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Publishing a book in Lewes.Any ideas?

 
 
On 15 Nov 2008 at 9:36pm zola wrote:
Can anyone point me in the right direction about having a book published in Lewes? I Googled it,and the choice in huge.A friend suggested 'desktop publishing' but it all seems a bit complicated for me....
This question is on behalf of my lovely Mum,who has written a small book about growing up in the Cliffe during the war.Input would be much appreciated.
 
 
On 15 Nov 2008 at 11:56pm Earl of Lewes wrote:
I worked in the book trade until six months ago and have a lot of experience with books like this.


In a nutshell, unless your mum is a fantastic writer and has written a book that would sell nationally, your market is going to be pretty limited. A commercial publisher would be unlikely to show an interest, so you'd probably have to pay for it to be published. The Book Guild (formerly of Lewes, now in Brighton) specialises in this area and produces good quality books.


Another option is getting your mother's memoirs published on a website, which would be cheap and could actually reach a wider audience. You may find a friend of a friend who knows about creating websites.


As a bookshop manager, one of my hardest tasks was dealing with people who'd published memoirs and were so excited about it that they couldn't understand why I was less than enthusiastic. However, at the end of every financial year I had to write-off unsold stock and titles by local authors usually made up the bulk of these books.


There are also companies who can publish a few dozen copies to give to family and friends.


My dad wrote some interesting stuff about his childhood and the war. We printed it off, complete with photos, and put the pages in an A4 document folder. It was almost as good as a book and cost a lot less.


If you believe your mum's memoirs have commercial potential, I'd suggest contacting a successful local author - David Arscot. However I suspect he'd confirm what I've said - be prepared to part with a few quid.

 
 
On 16 Nov 2008 at 5:54am zola wrote:
Thanks Earl!
That is just what I wanted to hear...My Mum has just spent £40 on 4 copies of the memoirs at a local copy shop which she will give to family.
She knows it has limited appeal and does not expect it to be in the window at WH Smiths....But she wants a few more copies.
My Mum has a word processor,but not the internet,so it is down to me to find out as much as I can. Many Thanks.
 
 
On 16 Nov 2008 at 8:42am Lord Landport wrote:
Zola have you spoken to Digga Lewes Computer Guy dot co dot uk hes a whizz on websites etc hes fixed loads of problems for me and now I tell Everyone etc the good thing is hes Lewes lad with a real Family attitude hed probably enjoy doing this for you and I bet hed get you a website up and running for about the same as a few Books and maybe even in time for christmas.
Commision please Digga.
 
 
On 16 Nov 2008 at 9:53am zola wrote:
Thanks for that LL....I knew it would be a good idea to post my query on here.I'll get in touch with him.Thanks again.
 
 
On 16 Nov 2008 at 11:15am sashimi wrote:
I remember a few years ago a bloke with a sandwich board picketed the offices of the Book Guild (above Sussex Express) because they took his £5,000 fee and refused to publish the book or give him a refund because, they said, it was too filthy. I'm sure your mum's book isn't like that, Zola, but traditional vanity publishers like Book Guild are pricey - and in their case quite nasty. 40 for 4 photocopies sounds like a better idea. If you want to get a proper 'book' production, try lulu.com. You can do all the design and production work yourself - and then they will produce one copy at a time. As far as I can see, there are no up front costs and the printing costs for a few copies are quite reasonable.
 
 
On 16 Nov 2008 at 11:53am Spinster Of This Parish wrote:
I suggest talking to David Arscott
 
 
On 16 Nov 2008 at 12:12pm Lewes Laugher wrote:
What I like about this forum is that when people ask a sensible question they invariably get sensible answers.
 
 
On 17 Nov 2008 at 12:35pm not from around here wrote:
How about asking Viva Lewes - they must know ALL about vanity publishing...
 
 
On 18 Nov 2008 at 11:57am Dave wrote:
Hi Zola
Try this - Its David Arcotts website
www.pomegranate-press.co.uk
 
 
On 18 Nov 2008 at 12:29pm zola wrote:
That is the exact website I fancied when I did my original search!!
I liked the name....
I am impressed with all your input,I liked the Lulu website. That was a good one.
Thanks everyone.
 
 
On 29 Nov 2008 at 2:41pm renee bird wrote:
Try lulu.com


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