good, I got to keep my copyrights but after discovering how much their packages were and the amount of books I would receive, I couldn't believe it. Still disillusioned I didn't know what to do. So, my husband & I came up with a great idea. Let's just buy the equipment to bind the books ourselves.

After organizing and purchasing all the equipment and hammering out books for me to sell, I thought, I could do this for other authors and not charge an arm and a leg for short run books. And that's how we created our company, Uptown Short Run Books.

Visit You Don't Know What Love Is.

Comments for
I self published and created my own book printing business

Average Rating

Click here to add your own comments

Nov 26, 2008
Rating

Reply
by: Anonymous

Thanks for your comment. My website is being reconstructed as we speak. It will be a grand website when it's done.

We do offer freelance.com as an avenue for writers to get their projects edited. We do printing only and offer writers a good deal on their books or booklets.

I know you weren't being critical and I appreciate your comments but please check out the site in another month or so. It will be much better I promise!!!!

Nov 26, 2008
Rating

Went to your website
by: Anonymous

Hi, Sandy,

I think you did a courageous thing. And there are lots of other mom and pop publishers who do the work for non-techie writers. I don't understand what kind of printing outfit you use--Lightning Source or do you have some sort of printing press of your own? I know a lot of people are interested in booklets.

However, I went to your website and I'd like to make two comments:

1. The type is rather small and not easy to read.

2. There are at least two spelling errors I noticed right off, and there may be one or two more. You don't offer editing along with the book design and printing but I think it would be worth your while to have an editor go over your spelling, punctuation and grammar.

I don't mean to sound snobby, and God knows I often misspell words when I'm typing quickly, but your website is your business card and you want it to look as professional as possible. Since your customers are writers they are more likely to notice problems of spelling, punctuation (your instead or you're) than, say, customers who are looking to buy electric drills.

From Barbara Hudgins, author of Crafting the Travel Guidebook. And by the way, I had my book re-edited and reprinted by Lightning Source after several people noticed mistakes. It is very difficult for writers to notice their own spelling and grammar errors--but they sure notice them in other people's works.

Oct 06, 2008
Rating

If you can't bring the mountain to Mohammad...
by: Steve B. (webmaster)

Sandy, it occurs to me that your book does double duty. It's not just a self published book that you're trying to sell, it's a calling card for your print business.

That's smart.

Now let's talk about your website(s). Did you know that youdontknowwhatloveis.com is ailing? To look at it, you wouldn't know it was sick. It's gorgeous, actually. So how do I know it's ailing?

Well, when I type "you don't know what love is" into Google and the site with that precise domain name doesn't even come up on the first page of results, I know there's a problem.

When I type an exact phrase from your bio page into Google and Yahoo and neither can find it, I know there's a problem.

Clothes don't make the man, and all that gorgeous Flash movie stuff doesn't impress anyone if no one finds your website! And when Google DOES find your sites, often it finds a non-Flash, incomplete, almost illegible version.

I think you'd benefit from some straightforward html coding that would help the search engines know exactly what visitors will see on your sites if the search engines send them there.

(Your sandywilson.biz site does better in this regard. Does it attract more traffic?)

The outfit that I use to build my straightforward, highly trafficked websites is called SiteBuildIt. They give you the tools to affordably build a website that will probably never look as good as your sites but will outperform them a thousand times (literally) over.

They also have a side business where their experts will build a solidly performing site for you. A little more expensive, obviously, but a lot less work!

Now, if you're SO famous and well publicized that you don't care about the search engines sending you traffic, your sites are just perfect. If everyone already knows about idontknowwhatloveis.com and uptownshortrunbooks.com, you're good to go.

But if that's not the case, these sites are not doing for you what they should be. And I just thought you should know.

Thanks for posting!

Click here to add your own comments

Join in and write your own page! It's easy to do. How?
Simply click here to return to Non Fiction Books