What? A professionally case-wrapped hardcover book with a shmee on the front and the name "Alexander Cooney" on the spine? Did that fellow get published? Is this truly a legitimate piece of literature?
Yes, yes, and no. This little baby, which popped up at the post office monday afternoon, is the latest manifestation of my sudden fascination with online self publishing. It came from lulu.com, a website that sends you a real, live, legitimate book after you virtually send them a bunch of text and cover art images. It's incredible. I could have even swapped the casewrap with three different kinds of paper back, dust jacket hard-cover, saddle stitch and/or color printed variations. In addition to actually printing and manufacturing books on-demand, it also allows you post your masterpiece on Amazon.com and create an online storefront, much like what I've been doing with the shmee tees.
After I set my mind on ordering a book of my own, I soon realized I was going to need some text to fill it. Luckily, screenplays count as text, and since I have plenty of those guys hanging around, I gathered them up and sent them off to the press. This guy's not for sale, but just the fact that I could write some trashy sci fi novel and sell it online gets the wheels turning.
But the possibilities don't just stop at books and shirts. Additional websites can provide anybody willing to pay a reasonable price with professionally replicated dvds, cases, covers, coffee mugs, full size color posters, and many other forms of media that would normally be a far reach for the hobbyist.
So fire up the puter and get to work on that great American novel, because the only thing that's physically separating your idea from your sexy masterpiece on the shelf is about eighteen dollars (plus shipping and handling).
You're funny. And I hope this new fascination isn't financially draining.
Posted by: Maren | May 17, 2008 at 10:13 PM