May 30, 2007

PRINT-ON-DEMAND PRICE COMPARISON

BOOKLOCKER.COM: $492 (deduct $175 if submitting your own cover)

• No hidden fees. Includes everything.


• Books are usually on the market in less than a month.


• No extra charge for graphics.


• 35% royalties based on list price for public sales; 15% royalties based on list price on wholesale/bookstore orders.

Added Bonus: BookLocker authors who return to use the service for second and subsequent books get $99 setup fees. No limit.

Lulu: $595.00 Formatting, cover design, graphics, barcode, etc. are offered through a variety of third party services providers who run ads on their site.

iUniverse: $599.00 (includes 5 "free" copies) Warning: They own your files after creation and you have to pay $300-$1500 to get them back if you leave their service! They charge extra for photos/graphics (included above). No expedite service. Turnaround is 3-4 months.

Trafford: $1499 (includes 40 "free" copies) Company is based in Canada. No expedite service. Turn-around is 3-4 months.

AuthorHouse: $1567 Charges extra for photos/graphics ($10 per image after first 10 - included in cost above). Expedite fee ($500) is for publication in 30 days instead of 6 months - included above.

Xlibris: $1948 - (includes 10 "free" paperbacks and 10 "free" hardcovers) Does NOT offer ebooks! Charges expedite fee of $349 (included above) for publication in 2 months instead of 4-6 months. Offers template covers only.

Prices based on least expensive package offered by each publisher on similar offers targeting U.S. authors. Fees include setup, original cover design, print proof, ebook creation, up to 25 interior photos/graphics, an ISBN, barcode, a listing on the publisher's website and distribution by Ingram, all within 6 weeks.

NOTE: Many companies offer perks that others don't, some try to upsell authors on extraneous services, and a few even claim ownership of files the author has paid them to create! Study each publisher and contract carefully before making your choice.

For details on BookLocker's program, see: http://publishing.booklocker.com/

Read how BookLocker authors got traditional publishing contracts and built businesses for their books using our service: http://publishing.booklocker.com/booklocker-self-publishing-case-studies/

Do you have questions about self-publishing an ebook or POD book? Ask us about it.