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Posted March 30, 2010 22:28
AUTHOR MEMBER:
I just added my own books to your site, but I didn't know how to add my picture on my profile page.
SCOTT:
Go into the MY PROFILE tab in your back office (where you put your bio) and you will see the upload button for picture/avatar when you scroll down.
AUTHOR MEMBER::
I'd like to use my own cover for my book icon (I have a pdf). How do I do it?
SCOTT:
Just go to the MY BOOKS tab in your back office. Where your book is, you will see a link that says "Edit Book Info." Click on that link and then click "Choose File" next to custom art. The jpeg just has to be under 1MB and will take a few seconds to change.
AUTHOR MEMBER::
If I decide to publish my book this way, or more likely, record it as an audio book, are there any issues with copyright if I should meanwhile get the book accepted by an agent or publisher?
SCOTT:
No copyright issues at all. You retain all rights to your work in any form. I do suggest that your work is copyrighted with the Library of Congress. We can help you with that. If you look in your back office, you'll see a copyright tab.
Also, we can record your book as an audio book. We just signed a deal with a professional audio book service. The functionality will be in your back office in about two weeks from now, but we can certainly help you out beforehand. Let me know if you're interested in this service and I can send you all the details.
AUTHOR MEMBER:I am very interested in recording my book in my own voice -- it is a memoir, and this is what would work best.
SCOTT:
As per the tips section of the site, you can always download audacity, rent a mic and record yourself in a silent setting. Then you can upload that to our site.
AUTHOR MEMBER:
I have written a childrens book and my daughter has completed all of the illustrations. I appreciate any and all wisdom you can provide.
SCOTT:
Here are a few different ways we can publish your book(s):
1. You can design the book and lay out all of the illustrations in Adobe InDesign. We can then save the document as an epub ebook by saving as "FOR DIGITAL EXTENSIONS" in the file menu. I can also provide you with the submission guidelines for a printed book so that you can create a pdf document in InDesign that we can use for the printed book. (You can always create the interior of the book and use our free cover art creator on the site.)
2. Since the InDesign program can be a bit pricey, it may be cost effective to hire one of my cover art designers to lay out the book in InDesign. Let me know and I'll put you in touch with one.
AUTHOR MEMBER:
I have 100 copies of my self-published novel. Can I sell these copies through your service? I would also like to create an ebook of this novel. How much lead time do you require?
SCOTT:
Yes, there are many options for selling books that are already printed. Do you have a site where you're currently selling them? You can link that page to your OffTheBookshelf.com page. Also, an ebook doesn't need any lead time. A printed book needs about a week to be put into our system.
AUTHOR MEMBER:
How do you keep rip-off books off this website?
SCOTT:
We are planning monthly sweeps of the site to look for people who are trying to take advantage of the site or uploading "inflammatory" content.
AUTHOR MEMBER:
I am in the process of finishing a book that is 160 pages, mostly color photos plus text. It probably contains at least 150 color photos. Would this be too large for you?
SCOTT:
That’s fine. Let me know if you need a designer to help format your book or cover.
AUTHOR MEMBER:
I tried to add my book in pdf format and when it got to the 'Pick your price' function, I get a message stating that I tried to make a change that I am not authorized to do. Please advise.
SCOTT:
Most of the time if something like that happens, just quit your browser and log in again and it should be fine.
AUTHOR MEMBER:
My questions revolve around names. Can you add a non-required middle name field? My pen name includes my middle name.
SCOTT:
We will add a non required middle name field. IN the meantime, you can put your middle and last name in the last name field and that is how people will see you.
AUTHOR MEMBER:
I don't think there's any way to list my ebook on your site as it would have to go through another publisher I’m with, but perhaps I'm wrong. What do you think?
SCOTT
You haven't signed anything exclusive with them, have you? If not, simply join and follow the simple steps to upload your ebook. In mid April, we will have a free word to epub converter on the site. In the meantime, you can upload a pdf of your book that can be read on all ereaders. (Unless you have a copy of your book in epub form as well. Then you can upload both formats).
Finally, I don't know how much you pay for your paperback, but we have great rates. You can always put your paperback into our system as well (you'll see how in the webinar I will send in another email) and you get to choose your price and amount of profit as well.
AUTHOR MEMBER:
If I put my book up on your website, will I still retain the copyright? What if a publisher wants it, will I be able to remove it entirely from the site? I’m pretty nervous about the internet.
SCOTT
Yes, you retain all rights and you can always take your work off the site.
AUTHOR MEMBER
How is the payment made to you and to the author? Is it by PayPal or what?
SCOTT
Regarding payment... Readers go through a check out and they can use any major credit card and it all goes through PayPal. When you reach a profit of $10, a "Cash Out" button appears on your back office under the MY SALES tab, and PayPal takes care of sending the money.
AUTHOR MEMBER:
If I upload my new book and have you publish it, it sounds like there are no out of pocket fees to me but you receive a small commission per each copy sold, whether it's an e-book, hard copy or paper copy. Is that correct? Is it also true that your other services, such as using your book cover designing software is also free of charge? Are there any editors that look at the copy and offer their feedback, either for a fee or without a fee? I've done a lot of work on my story and am pretty confident about how it reads now but was just wondering.
I take it that hard copies are produced using print on demand technology. If I want to charge $4.99 for example for a hard copy and want to order a few copies of my own book, would the cost just be $4.99 times the number of copies, plus shipping?
SCOTT
We make 80 cents per ebook and audio book and 99 cents per printed book, no matter what price you choose to sell your books for. There is a one-time set-up fee of $35 for printed books to set up the book with our printer and add the barcode to your back cover. Our cover art creator is free of charge. In your back office on OffTheBookshelf.com, we have a list of recommended editors and proofreaders. They do charge for their service. If you want to order your own book, you don't add any profit when you pick your price. Then you'll just pay the cost of printing, PayPal's small fee for the transaction, and the shipping and handling. Then, after you purchase copies of your book, you can go back in and change your price/profit for other readers.
AUTHOR MEMBER
Do I need to format my manuscript before uploading? If so, what is the cost? Also, what about a cover/art work? Required or optional?
SCOTT
No need to format for an ebook. For a printed book (6X9) we will format it for you at no cost and we have a free color cover art creator. For a color/picture book (8.5X8.5 or 8X10), you upload that as a formatted pdf. We list the guidelines on the site. Then you can use our free cover art creator or upload your own formatted book cover. We have the guidelines listed on the site for that as well.
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AUTHOR MEMBER
Can authors submit their own art for book covers?
SCOTT
Yes, you can. With color books, there is the upload button on the cover page. For 6X9 novels, you can either have one of our cover designers create and/or format your cover for our printer or I can send you the file requirements.
AUTHOR MEMBER:
The author makes how much per sale?
SCOTT
That is up to you. When you upload your book you will choose your price and profit.
AUTHOR MEMBER:
If I put a link on offthebookshelf.com to my own website, am I obligated to pay you a commission for anyone who purchases the book there?
SCOTT
No, you do not pay us anything. We are happy to provide this free service.
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