Self Publishing with Creatspace

Self-publishing your book is not a failure. It simply means you are taking destiny into your hands. It is also very easy to do, I have done it and I will share my knowledge.

I self-published my first book in October of 2011 and it is a photography book. I choose to use Creatspace for my book because it was convenient. I also knew that mainstream publishers would not touch it because it was a local book. Yet I felt the need to get this book published and offer it at an affordable rate so the people in my area could buy it. Createspace would allow me to do this.

This book is filled with photographs of the destruction that Tropical Storm Lee caused our ‘Valley; on September 8, 2011. We had historical flooding and well the photographs are unreal. The destruction, well at least part of it is captured in the photographs.

Formatting the book was the hardest part, but once I found a video, which showed me how to accomplish my goal the rest was easy.

I uploaded my file to Creatspace and waited for staff members there to review my book. Once they approved it, I ordered the proof so I could see it. The 5 by 9 size was not right in my mind because it was too small. I reformatted the book to an 8 by 10 size and waited. When I got this proof copy, it looked nice with one exception. The photos did not reveal the horror we experienced, so I went back into the file and changed the image settings to full color.

Using this website allowed me to have the freedom in how the book would look like. I could set my price. It is also available in several places. My book is available on the Creatspace website as well as Amazon. The expanded distribution fee, which I paid, allowed me to have the book listed on other websites such as Barnes and Noble along with in their stores. That fee also allowed me to sell it to independent bookstores and libraries.

The profit margin on my book is rather low. It is reduced further because I am giving a portion of the online profits to my community. I feel since this book is a part of our local history, profits really do not matter as long as the product is affordable.


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