Critical to the self publishing process is the self publishing company. With the coming of the Internet, the number of self publishing companies has sky-rocketed. This has been beneficial to the self publishing author, because it has given them more publishing choices, more affordable rates, and more help from the self-publishing companies themselves. But it can be a difficult task to choose the best self-publishing company for you.
When choosing a self-publishing firm, you need to consider a few factors:
- Cost. How much does the company charge for how many books? Any extra costs?
- Book order options. Does the self publishing house have a minimum book order requirement? How many or how few can you get? How easy is it to print more?
- Design options. Does the company offer both inside layout and outside cover design help or templates? How easy is it to use your own design?
- Production & Delivery . How fast and in what manner are the books produced and delivered?
- Marketing. Does the self-publishing service offer any marketing and PR services? Many do. At what cost?
- Other services. Does the company offer editing, critiquing, and other such services? At what cost?
There are numerous self-publishing businesses today. Here is a list of the more popular ones:
- iUniverse. www.iuniverse.com
- AuthorHouse. www.authorhouse.com
- BookSurge Publishing. www.booksurgepublishing.com
- Advanced Self-Publishing. www.advanced-self-publishing-book.com
- Word Association. www.wordassociation.com
- Morris Publishing. www.morrispublishing.com
- Tabby House. www.tabbyhouse.com
- Lulu. www.lulu.com
- Aventine Press. www.aventinepress.com
The Internet offers more comprehensive directories of self publishing firms:
