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6.19.2005

The Small Presser, No. 1

I've always liked the idea of being able to publish something on your own--from that spark of an idea and putting it to Bristol board, to folding the photocopy paper and stapling it together. It lets you see into the various aspects of the entire publishing process. In this occasional column, I'll tell y'all about my experiences with small-press publishing and hopefully you might cull something from it that you can use.

First off, there are a number of ways that you can self-publish. The two most popular options: Go to Kinko's or another copying shop and simply make photocopies, or find a printer experienced in printing comics and have them print and stitch (a fancy-sounding word for "staple") the books for you. Let's focus on the former first. Going the Kinko's route is a good place for any budding small-presser to start. You can print as few or as many copies as you wish, and if you're making the copies at the machine yourself, there's a quick turnaround time. Do a little price checking before going with Kinko's, though, because it tends to be expensive (the Kinko's near my house charge 8 cents a copy and $1 for a color copy). When I started, I began with Kinko's, then I went with Sir Speedy (it was cheaper) and now I use a shop in New York State which charges 2 cents a copy and 25 cents for a color copy (and there's no minimum print order). Ask other small pressers where they get their books printed. I found the New York place through a colleague in the United Fanzine Organization, of which I'm a member.

Also take the quality of the printing into consideration. Some places may give you a decent price, but the copies may be shitty. If your placing an order with a copy shop rather than sitting at the printing machine yourself, ask for samples. If you want, you can also get a quote for folding and stitching. But it might put you above your budget or you may have to charge a higher price for your book than you want to. Do what most small pressers do: fold the paper yourself (yeah, it's time consuming, but put on some Zepplin, get a 12-pack and get to work!) and invest in a long-reach stapler (about $30 at Staples), which makes it a cinch to bind the pages. All in all, you can get a 20-page, B&W digest-size comics with color covers published for as little as 50 cents a book. That ain't bad at all. In fact, that's damn good.

Option Two in self-publishing is to find a printer that specializes in comics. There are several out there, like Brenner, but they typically require a minimum order in the thousands, which means you'll drop several Franklins to get the puppy published. There are some outfits that don't require a hefty minimum, such as ComiXpress and Dreamweaver Press. I think ComiXpress does a bang-up job from what I've seen (they print full-size and digest-size comics), but they do have problems getting jobs done in a reasonable time. They we're flooded with orders when they started about a year ago and haven't been able to keep pace. One of my friends just recently recieved his printed books--six months after the order was placed. But the quality of the job is good, and they'll even sell the book on their site for you (for a price). Dreamweaver does perfectbound digest- and magazine-size books. They run a tight ship. They don't chit-chat but they will get your job done on time--provided you follow their exact specs for printing through them. I used Dreamweaver to print 150 copies of my 280-page anthology Attic Wit #6/7 with color covers; It cost me about $1,000; That's about $6.50 a book (which I sell for $10 a copy). Again, I think that's a great price for a low-volume order.

Note: When you're crunching the numbers to find your total cost, remember to include additional costs such as set-up fees (which are common) and shipping costs.

Dembicki at 12:46 PM  |  link to this     

3 Comments

If you're interested, I started my own little blog at www.waspcomics.com, titled "Wasp Whispers."

Dembicki at 6/19/2005 1:12 PM   

I want to use COmixpress for my 12 page sample pack I'm putting together but I fear I won't get them in time.

I would go the kinkos' route but I don't know, Comixpress is so inviting.

Jason at 6/19/2005 8:40 PM   

If you're looking for a full-size sample, ComiXpress is the way to go; But if you have a tight deadline in mind, it's iffy if you'd get the books back in time. ComiXpress says they're on track, but I'm a little skeptical, especially if they get a flood of orders.

Use Kinko's only as a last resort (meaning, the con is tomorrow and you want to bring a few ashcan samples). If you're interested in digest-size samples, drop me an e-mail and I'll give you the info on the print shop I use. (I'll give that info to anyone who read this blog; Just e-mail me at m@waspcomics.com.)

Dembicki at 6/19/2005 10:03 PM   

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