Almost Ready to Publish Questions

[Xibalba]

Playtesting of my game, Heirs to the Lost World, is going well so I am getting ready to start the publishing process, but I need some advice.  I've been looking mostly at Lulu for print-on-demand, and the other PDF download sites.

1.  The book is about 200 pages with full color art.  My plan is to have a black-and-white, paperback book, color paperback, black-and-white PDF download and color PDF download.  Is it a mistake to offer so many different options?  I love the color art, but it will be pretty expensive. That is why I plan on selling a black-and-white version, too.

2.  I am not planning on getting an ISBN.  Is this a mistake?  Right now, my thinking is that if the game starts selling, I could always get an ISBN later.  Is this true?

3. I am not sure what I should do regarding business type.  What are the pros and cons of sole-proprietor, LLC, aned S-designation?

4. What is a Standard Manufacturer Code, do I need one, and if so, how do I get one?

5. So far, I have done everything for the game, including writing, art, layout, cartagrophy, but I know I cannot do my own editing and proofreading.  What is a good way to get an editor/proofreader?

[iago]

1.  The book is about 200 pages with full color art.  My plan is to have a black-and-white, paperback book, color paperback, black-and-white PDF download and color PDF download.  Is it a mistake to offer so many different options?  I love the color art, but it will be pretty expensive. That is why I plan on selling a black-and-white version, too.

I'd just stick to color for the PDF; offering a black and white version of the PDF when a color option is available seems ... not very valuable to me, and might lead people to be unhappy with the 'markup' between B&W PDF and color PDF.

In print, I'd do the color printing as a limited edition, fixed number of copies run, sold at a premium, and then release the black & white version months later -- similar to how Silver Age Sentinels hit the streets, as it happens.  But that's just my gut speaking.

2.  I am not planning on getting an ISBN.  Is this a mistake?  Right now, my thinking is that if the game starts selling, I could always get an ISBN later.  Is this true?

You can get an ISBN later, though it obviously won't be on any versions of the book that get printed beforehand.

I don't go for ISBNs unless I'm planning on getting into the three-tier distribution system.  That's usually a losing proposition as a small press publisher.

3. I am not sure what I should do regarding business type.  What are the pros and cons of sole-proprietor, LLC, aned S-designation?

An answer that is far, far too long and too involved to be presented in a web forum.  If you're considering doing anything other than sole proprietor, call a lawyer.

4. What is a Standard Manufacturer Code, do I need one, and if so, how do I get one?

Well, I don't have one, and I don't remember what it's for, and that hasn't hurt me yet.

5. So far, I have done everything for the game, including writing, art, layout, cartagrophy, but I know I cannot do my own editing and proofreading.  What is a good way to get an editor/proofreader?

There's another forum on here for "help wanted" type stuff. I'd start by posting there.

[Seth M. Drebitko]

1.  The book is about 200 pages with full color art.  My plan is to have a , paperback book, color paperback,  PDF download and color PDF download.  Is it a mistake to offer so many different options?  I love the color art, but it will be pretty expensive. That is why I plan on selling a  version, too.

I would say put the pdfs out as a black and white and color bundle, reasoning being that I don't feel like printing out 200 color pages and I assume most other people paying for their ink don't want to either. Another thing might be to have galleries of images in your book as well as excerpts from it to make customers hyped up and want to purchase the color edition.
Regards, Seth

[iago]

I would say put the pdfs out as a black and white and color bundle, reasoning being that I don't feel like printing out 200 color pages and I assume most other people paying for their ink don't want to either.

Sure... and when I feel like that, I tell my printer config to print without colors.  Is it really necessary to build a big color/b&w split bundle, I wonder?

[Thenomain]

I would say put the pdfs out as a black and white and color bundle, reasoning being that I don't feel like printing out 200 color pages and I assume most other people paying for their ink don't want to either.

Sure... and when I feel like that, I tell my printer config to print without colors.  Is it really necessary to build a big color/b&w split bundle, I wonder?

Speaking as someone who does family-level tech-support, I think it's frendlier to offer both instead of require the customer to have that level of technical know-how.  It's not that hard, but I know people who never go into "advanced options" for the PC printers or anything other than the default print page for Mac printers.  ("Pull-down box?  What's a pull-down?  Where's Printer Setup?")

I don't know how hard it would be to offer the Color or B/W version when you're serving up the PDF, but it's a third option.

[Jake Richmond]

Quote from: iago on March 04, 2007, 09:15:08 AM
Quote from: Seth M. Bashwinger on March 03, 2007, 06:24:04 PM
I would say put the pdfs out as a black and white and color bundle, reasoning being that I don't feel like printing out 200 color pages and I assume most other people paying for their ink don't want to either.

Sure... and when I feel like that, I tell my printer config to print without colors.  Is it really necessary to build a big color/b&w split bundle, I wonder?

It is depending on what the color layout looks like. If it's just a few color illustrations spread throughout the book then you likely don't need a black and white PDF option. If the book uses colored backgrounds or designs on every page and extensive greyscale throughout then switching to print without colors does nothing.

I'd suggest combining a plain text version with the full color version. best of both worlds.

2.  I am not planning on getting an ISBN.  Is this a mistake?  Right now, my thinking is that if the game starts selling, I could always get an ISBN later.  Is this true?

depend on who you ares elling your book to. If you are selling to game stores and comic shops then you don't need one. If you are selling directly to customers or through IPR or Key20 then you don't need one. However, if you are planning to sell to bookstores, record store or anywhere else (and I don't know anything about your game, so I couldn't say where you should sell it or not) then you'll want an ISBN. Especially if you want to sell on Amazon or at large chains like Boarders or Barnes & Noble. Of course beaking in these markets is another problem entirely.

4. What is a Standard Manufacturer Code, do I need one, and if so, how do I get one?

I made mine up.

5. So far, I have done everything for the game, including writing, art, layout, cartagrophy, but I know I cannot do my own editing and proofreading.  What is a good way to get an editor/proofreader?

QAs said before, theres a sectioon right here on the board where you can ask for just such help. A quick look in your phone book will show you companies in your town that provide these services as well. You may be better off going with someone with no RPG experience. Or maybe not. You can also check craigs list.

[David Artman]

Is it really necessary to build a big color/b&w split bundle, I wonder?

Want the short answer or long answer?

If one is very, very careful about choice of colors (particularly saturation), then switching a color output book to print B&W will work out OK. If not, the B&W could become illegible, or the colors run together and lose details. If you actually have text over color washes or background images, you could find it illegible (even invisible) if the color-to-B&W shift goes poorly.

And in the end, how do you intend to generate the B&W PDF in the first place? Are you actually setting different art (carefully PhotoShopped grayscale conversions of the original color art)? Or are you just telling your PDF Distiller to do grayscale? If the latter, then your B&W will be just as bad--if bad at all--as some end user printing the color as B&W.

Finally, I'd be surprised if anyone actually printed out a color PDF--it's bound to be more expensive to them than it would be to just buy the softcover book?! IIRC, the average color printer page print costs about 30¢--times 200, and you're talking about a $60 printout! Even if it's only a dime a page average (i.e. not color on every page), then you've still dropped $10, to get a crappy printout with no cover. I say, anyone silly enough to print out a 200 page color PDF rather than buy a nicely printed, bound book deserves what they get.

My conclusions: Don't deliver a B&W PDF at all. If you want to be tweaky (and if your colors grayscale well--see above) then you could probably put a Print in Color or Print in B&W button on the front page ("cover") of the PDF--I am 99% certain there's a way to control color output with a PDF Form button (been a while since I've done any forms or "active" documents in PDF).

HTH;
David
P.S. If you only have color on some sheets--not on all--then you might want to discuss page inserting with your print provider. Avalon Innovations, for one, will do B&W runs of pages with no color and color runs of the one with color and insert them where appropriate (check out Perfect, in my sig--they did it that way for the handful of color pages in that book).

[Valamir]

4. What is a Standard Manufacturer Code, do I need one, and if so, how do I get one?

I made mine up.

I wouldn't do that.

If you aren't going to use a fullfillment or consolidation service you don't need one.  If you are going to use such a service you'll want one, but you'll want one that's compatable with the major index of codes which for this hobby is Games Quarterly Catalog. 

When I went to Key20 for fulfillment I was given a code.  I don't know if Key20 came up with it or GQC, and if I didn't like it I could have asked for something different, but the important piece was that RAM (what I would have chosen) was taken but RHP was not.

Using a code that's already in use by someone else is worse than not using a code at all.

[guildofblades]

>>Using a code that's already in use by someone else is worse than not using a code at all.<<

Well, considering MSM has been known to assign a code to a publisher then willy nilly change it because some other publisher that they preferred wanted it. So we long ago gave us giving a damn about their code structure.

Additionally, plenty of other publishers from other industries do nothing whatsoever with the 3 letter company codes and whenever some of their products end up being stocked by a hobby game or hobby distributor the distributor will just assign their own number to them. That means sometimes a distributor will already have a company code assigned in their system even if you are using a MSM assigned code and they will just give your company a code of their choosing.

So basically MSM codes are fairly meaningless.

Ryan S. Johnson
Guild of Blades Publishing Group
http://www.guildofblades.com
http://www.1483online.com
http://www.thermopylae-online.com

[Jake Richmond]

If you aren't going to use a fullfillment or consolidation service you don't need one.  If you are going to use such a service you'll want one, but you'll want one that's compatable with the major index of codes which for this hobby is Games Quarterly Catalog.

I should have been more clear. I made one up knowing I would need one. It's currently in use with Key20, Alliance, Blackhawh, Esdevium, Onebookshelf and most other companies that carry my game. I wasn't advocating just making one up off the top of your head (although in hindsigt it looks like I was) but instead was saying that you don't need to be overly worried about it. You can select one, and if it is not being used by someone else then it's all yours.

Jake

[MatrixGamer]

Are you listed in Game Quarterly Catalogue? The listing is free. I know it occasionally brings in a sale or two. Google GQC and they come up. They are the same people now running "Game Expo". They are friendly and helpful.

I rather like my manufaturer code - HMS. Makes me feel all nautical.

Chris Engle