"Aaron Shepard is the undisputed expert at earning profit from POD. Here are the step-by-step instructions for setting up your own publishing operation and optimizing the financial benefits. Following his steps, you will earn two or three times as much per book." -- Bruce Batchelor, author, "Book Marketing DeMystified," and founder and former CEO, Trafford Publishing
"A graduate course and definitive guide for advanced POD publishing." -- Morris Rosenthal, author, "Print-on-Demand Book Publishing"
"A tremendous amount of information that will benefit an author who self publishes not only through Lightning Source but by any other method." -- Kevin Sivils, author, "Self-Publishing with Amazon's CreateSpace"
"Remarkably thorough and readable." -- Jonathan LeBlanc Roberts, Breton Bay Publishing
"Invaluable advice for any small press or independent publishing firm." -- Max Scratchmann, Poison Pixie Publishing
"Could not be more timely or helpful. What a wealth of information . . . and not just what to do, but HOW." -- Malcolm Dell, Elbow Grease Publishing
"Aaron Shepard is exceptional in his ability to keep up with the ever-changing minutiae of the world of self publishing via POD. I wouldn't want to publish without this book within reach." -- John Culleton, Wexford Press
"Another gold mine of information from Aaron Shepard. Absolutely required reading for any self publisher." -- Christy Pinheiro, author, "The Step-By-Step Guide to Self-Publishing for Profit!"
"Lots of valuable, easy-to-understand information. I will recommend this highly to my self-publishing clients as a reference for their many questions. Even after more than a decade in the business, I learned a few things from this book." -- Jamie Saloff, Saloff Enterprises
"Indispensable if you are considering printing your book POD. Covers every aspect of the process in depth." -- Norma Lehmeier Hartie, Lingham Press
"After Aaron's 'Aiming at Amazon' and 'Perfect Pages,' his new book completes the tool belt allowing small press entrepreneurs to succeed. Learn the elements essential to flourishing as a publisher -- and not just any kind -- a profitable one!" -- T.D. Hollowell, Undiscovered Press
"I wish I had read a book like this before I started publishing." -- Brandon Simpson, Small Town Press
/////////////////////////////////////////////////
CONTENTS
About This Book | Review the Rules
1 ~ LEARNING ABOUT LIGHTNING
Get the Facts | Lightning Source Partners | Get the Connection | Get the Advantage | Get Access | The Espresso Book Machine
2 ~ BECOMING A PUBLISHER
Adopt a Name | Obtain ISBNs | Set Up for Business | Real Self Publishing? | Plug Into Lightning | Request Listings | Access Wholesalers | Stake Your Claims | About Google Books
3 ~ WORKING WITH LIGHTNING
Understand the Model | Setting Up Sales | Consider Capabilities | How to Spell Lightning | Use the Site | Work with Reps | The Ingram Companies
4 ~ DEALING WITH DATA
Gather Your Info | Assign Your ISBN | Set the Year | Guide Booksellers | Assist Librarians | LC Subject Headings | Reveal Your Content | Create Your Images
5 ~ GOING TO MARKET
Choose a Pub Date | Set a Discount | Set a Price | Aaron's POD Price Chart | Refuse Returns
6 ~ PREPARING YOUR FILES
Prepare Your Pages | A Better Reprint | Prepare Your Cover | Ink Limits and Images | Cope with Color
7 ~ LAUNCHING YOUR BOOK
Upload to Lightning | Avoiding a Proof | Submit Your Listings | Check In on Wholesalers | Check In on Amazon | Prelisting on Amazon | Check Other Booksellers | Moving to Lightning
8 ~ SPREADING THE WORD
Show Up Online | Get Reviews | Taking It Easy
9 ~ LOOKING AT LEGALITIES
Consider Copyright | Make a Deposit | Why This Book Has No Checklist
10 ~ MINDING YOUR BUSINESS
Watch Your Sales | Sales Trivia | Handle Other Sellers | Sell Foreign Rights
11 ~ FACING THE FUTURE
Consider Revision | Consider Price Changes | Adding Distribution Options | Consider Double Sourcing | Turn Down Buyouts | Publish More Books | Aging on Amazon
APPENDIX
Where to Get Help | iPage Publisher Accounts | Working with BowkerLink | Learning About TextStream | The Stigma of POD
/////////////////////////////////////////////////
FROM THE INTRODUCTION:
This book is both new and not new. It grew out of my earlier book, "Aiming at Amazon," and some of the material you'll read here was once part of that other book.
"Aiming at Amazon" outlined the new business of self publishing, based on producing and distributing books through print on demand and marketing those books through online booksellers, especially Amazon.com. When the book first came out, there was only one way for a self publisher to profitably approach Amazon -- through the POD provider called Lightning Source. So, I treated the two as inseparable elements of my model.
Less than two years later, when the book came up for revision, things had changed. Amazon's own POD offerings had evolved, and its CreateSpace had become a viable alternative for self publishers. Lightning was still the more profitable choice, but CreateSpace, with its greater ease and convenience, was better suited to many beginners. At the same time, I had about three times as much to say about Amazon marketing.
So, the second version of "Aiming at Amazon" focused more on Amazon itself, and I saved most of my remaining content for a second volume to be focused on Lightning Source.
This is that second volume. And like my writing on Amazon marketing, this material too has about tripled in bulk. I've gone into much greater detail about how Lightning works and how to work with it, as well as about other services important to Lightning publishers.
