exciting chapbook series news!
Much has been afoot in the book production arena this week as I finish off the last of the handbound chap and prepare the formatting on the switch to perfect bound POD volumes. After a cascade of calculations in the past couple of months as I began considering it, the benefits far outweigh the downsides, the only one of which is my love of small handbound books in general, though this is still something we can do occasion for special projects (like ones that involve textured paper or ephemera as part of their construction) and zines. Recently we did an cool little book with green interior paper that I loved, something that is only possible printing them inside.
That said, there is also undoubtable charm to the slicker and sleeker ones that POD provides, with slightly thicker interior paper and a heftier cover stock. This also opens up more distribution channels and makes it a little easier for bookstores and libraries to order (in the past, we didn't use ISBNs since they didn't correspond, but some authors have wanted them for their own purposes. It also just means less time and labor for me on the production end, at least for books moving forward (I will still keep hand-assembling the already-released books.) This means orders can go out faster and if I plan the proofing process well, less of a lead time between release and books-in-hand than making them myself. I've done a couple tests on this, including my own full-length books, as well as a couple of chaps that were larger format and a square trim size that complimented longer lines that didn't fit on a traditional page size. They turned out lovely, so I am definitely impressed with the quality of POD (this was not always the case, but new advances have served indie authors well.)
Cost-wise, there is a slightly higher price per unit to make it happen, but it necessitates only a small list price jump (still trying to figure out what that will be.) I will be able to spend less on new cover print jobs and printer maintainance/ink (the bane of my existence) for upcoming titles, which helps balance that difference in cost out. While this years books are already selected for the most part, it may even allow us to grow in scope and size in the coming years. I had already planned some anthologies coming round the bend (I am currently reading subs for the ecogothic one) but there can be more down the line. I also have a little more wiggle room budget-wise since other non-book things are moving at a steady pace and helping to subsidize the chaps, plus a little bit from my own Patreon if I am not making something expensive for subscribers in a given month (the production costs on the Poe tarot, for example, were a little more spendy, but copies of my regular book titles are usually not.
Physical proofs will be arriving this weekend, and after a look, we are officially ready to start the new format in a couple of weeks, which seems a perfect way to start the spring..
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