Lightning Source or IngramSpark? |

18Dec 2014

Lightning Source or IngramSpark?

by Taneeka Bourgeois-daSilva ⋅ Leave a Comment

Selecting a print on demand vendor can be challenging for any self-publisher or small press.

Which is better for you? Lightning Source or IngramSpark?

Lightning Source is more designed for medium to large publishing companies whereas IngramSpark is more suitable for self-publishers. Both vendors have a very similar online layout and submission requirement.

The major difference that I’ve noticed is between paperbacks and ebooks. Lightning Source has a better distribution channel for paperbacks and IngramSpark has a better distribution channel for ebooks. At first, I didn’t like the idea of having two different print on demand vendors to work with. I wanted to list all of my titles with the same vendor. I eventually went with Lightning Source for my paperbacks and IngramSpark for ebooks.

There are other vendors such as Lulu and Createspace so don’t hesitate to shop around and find what works for you. I’ve had tons of success with Lightning Source and IngramSpark so I plan to continue publishing my titles with them.

Check out the following articles if you still have questions!

https://www1.ingramspark.com/Portal/IngramSpark

http://www.thebookdesigner.com/2013/11/news-update-should-you-use-lightning-source-or-ingram-spark/

http://www.selfpublishingadvice.org/watchdog-ingram-spark-vs-createspace-for-self-publishing-print-books/

http://www.hollybrady.com/createspace-vs-ingram-spark-how-they-stack-up

About Taneeka Bourgeois-daSilva

Taneeka Bourgeois-daSilva is an authorpreneur, teacher, blogger, educational consultant, and writing coach. She wrote the award-winning Broccoli Chronicles and is the CEO of Building Voices and TCD Kids Foundation. She tweets at @taneekabdasilva.

12Dec 2014

Is Self-Publishing Right For You?

by Taneeka Bourgeois-daSilva ⋅ 2 Comments

Is Self-Publishing Right For You? 5 Questions You Should Answer Before You Self-Publish!

Before you decide on which route you want to take, make sure that you write down your overall goals and plans. Think about the following questions.

1. Are you only interested in the milestone of publishing your book or do you plan to sell millions of copies?

2. Do you want to become an expert in your field, grow your company, and author platform?

3. Do you want to see your book sitting on the shelves of Target, Wal-Mart, and/or Barnes and Noble?

4. Are you limited with marketing, publishing, and technology skills and would prefer someone to represent you?

5. Are you willing to pay a vanity or subsidy press a large sum of money to do the leg work for you?

There are different ways to publish your book. You can go the traditional route and seek a literary agent, if you like. If this is the right choice for you then you must finish your manuscript, draft your one page query, and a two page synopsis. Next, you should purchase A Guide to Literary Agents and look for agents that represent your specific genre. One benefit in going this route is that your book is almost guaranteed to be carried in one of the larger bookstores. One drawback is that you lose control over your book. You are able to provide input here and there, but ultimately the publisher will make most of the marketing and publishing decisions for you.

Self-publishing is another route to take to get your book published and made visible to the world. You can start your own publishing company or go with a POD service and list their company as the publisher. If you self-publish, keep in mind that you are responsible for the creative side, the marketing side, and the business side. You must have the ability to wear multiple hats.

You also have the option of going with an independent publishing company where they will fund the book for you. They will be more willing to take a chance on you versus one of the Big Five (Harper Collins, Scholastic, Random House, etc). The downside is that they don’t have the funding or connections to get you on the shelves of the top bookstores.

Vanity and subsidy presses are appealing to those that have the upfront cash and want someone else to do most of the work for them. They will design your book cover for you, provide you with an ISBN, and much more. There are tons of unhappy clients that have posted tons of articles about their publishing practices so please be careful and do your research.

Keep in mind, no one can make these decisions for you. It all goes back to your goals and plans for your book. Start here, and you should be fine!

About Taneeka Bourgeois-daSilva

11Dec 2014

Press Release – News from Building Voices

by Taneeka Bourgeois-daSilva ⋅ Leave a Comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 12/24/14

Contact: Taneeka Bourgeois-daSilva, Building Voices, tnb@buildingvoices.com

Building Voices | Books, Publishing, Critiquing

Independent publisher releases their first coloring book intended to improve hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills

Los Angeles, CA: Today, Building Voices, an independent publishing company that specializes in children’s fiction, released their first coloring book, Little Kids, Big Voices Coloring Book #1. This 32 picture coloring book is a part of the Little Kids, Big Voices series, which highlights different children and their unique gifts. This amazing coloring book features Myrtle, Mr. Doodlebug, and many of your favorite characters from the novel, Broccoli Chronicles. Priced at $3.99, it will be available before the end of the year.

Building Voices’ mission is to build soft voices into outspoken leaders. The Little Kids, Big Voices book series is made up of chapter books, coloring books, activity books, and more. This series is designed to entertain, inspire, and remind children that they have a voice in this world.

Building Voices’ CEO Taneeka Bourgeois-daSilva said, “Little Kids, Big Voices Coloring Book #1 is a perfectly illustrated coloring book that all kids will enjoy. There are 32 pictures to color, providing a fun and stimulating activity for children.”

About Building Voices: Building Voices is a children’s publishing company based in Los Angeles, CA. Founded in 2011, Building Voices is steadily gaining interest from parents, teachers, and school officials through Twitter, Facebook, Google+, and other social media avenues. In addition to books and publishing, Building Voices offers critiquing services and writing mentorships for aspiring writers. Building Voices is scheduled to publish their second chapter book in December 2015. For more information, visit www.buildingvoices.com.

02Dec 2014

Ways to Grow Your Indie Publishing Company

by Taneeka Bourgeois-daSilva ⋅ Leave a Comment

Ways to grow your business and make more money

Everyone wants to be listed in the Fortune 500 as one of the top earning companies and people in the world. The million dollar question is…how do we get there? How do we grow our company?

I started my indie publishing company, Building Voices, back in 2011. The first two years, I wasn’t actively promoting my business, but instead, I was researching the publishing market and perfecting my craft as a children’s author. Sometime in 2013, I began creating profile pages such as: Twitter, Facebook, GooglePlus, About.Me, Goodreads, LibraryThing, and many more. Along the way, I have learned that networking, marketing, and word of mouth will grow your business quicker than anything else.

In addition to creating these pages, I began to reach out to people through various online forums. I would favorite their tweets, post inspirational quotes, and provide feedback to authors with publishing questions. Finally, in November 2014, I published my first title, Broccoli Chronicles. I wish I would’ve published it earlier in the year so that I had the rest of the year to publish more titles, giving me better rankings for 2014.

One major key to growing your company is to publish at least five to ten titles per year. You get better rankings when you have more books and supplementary materials available because your customers have options on what to purchase which can lead to increased sales. This doesn’t mean that you should publish garbage for the sake of getting your name out there. Make sure that everything you publish has a certain character and quality to it.

After you have published at least ten titles and you are familiar with the publishing industry, it might be time for you to start signing other authors to your company. Make sure that you look for people who already have a platform in their field, whether they are a fiction or nonfiction author. It’s easier to deal with someone who already has a following and a vision for their work. Also, you should research the ends and outs of contracts and royalties. Contracts are binding so you want the best deal possible. Continue to market your company and look for new talent each day. By the end of five years or so, your business should be bringing in a substantial amount of money.

There’s no guarantee that any of us will ever be the next J.K. Rowling or Random House, but we owe it to ourselves to try to be the best that we can be.