To add to the ongoing debate about whether to source our books from Amazon CS or IngramSpark…
I have ordered two proof copies of my new book, Happiness Matters, one from Amazon’s CreateSpace and the other from IngramSpark, the ‘publishers self publisher’ which is widely used for extended distribution.
How do the paper copies compare?
Amazon CreateSpace
Quick delivery if you opt for the priority or express delivery but expensive for a proof copy, and no reason that I can see to downgrade ‘standard’ delivery times to something like seven weeks: the proof copy itself may be inexpensive, but who wants to wait seven weeks to see it? Priority delivery can be within the week, so I think that Amazon could revisit their delivery strategy and charges for proof copies.
The price of delivery for paperbacks from the US to the UK is a major factor, considering that if you live in the UK and use CreateSpace to source all your paperbacks, this will be an on-going expense.
The other bugbear, apart from the hassle of ordering from abroad, is the currency conversion fees, which pop up on bank statements having snuck under the radar. It feels like a complete pain not only to have to stump up extra fees for priority delivery from overseas but then be met with these little costs. Not expensive, but annoying.
Quality is good.
If you live in the UK, the paperbacks are printed here, so delivery charges are lower and delivery times are quicker and there are no hidden charges.
If you intend to sell books yourself, or have them available to sell in the UK, set up an account for extended distribution with Ingram Spark. Their website is smooth and easy to use, though being designed for use by mainstream publishers, takes a bit of getting used to. Most of the answers can be found with a bit of research without recourse to the Support line.
Book quality is marginally better than Amazon, especially the look of the cover.
I would welcome your comments about your experiences. Thanks for reading.
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June 7, 2017
Easy peasy lemon squeezy
Fran Macilvey Fran Macilvey, Happiness Matters, Path To Publication 2 Comments
Easy peasy lemon squeezy
Indie publishing is great fun. We get to see our baby take shape, totter its first steps, and, in the midst of updates, changes and design decisions, we can really see the potential of a new product, our new product.
So why, when the process – which is like taking a hundred small steps on spider-web silk – is such fun (easy peasy lemon squeezy…) , and so interesting, do I also find it knackering? I think I may have found an answer.
It’s because there are so many processes to go through for the first time.
To open an account on Amazon KDP takes a few minutes; and that process repeated on CreateSpace, IngramSpark and Draft2Digital also takes a few minutes each time. Even so, the dashboards and their requirements are subtly different; and becoming used to the nuances of each, takes mental effort and patience.
Each step is ‘obvious’ when we know how. Which translated, means, when we have done it before. But setting up accounts, uploading books, images and information for the first time in a host of different contexts is sometimes fraught and occasionally terrifying, if only because every single screen terrain is new and different.
I am well used being exact and precise when it comes to uploading information. Though it doesn’t come naturally to me, I do check and double check my dots and commas, and the host of data that is collected and stored to enable book production and promotion.
Though practice makes blasé, for novice runners a first time for everything turns a timetable for publication into a marathon. Seeking answers to obvious questions, (‘How do I upload an image?’) I don’t often get replies, and so have to google for answers and yes, when I see the button on the ‘front page’ marked ‘upload image file’ that then gets filed away in the ‘Can do’ folder.
So I’m glad I have learned to appreciate what I have learned, and to give myself credit for persevering. It has been worth it, and will continue to be, if only because of what I learn.
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