Overview of Lulu

Posted on April 14, 2007
Filed Under Self-Publishing with Lulu |

First, let me start off by correcting a common misperception. Lulu is not a Print-On-Demand (POD) company or a vanity press. It is a do-it-yourself publishing service that allows you to publish a variety of media, including:

• Books (paperback and hardbound)
• Ebooks
• Calendars
• Brochures
• Photo books
• Comics
• Digital Media – audio, video, software, etc.
• Images
• DVDs

Unlike a vanity press or POD company, Lulu will not charge you any setup fees to publish your book or require you to order a minimum number of books. Lulu does require you to purchase a proof copy so you may check for errors. They also expect you to take full responsibility for the self-publishing process of your book. This includes formatting, editing, cover design, marketing, pricing, etc.

The decision to self-publish your book should not be taken lightly. If your goal is to publish a family memoir or a cookbook, then this is the perfect place to do it. However, if your goal is to publish a paperback novel or a nonfiction book to sell to the public, you will first need to do a lot of reading on the subject of self-publishing and marketing. I’ve listed some resources below to get you started.

The Well-Fed Self-Publisher, by Peter Bowerman
The Self-Publishing Manual, by Dan Poynter
The Complete Guide to Self-Publishing, by Tom and Marilyn Ross
Perfect Pages, by Aaron Shephard (Teaches you to design your book, using MS Word)
Guerilla Marketing for Writers, by Jay Conrad Levinson
Book Marketing from A to Z, by Francine Silverman
POD People: Beating the Print-on-Demand Stigma, by Jeremy Robinson
Lulu forum

Comments

One Response to “Overview of Lulu”

  1. Marti on April 18th, 2007 8:52 pm

    Congratulations on the new site! I will add it to The S List at ASquidoo.

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