Book Printing Blog

Book printing and binding are your last steps prior to publishing or submitting your work. The type of book binding usually depends on the function of the document you printed, its number of pages, and its author's budget.

Each type of book binding is designed for a different appearance and application. Here are 5 most common types of them:

Perfect binding
This type uses hot tape or a cloth strip of adhesives to bind the pages of the book together. This, often called as Thermal binding, is perfect for thick documents to be published. Often this is used in novels we buy on bookstores.

Plastic comb binding
Plastic combs are used to hold the pages together, allowing them to be opened flat. Often, the plastic combs can be removed and reattached. It is the simplest type next to saddle stitching. But its teeth-like plastic comb often break off, not holding up the pages for a longer time. This is though perfect for those who have said a collection of printed photos of something that are constantly updated.

Spiral binding
This type of book binding either uses coil or plastic wire which is pre-coiled and is flexible. The wire is inserted and twisted through small holes running along its spinal edge. Using this type allows users to open flat documents just like in plastic comb binding. Also, the pages can be wrapped around in full 360 degrees for easier copying and reading. This is often what we see on spiral notebooks.

Saddle Stitching
The pages are stapled in the middle to hold the pages in place. It is the most simple and economical type of book binding for thin publications such as comic books, manuals, magazines and booklets. But this is not recommended for bigger presentations.

Twin loop wire binding
This gives your documents not only a more durable bind but also a more professional feel. That is why this is perfect when doing product presentations or company proposals. But such elegance of the twin loop wire comes with a slightly more expensive price than simple coil or wire binding. Also, these wires might bend easily when heavier loads are laid on top of them.

Provide durability to your printed work. These are just a few of the options for binding you could choose from. Contact the Country Press, Inc. for more.

Short run book printing is a publishing option which allows authors to publish their books quickly and affordably.  Short run printing eliminates the barrier to large publishing houses. It is easy and affordable, and if you are self publishing, you will be able to keep the most of your profits.

Publishing novels is highly competitive, and if you choose traditional printing, it can also be very expensive. With short run printing, you can start your career on your own terms. Lower upfront costs, fewer books, and the ability to publish the book in a timely manner are all benefits of short run book printing.

The low risk short run printing option at The Country Press allows you to print a minimum quantity of just 11 books in just a few business days. This allows authors to be able to test their book's sales potential by printing books in small quantities. It also allows them an easy way to enter the publishing space.

Short run book printing gives authors who self-publish more of a position to set their own price and receive more profits. Achieve your goals quickly and without fear of considerable economic risk with short run book printing, contact The Country Press for more information.

Which publishing road does an author take today? With the Internet and today’s technology, traditional publishers are being turned on their heads, self and independent publishers are taking over.

The publishing road answer: it depends. Authors are choosing to bypass the traditional method that had been so coveted by the majority of authors just a few years ago. The five key factors that have moved authors to seek other avenues are: rejection, timing, control, quality and money.

Rejection that a traditional publisher has said, “No,” have led authors down the do it themselves path. Some choose the vanity format, others explore POD; pay to publish; eBooks; or create their own publishing house.

Timing—if your manuscript is completed, you can have it edited, cover and interiors designed, printed and in your hands within four months. With traditional publishing, you can have your manuscript completed and it will most likely be in your hands in 18 months.

Control—if you get a group of authors together who have traditionally published, one of the most common grumblings you will hear is that they don’t like the way their book looks—covers and interiors and they really have been in a fog when it comes to book sales.

Quality—overall, traditional publishers have been cutting down on quality and increasing prices.  A book published years ago used better paper and just  felt better than a book published today.

Money—is an important thing to look at. Most traditional publishers are pushing for “net” royalty deals. If your book is $20 retail, the net for sales to wholesalers and distributors will be less than $10 per book—meaning that the royalty is based on the less than $10 amount. The last two years have been brutal to the “average” author—non-fiction sales are in the 4,000-5,000 area. That means $4,000 to $5,000 in royalties—those lovelies that are paid twice a year, with a deferral of three months after each closing period; and usually with a hefty percentage holdback for reserves—meaning books get turned back and the publisher wants to cover their costs and not overpay you (and come knocking on your door to now pay them). In other words, this isn’t going to seed your retirement—don’t quit the day job!

As a savvy self and independent publisher—when you create a platform to reach out to your crowd, your sales will not only be greater, the financial reward will be significantly greater.

It’s your choice, but do the math always. Measure your time, investment and potential return.

For more information on self-publishing, contact The Country Press.

business2community.com

There is a huge transition going on in the book publishing industry. With self-publishing and short run book printing, it is easier than ever to publish your book. You no longer need to go through a traditional publisher to publish a quality book.

But, because it’s so easy to publish a book, authors sometimes skip the critical part of editing. No matter how good you think the book is, you still need to hire an editor. If a book has too many typos, readers typically stop reading.

After you have written you book, you are ready for the next step in self-publishing: hiring the right editors. Different editors perform different job functions.

1. Developmental Editing

A developmental editor will take your manuscript and work with the content itself. They might reshape your work and rearrange sentences to make the book flow together better. This type of editor helps an author find their voice and help refine their vision.

When looking for a developmental editor it’s important to choose one who has experience in your genre or specializes in your book topic. Working with an editor who you connect well with is also key. When looking for editors get a list of some of the other works they’ve edited to make sure it’s similar to what you’re looking for. It also helps to interview the editors’ past clients to see what feedback they’ve gotten. Most editors will do a sample edit on a few pages or a first chapter to help you get a sense of their style.

Not everyone needs a developmental editor, but if it’s your first time writing a book and you haven’t had a thorough critique of your manuscript, then hiring a developmental editor is a good place to start.

2. Copy Editing

Copy editing is a crucial step in the publishing process. A copy editor goes through and catches spelling mistakes, adjusts for grammar, punctuation, capitalization and consistency. A copy editor will check your manuscript line by line to make sure your work is consistent and syntax error free.

When hiring a copy editor make sure to get a list of the work they’ve copy edited. Always ask your potential editor to do a sample copy edit of your manuscript to make sure you agree with their changes.

3. Proofreading

A proofreader makes a final check of the work before it gets published or goes live. They’ll catch any mistakes that a previous editor hasn’t caught yet: spelling mistakes, extra commas or spaces, and other minor errors.

When working with anyone it’s best to agree on timelines and a payment plan up front and ask a lot of questions. Editors will usually do sample edit for free but usually require a deposit before they start work.

By making sure you hit all the editing steps you can get publisher-level quality for your self-published book. For more information, contact The Country Press.

PBS

Short run book printing is a great option for the indie author. Short run printing gives the option for book printing for those with little warehousing space and smaller budgets to print their books. It is also a way of making your books truly custom.

In the past this meant that the apartment dweller, or someone with little space, could not get best pricing via volume orders as they had no way to manage the warehousing and fulfillment. That’s all changed as a result of short run book printing.

Short run book printing means that everyone -- not just mainstream authors -- should be able to publish beautifully designed books with first class production values. Short run books allow an author or publishing company to print anywhere from 11-5000 books at a time. This has opened up the world of publishing to everyone who has written and chooses to publish a book.

Short run printing offers self-publishers an option to create and sell beautiful illustrated books.  If you are a self-publisher and are looking for books to fill your distribution channel, The Country Press can fulfill your requirements very effectively. Our perfect bound and saddle stitched books are of the highest quality and can be sent directly to your distribution partners. We electronically save both interior and cover materials so reordering can be just a phone call or email away. For more information, contact us.

businesswire.com

Bookstores everywhere are facing extraordinary pressures. The switch to ebooks is squeezing them, while in many places they are facing massive rises in rents and rates.

Books are rarely their most profitable item. More and more of their selling space is given over to cards and gifts on which they can make a profit. Inevitably, this means less space for books.

On the other hand, independent bookstores often put tremendous time and effort into author events and local literary festivals, promoting and supporting books and authors with genuine passion. Those books they do put on display are those that the staff really believe in – not just ones publishers have paid them to promote.

So before you walk into a bookshop with that newly self-published book, pause for a moment and see yourself through the eyes of the bookseller. You might think you are offering them the next bestseller. What they see is someone bidding for a piece of their scarcest commodity – their space to sell books.

How Bookstores View You and Your Book

The first thing they look at is the appearance of your book. It may be unfair, but research shows that the cover is the prime factor in people’s decision to buy a book. If you are self-publishing, know that if that cover isn’t striking, if the inside is sloppy and cheap-looking, why should the bookseller give it precious shelf space?

The second thing they’ll consider is you. The author. You’re asking for their support, but if you’re an unknown quantity when you walk through that door, why should they care about you?

Your relationship with the local bookshop should begin before you publish. In the intervening time, buy books from them, attend and write about events they run. When the time comes to launch the book, you can pitched it, or participate in events.

Don’t expect to walk into a bookshop as a complete stranger and ask them to stock your book. Be a customer first. If they organize events, attend them. Follow them on Twitter and like them on Facebook. Write about them on your blog or pitch an article about them to your local paper.

Get to know them and let them get to know you. It will pay off. For more information on self-publishing, contact The Country Press.

selfpublishingadvice.org

There are many situations where a publisher or author only wants a limited number of books printed. When only a small amount of books are needed, to fulfill orders, for marketing, to handle back orders or for book signings or other marketing events, short run book printing is the avenue of choice.

Traditional publishing means thousands of copies of books will be printed. With traditional publishing, storage, initial cost and demand all come into play. For smaller budgets, smaller storage areas and for smaller demand, short run printing can meet your book printing needs.

New authors, smaller university courses, and often larger publishing houses cannot often afford to choose traditional publishing leading to thousands of copies of books. A short run book printer can help.

For a traditional publisher, the major cost is the setup cost when the printing plates are prepared. Generally, this is really the only cost associated with traditional printing, so if you have a large amount of books to be printed, the cost per book reduces with offset printing. However, if you need anywhere from 11-5000 books, the choice is short run book printing. While the cost per book is higher, the cost for the order is much less, because you can order fewer books.

Through short run book printing you can order a limited number of printed books. This is the better choice for many people and organizations, including churches, publishers, authors, universities and municipalities.

For more information on short run book printing, contact The Country Press.

There is all kinds of inspiration for getting published. However, there are a few things you should know about the business of self-publishing:

1. Your book will reflect your investment. You do need to spend some money on publishing, editing, and marketing your book; even if you are self-publishing. To publish a book to the same standards and quality of the big four publishing companies, you have to make an investment in the book. You don’t want it to scream ‘home-made’.

A customized book cover that is vetted with targeted readers is also part of publishing a successful book. Paying attention to the cover is extremely important to book sales and that self-published authors often "mess up" when it comes to a selecting a good book cover.

2. People who don't know you will need to buy your book. Your family and friends will definitely help promote your book. However, to approach the number of sales in order to get a return on your investment will require extending your book promotion beyond your personal Christmas card lists, Facebook friends, Twitter and Instagram followers. This means you need printed book copies for marketing and promotion: Short run book printing.

3. Book promotion is not for the fainthearted. With over 400,000 self-published titles a year, getting a self-published book noticed is a challenge. Book promotion requires traditional marketing, social media marketing, guerrilla marketing and more. An even greater challenge is that promotion must be done within a limited time frame. Providing advanced copy books to booksellers can be problematic for self-published titles. Booksellers, book reviewers, notable book bloggers, radio and newspapers require advance reader copies to promote a book. A successful book campaign begins six months prior to the book release and continues for at least another three to six months after the release. After six to nine months, the book is no longer new and it becomes very difficult to get it noticed among the over 35,000 new self-published titles released each month.

4. Getting your self-published book on a library or bookstore shelf. Remember bringing your written work to the public is a business. The majority of bookstores will not stock self-published books. It is a matter of dollars. Print on Demand book publishers do not offer the same deep discount on volume sales as traditional publishers; nor do they allow books to be returned. As a result, bookstore owners are reluctant to sell self-published titles. It is not because they are snobs. It is just good business. Stores do not have the space to keep large inventories, especially for books that are not selling. Returns are costly and inefficient.

5. Writing is a personal journey but publishing is not. A myth that most people unconsciously live by is the assumption that others are just as interested in your life as you are. Most writers unconsciously (and often consciously) believe that people will be interested in what they have written. As the saying goes, everyone has a story in them, which is why self-published memoirs are among the top self-published genres.

Book promotion requires a clearly defined target audience and a great marketing strategy. Everything about the book needs to be vetted with the target audience. Short run book printing is perfect for this step.

For more information on ARC's and short run printing, contact The Country Press.

Huffington Post

Things are pretty weird in the book publishing world these days — it’s a scenario not unlike what the major-label music industry has witnessed in the past decade. And, like musicians, authors are increasingly eschewing the big five publishing companies in favor of smaller book printing companies. Small publishing houses aren’t handing out million-dollar advances, but they do promise hands-on support and close working relationships between author and editor or publisher (who are often one and the same).

Small presses also offer diversity. Though most put out only a few titles a year, there are many boutique publishers to choose from, and they’re as varied as the authors they serve. “Gone are the days when The New York Times best-seller list provided readers all they needed to know about the best books to read,” says a press release from the Independent Publisher Book Awards. “More than a million books are being published each year, and many of the nation’s top authors are realizing that in a fast-changing marketplace, independent publishing offers the flexibility required to succeed,” says the release. A significant number of those books are coming out of small presses — some of which have been in business for decades, while others are just starting up.

For more information on small presses, contact The Country Press.

mountainx.com

Amy Shojai, award-winning author of 27 best-selling books. Here she explains why self-publishing is a good choice for writers of non-fiction.

Publishing has changed.

Today is the best time to be an author, particularly for non-fiction writers. Here are some top reasons.

Timing for Publication. Every author must polish, edit and best prepare their work to be professional quality. And while some fiction has timeliness factors, non-fiction more often demands specific scheduling for best effect. Tying a non-fiction book’s publication to a calendar event that is important to that work can impact marketability. With indie publishing, the author has control and can plan the book release and promotions for the ideal time. Anniversaries of historical events can be tied to non-fiction books on these subjects.

Updates/Revisions. Yes, any self published author can update book's digital file quickly to correct a typo or improve an edit. Non-fiction authors benefit even more from the ability to revise and release updated versions of informational and prescriptive works. These can be done easily and quickly, while books published traditionally cannot be revised until/unless a set number of sales demands a new edition. Having books with outdated information can hurt the non-fiction author’s reputation and platform, so self-publishing books on non-fiction has great advantages.

Platform and Reputation. Niche non-fiction sales have dropped or gone away entirely in traditional publishing. That makes sense, because the book must sell enough to “feed” the agent, the editor and the publishing house staff and expenses. For the self-published author who has the reputation, expertise and audience, niche non-fiction books sell steadily and well and can be a renewable resource. They also increase the author’s expertise, offer credentials for speaking engagements and endorsements, and can lead to many other opportunities. Non-fiction is much easier to market.

Pricing. All self-published authors have the ability to price books as they see fit, and change that price as needed. Non-fiction books can be priced higher than fiction, and generally sell better at a higher price point.

Control. This for me is the biggest advantage of all, and covers everything else. The non-fiction author knows what appeals to his or her audience, and has the ability to choose the cover of the book, timing of the release, pricing, revisions and more to best leverage the book’s launch.

For more information on self-publishing, contact The Country Press.

Selfpublishingadvice.org