Book Projects: The Sausage-Making

by | Feb 24, 2020 | Articles | 0 comments

Lately I’ve been writing a few blog posts about my background and life experiences, some of which may be of interest to my readers. Today I’m going back to talking about books a bit, but I think this topic may interest both fellow writers and non-writers.

Of course, I’m referring to how a book is made. Hence the title, Book Projects: The Sausage-Making. (By the way, I had a heck of a time finding an image to go with this post. I’ve been a vegetarian for about 30 years, and that image of sausagesoof. It doesn’t exactly make my mouth water, but whatever.)

 

The Internals

First, I’ll get into a short overview of what I call the internals. These are matters more related to the manuscript than the actual physical book. And it goes without saying that every book should be professionally edited and proofread, so that’s a discussion for another time.

1) Copyright – Once you commit something to paper or hard drive, you own the copyright to that work. Unlike most other internals, you don’t really need to worry about this until closer to your publication date, though I understand some writers apply for copyright on books that are nowhere near completion. Either way is fine. 

2) The Manuscript (Duh) – Yes, you don’t have a book unless you’ve got a manuscripteither you write it, or pay someone else to write it.

3) ISBN – Your ISBN numbers are crucial, as they are the unique identifiers for ebooks and hard copies. ISBN is actually an abbreviation for International Standard Book Number. If you publish your own books, I strongly recommend buying a block of ISBNs from Bowker. Different versions of the same book have unique ISBNs. For mine, I used three: one for the paperback version, one for the ebook available via Amazon, and one for the ebook available via all other channels (Apple, Barnes, and so on).

4) CIP Data Block – CIP stands for Cataloging In Publication. A publisher can choose to purchase a CIP data block from a company such as The Donohue Group. The information conveyed in the CIP data block is used by librarians to catalogue an item properly. It’s safe to say that an advance publisher’s copy of a book will not be accepted by a library without a CIP data block.

 

The Externals

So you’ve written a great manuscript, it’s been polished, edited, proofread, and you’ve got all the above items in place for publication. Now what?

There are still three major issues to consider: cover design, interior design, and the particulars of the book’s size, paper type, and cover finish.

1) Cover Design – When your book is near completion, you can start shopping around for designers. You’ll want someone who can handle both ebook and paper versions. Keep in mind, they are professionals with clients already on the calendar. Some will need extra time to read part, or even all, of your book. Some will provide multiple options and multiple revisions. This all takes time. The cover will be your potential readers’ first impression of your work, so it’s crucial. You can see the covers for all my work here.

2) Interior Design – Not all cover designers offer interior design, though some do. The “one-stop-shopping” element of that may prove appealing if they do. My most recent cover, for Whizzers, was designed by Robin Vuchnich, who also created the interior design of the book. She was able to incorporate her design into the chapter headers, which made for a much more appealing internal look. In total, she designed the cover for both the ebook and paperback versions, as well as the interior design for both. I was very pleased with the results.

3) Book Size, Paper Type, & Cover Type – Your book’s size is directly related to the genre or type of book. For my paperbacksall of which are novelsI decided to go with the classic 6 X 9, which is actually 5.5 X 8.5 inches. It’s not a pocket book, but it’s not too large either.

Paper type is another matter: do you want acid-free, cream-colored paper? That will cost you a little more for printing, but the product will look just as good as any paperback in a store.

And finally, the cover finish, which is either glossy or matte. Like photos, the glossy cover will be shiny. You might love that, but remember, it won’t photograph well if anyone uses a flash. Matte is flatter but, to my mind, looks more elegant; however, it may scuff up more easily than glossy. Before publishing, I watched a YouTube video about the pros and cons of each, but I recommend going to the local bookstore and comparing and contrasting them. I thought I’d prefer glossy, and it turns out I much prefer matte.

That’s about it for the sausage-making process. I’d love to hear from you in the comments below!

ebook

Author Newsletters

I'll be the first to admit I am not an expert on author email newsletters. However, I believe they're important, and I try to be on top of mine every month. Today's blog post is about that. Normally I send out a newsletter to my email list each month on the 6th. Not...
perils

Instafreebie and The Perils of Evil

Most of you who read this blog know that I'm not a big one on writing about the perils of evil...at least not at the same level as the serial killers or the kings of genocide. Sure, I've got some pretty bad people in my books: Johnny, the doper and rapist in Brothers'...
staycation

The Big July 4th Staycation

“A writer never has a vacation. For a writer, life consists of either writing or thinking about writing.” —Eugene Ionesco   I'll admit it: last week’s blog post was pretty much non-existent. All I posted was a flag picture and a headline, “Happy birthday,...

Facebook vs. Twitter

The news that Microsoft will be acquiring LinkedIn just sent shockwaves through the social media world, immediately leading to speculation about Twitter. Is it going to be next? We all assume that Facebook is not for sale, but in our topsy-turvy media world, I suppose...
run

The End of a Good Run

I’ve had a pretty good run the last five or six weeks: last week’s blog post, entitled What Books Cost Their Authors: A Tale of Blood, Sweat & Tears, had the best “headline quality score” I’ve ever attained (yes, I run my headlines through an analyzer for SEO, to...
asia

Adventures In Southeast Asia

“A writer never has a vacation. For a writer, life consists of either writing or thinking about writing.” ― Eugene Ionesco I first began visiting Southeast Asia over twenty years ago, so it probably comes as a surprise to readers that I haven't written about my...

And So The Tour Ends

Well, it's finally over: the blog tour for the relaunch of Miles of Files ends today with a stop at Novelgossip, hosted by the fabulous Amy. I say fabulous because, man oh man, has she got a following! Not even four o'clock, and already 33 bloggers have liked the...

Miles of Files: Where Did It Come From?

I wrote my third novel between about 2007 and 2015. I can’t say it took a full eight years to write – I got stuck in the final third for a couple years – but it was an ambitious project. I’d gone from a third person novel to a first person novel, and now I was going...

Who Are Your Greatest Connections?

When it comes to networking, making connections with people who have a greater influence in your industry can be beneficial in ways that go on and on. This has proven true for many people, I'm sure, and I know I've seen it in my own experience. Two recent examples...
self-promotion

What’s The Problem With Shameless Self-Promotion?

While I still find it somewhat hard to believe, I've been on Twitter for almost eight years. I know this not only because Twitter shows Joined March 2015 on my profile but also because, even if they eliminate that feature, I use a tracker called Who Unfollowed Me? If...
MLK

MLK Day 2023

Here’s wishing everyone a safe, sane Martin Luther King Jr. Day. For many of us, today is always something of a day of mourning: not only mourning the loss of a great civil rights leader, but also mourning the turn our great nation seemed to take in recent years....

Twitter Tips for Authors in 2023

If you follow my blog, you probably connected with me via Twitter, whether you’re a fellow author or not. In 2020, I wrote a post about Twitter for fellow writers that got a good response. Three years later, the landscape has changed, but some Twitter best practices...
rails

Going Off The Rails (But Not On A Crazy Train)

Last April, I wrote a blog post called Back on Track With a Work-In-Progress. Part of that post was to talk about the difference between a “plotter” and a “pantser” (and to describe myself as a hybrid of the two, a “plantser”). Another, less obvious motive, was to...
French

Those Tricky French Authors and Their Obsessions

Today’s blog post was originally going to be Write Whatever the @#$% You Want, Pt. III. However, after seeing parts I and II lined up, I decided to call an audible and make it something less repetitive. Somehow the SEO gods have gotten into my head. As I’ve mentioned...
scared

Write Whatever the @#$% You Want, Pt. II

In last week’s post, I mentioned a pretty well-known author who has publicly reported his publisher “wouldn’t touch” a new release, in part because a character in his novel referred to herself as “fat.” I heard this story on a podcast, and I remember thinking, “Wait...
censorship

Write Whatever the @#$% You Want

I’ve been stewing on this for a while. It’s been brewing for quite a while. I could probably write a song about it (how about a rap?), but I don’t think I will. This is more of a blog post topic, and it might even deserve a series. And that’s the title and topic of...
gratitude

Should Every Month Be Gratitude Month?

When I was a kid, I loved Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz. I read it daily and collected nearly every paperback volume of the cartoon, so I could see what I’d missed since the comic strip’s inception in 1950.  Certain things stuck: quotes like “happiness is a warm puppy”...
robot

More Thoughts On Robot Writers and The Tech Dystopia

A couple of months ago, I wrote a blog post here called When Will the Robot Overlords Replace Us? Apparently, I’m fairly obsessed with this stuff, because every time I come here and empty my brain, it seems to come up again. Today is no different. Part of the reason,...