| Unlike eBooks or white papers or other digital | | | | Print publishing opens a whole new market for |
| information products, designing, publishing and | | | | your ideas -- the millions of individuals who love to |
| promoting printed books can be a "stuffy" and | | | | read books, and who prefer them to digital media. |
| time-consuming process. Thanks to centuries of | | | | Not everyone has a laptop computer they can |
| publishing practice and establish standards, printed | | | | take with them everywhere, and not everyone |
| books have a set, defined structure, which you'll | | | | likes to read 8-1/2 x 11 printouts. When your |
| need to follow, if you want to be taken seriously | | | | ideas are in print, they become instantly accessible |
| as an author and a publisher. | | | | to readers the world over, regardless of their |
| Yes, preparing your information for the print | | | | technical skill or the availability of a computer. |
| world can be a real pain, at times. It takes days, | | | | There are no batteries or power cords required, |
| even weeks, longer than cranking out digital | | | | and when someone opens a book, they don't |
| products, and you may not make as much | | | | need to wait for it to start up, before they can |
| money on the finished product, thanks to | | | | begin reading. |
| competitive pricing that sets the cost of a print | | | | Now, to many infopreneurs who are adept at |
| book dramatically lower than what is really | | | | creating eBooks and white papers, print book |
| cost-effective. In a way, the publishing industry | | | | publishing may be something of a mystery. But it |
| maintains its monopoly based on unfair and | | | | doesn't have to be complicated. If you're a |
| unrealistic pricing structures, and it traditionally | | | | fiercely independent person, and you prefer to do |
| excludes authors and independent publishers who | | | | things yourself, rather than turn them over to |
| cannot afford to offer deep discounts for their | | | | others who may (or may not) be competent and |
| works. | | | | as detail-oriented as you, learning how to publish a |
| To some infopreneurs, the hassle and the lower | | | | print book could be just the thing to take your |
| profit margins may not seem worth it. But if you | | | | writing and publishing efforts to the next level. |
| want your ideas to reach a wider audience, and | | | | You can extend the reach of your information |
| you want your ideas to be taken seriously by the | | | | product line, you can approach mainstream |
| book readers of the world, all that effort is | | | | traditional media outlets for publicity, you can do |
| necessary, and it can really pay off. Indeed, how | | | | live book readings at real-live bookstores, and you |
| well you follow the conventions of print book | | | | can take your book with you wherever you go, |
| publishing can mean the difference between being | | | | to show the world what you've got. |
| taken seriously by reviewers, interviewers, and | | | | Writing and publishing isn't just about selling |
| your reading public, and being dismissed as just | | | | product. Yes, having a printed book opens you up |
| another wanna-be writer who got their hands on | | | | to a whole new audience, but commercial profit |
| some advanced technology and a credit card. | | | | isn't the only point of publishing. For you as an |
| Well-structured sections in the front and back | | | | independent thinker -- a thought leader -- |
| (called "front matter" and "back matter", | | | | publishing is really about getting your ideas out |
| respectively) like title pages, copyright | | | | there and making your mark. With the proper |
| statements, a table of contents, introductions... | | | | tools, an eye for detail, and the right information, |
| bibliographies, endnotes, and about-the-author | | | | you, too, can turn your digital information |
| information, can go a long way towards | | | | products into high-quality printed books that widen |
| establishing a visual authenticity with readers, that | | | | the reach of your ideas and speak to a larger |
| you just can't get in eBook format. | | | | audience in a whole new way. |