|
|
Post by calithena on May 31, 2009 19:25:11 GMT -6
Anyone used them or know about them? Reconsidering options at this point.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on May 31, 2009 22:43:06 GMT -6
|
|
burke
Level 2 Seer
Posts: 45
|
Post by burke on Jun 1, 2009 1:57:51 GMT -6
magcloud does not offer shipping to Europe (the site says that they are working on it, but it's been like that for a while already, so I wouldn't hold my breath).
|
|
|
|
Post by labsenpai on Jun 1, 2009 19:04:11 GMT -6
I was looking at Amazon's CreateSpace service the other day. I don't really know how it compares...
|
|
|
|
Post by jimlotfp on Jun 1, 2009 23:45:55 GMT -6
At this point, there should be a pattern of sales that can be used to determine a real print run with a local printer. It'll likely be much cheaper, both in print costs and postage, than going through any of these outfits.
I'm not suggested speculating on the amount of people that might be a copy. Just do a run of the minimum you know people will buy at this point, and once those sell out, then use one of these services. It'll be a bit of an incentive to buy early.
|
|
Alex Schroeder
Level 4 Theurgist
I like my boring fantasy setting
Posts: 182
|
Post by Alex Schroeder on Jun 2, 2009 5:46:19 GMT -6
Anyone used them or know about them? I used them twice for my Flickr photobooks and I was happy. But as you can see, shipping wasn't very cheap, either. Example: 1 x Japan 2007 (flickr Photo Book) Color Cover, Color Pages Double Sided Username: kensanata Number of Pages: 50 Binding: Perfect Bound Page Size: 8 x 10 Re-Order Item $24.99 Sub-Total: $24.99 Shipping & Handling -- International First Class Mail (Production time plus 2-4 weeks to ship): $11.07 Total: $36.06 Note: International First Class Mail takes 2-4 weeks to reach its destination. |
|
|
|
Post by calithena on Jun 2, 2009 6:49:22 GMT -6
That's not great, but it's not bad compared to lulu.
I am torn between letting lulu figure things out (I sort of think they will, somehow) and switching to a new source.
Createspace is good in many ways but they didn't do US letter last time I checked and you have to buy ISBNs IIRC.
|
|
jrients
Level 6 Magician
Posts: 411
|
Post by jrients on Jun 2, 2009 7:57:08 GMT -6
You could use mutliple vendors instead of switching. That allows folks to shop around for the best price inclusing shipping.
|
|
|
|
Post by calithena on Jun 2, 2009 8:00:12 GMT -6
Yes, but it's sort of a hassle to keep track of, and I also think having a simpler web presence makes it easier for people to get into the magazine. I mean, when it's everywhere it's kind of nowhere, in a way.
|
|
Alex Schroeder
Level 4 Theurgist
I like my boring fantasy setting
Posts: 182
|
Post by Alex Schroeder on Jun 3, 2009 4:28:51 GMT -6
I am torn between letting lulu figure things out (I sort of think they will, somehow) and switching to a new source. Being lazy, I'd probably wait it out. |
|
|
|
Post by aldarron on Jun 3, 2009 8:20:53 GMT -6
My impression is that Lulu has "big kid on the Block" syndrom - meaning that people aren't aware of, or likely to trust, other services so folks go to Lulu by default. Lulu knows they can charge more and provide less profit to the authors as a result. The qoop site impresses me but I have no experience with it. Still, I think it would be healthy for self publishing authors in general if more people would use more publishers so I would encourage a switch for the competition reason alone.
|
|
|
|
Post by blissinfinite on Jun 3, 2009 9:06:06 GMT -6
It may not be exactly what you're looking for but I just thought I'd throw this out there. Their quality is good and you may have some other options in terms of printing that you don't get with Lulu. comixpress.com/ |
|
|
|
Post by kelvingreen on Jun 3, 2009 9:28:05 GMT -6
Just to add to blissinfinite's suggestion, I believe that Comixpress also ship to Europe. I'm not sure that they're suitable for Fight On!, but it's worth knowing.
|
|
|
|
Post by calithena on Jun 3, 2009 10:44:39 GMT -6
Has anyone seen the paper quality on the comixpress comics?
This is potentially a big deal. I think we could probably sell a 52 page zine sized fight on (half an inch smaller than current) on there for four bucks.
Well, so maybe it's not such a big deal, since that's half the size of the current issues, which go for nine bucks. Hmmm...
Lulu is only a little more than qoop. And I do think the lulu people are trying to address their issues. On the other hand, I won't hesitate to be an early adopter on some other site if things get too much worse instead of better...
|
|
|
|
Post by blissinfinite on Jun 3, 2009 11:27:21 GMT -6
I have some ComiXpress samples at home and I can compare the paper and give you some feedback later tonight. Off the top of my head, I'm thinking the paper might be a slightly lighter weight than the lulu books but may have a slight coating to it. The paper is heavy enough, however, to limit page see-through. I know the quality of the line-art comes out very much the same on both.
|
|
|
|
Post by blissinfinite on Jun 3, 2009 21:38:21 GMT -6
The samples I have from Comixpress is one comic and one fanzine. The paper quality and weight are the same. Print quality is just as good too. The covers, however, are much thinner on my samples. Glossy paper stock much like standard comics. I know Comixpress do card stock covers as well, I don't have one on hand but I've seen them. They're about the same as Lulu. Anyway, just another option.
On a side-note, I'm pretty sure that Lulu and ComiXpress use very similar equipment for the POD printing. Just a different market.
|
|
