Print On Demand--The Tempting Siren of the Publishing Business

Print On Demand: no rejection, none of the wait, and the price is reasonable. It sounds like a good idea for the inexperienced writer, doesn’t it? Well, as anyone who has ever been published by a POD service provider can tell you, there is no gold at the end of this apparent rainbow. I am a survivor. About three years ago I finished my first novel. For various reasons, I decided that instead of trying my luck and wasting away my time with a traditional publisher, I would take the road less traveled and get published POD. I went through their channels and was ecstatic to find out that for a few hundred dollars I could print my book my way, without some editor telling me what needed to be changed. I was such a rank amateur that I took offense at the mere idea of some stuffy old man picking my book apart and telling me that it was no good. With a POD I would even be able to design my own book cover and keep the original working title. I did a little bit of work polishing up my manuscript and submitted it. You wouldn’t possibly believe how happy I was to see my book in print. I practically wet my pants.

Well, that happiness didn’t last long, I assure you. My POD company promised me that they’d promote my book. They didn’t. They said my book would be available online. It was, but since I was the only person pushing my book, sales hovered in the single digits for a year. That’s right, less than ten copies were sold online. When I looked into getting my book in local bookstores I found out the hard way that POD books are too expensive for small bookshops. A distributor won’t ever touch one. All of this boils down to one simple fact: my book didn’t sell.

For a while I was angry with myself for being so stupid. After some time had passed I just wrote it off as a valuable life lesson and started on my second book. Three years later and I am a professional screenwriter and part-time novelist. I recently picked up a copy of my first book and reread it. That turned out to be an arduous task. My book was unpolished, under-edited, and it suffered some serious flaws. I could hardly believe my eyes when I saw how bad that book was. I won’t even tell you the name of it out of sheer embarrassment. And that’s how I feel: embarrassed that I could be so green as to think that my first book couldn’t be improved with some editing and polishing. I literally shake my head and stare at the ground when I think about it. Well, at least I learned my lesson, and hopefully I can pass that lesson on to some future writers. Don’t be tempted by print on demand services. Work on your book until it’s ready, and then submit it to a real publisher. If no one picks it up, try again. And again, and again, and again…Someday you’ll find a publisher that’s willing to take a chance on you. I did.

Denise Weinstein is the author of three novels and has worked as a screenwriter in Hollywood for almost two years. Her latest novel will be published by White Paper, Black Ink Press. Their website can be found at www.traditionalpublishing.com