Whale Sound Audio Chapbooks just published its sixth title – Fishwife by Jennifer Jean. There’s a music soundtrack and extra illustrations in this one – yay for collaborations!
Wrapping up this project and working on my own latest nanopress project (a chapbook this time), I took the time to write down the various steps for multi-format publishing. It looks like an awfully long list, but all the stages can be worked in parallel, and each is actually not more than 2-3 hours of work. I figured that, if I didn’t have to periodically stop work to get clearances from my project partner, I could publish a chapbook manuscript in all the formats below in one day — a long day, but it would be manageable. The MOST work is in the first three steps: 1) editing the manuscript – which can go a really long time; 2) recording and editing audio; and 3) identifying and getting permission for cover art. Once you have those three elements in hand, the rest of the process is a relative breeze. Thus:
MS
• Agree with editor or poet (‘partner’) on final MS
Cover art
• Agree with partner on cover art
• Obtain permission from artist to use art
Audio
• Record audio in MP3 format
Misc
• Get bios and any mug-shots or statements from partner & contributing artist(s)
• Compile list of acknowledgments, if any
Website
• Establish private blog, select website theme/design
• Upload & format cover art
• Upload & format poems, bios, mug-shots, acknowledgments & any statements
• Upload & format audio
• Format internal links
• Clear all site content with partner
• Add links to other formats (PDF & MP3 downloads; e-book; print edition & CD)
• Switch site from ‘private’ to ‘public’ on formal publication date
PDF download
• Format MS in A4 size
• Clear A4 MS with partner
• Convert to PDF format
• Upload and link to website
E-book
• Format MS per Smashwords style guide
• Design e-book cover
• Clear Smashwords MS & cover with partner
• Upload doc & cover to Smashwords
• Publish e-book on Smashwords (24 hrs before overall publication in case fixes needed)
Print edition
• Format MS as 6X9
• Clear 6X9 MS with partner
• Upload MS & design cover online at Lulu
• Clear cover with partner
• Publish book (keep link private until formal publication date)
CD
• Upload audio at Lulu
• Design CD label & contents insert online at Lulu
• Design CD cover online at Lulu
• Clear CD cover with partner
• Publish CD (keep link private until formal publication date)
I listened to your reading with background music. A beautiful presentation. The illustrations are charming and a wonderful complement to the poems.
Nic, Nice info here. As one who believes in the value of accepting the future of publishing as it will be, I appreciate it. Notebooks and pens are nice, but at least in the US, mulit formats have been the norm since the beginning…
Carrying the torch…
J
If I’m being inappropriate please just delete this, but I have gone from very happy, because my daughter’s brilliant boyfriend got sound on the first three mini-episodes on the right side of my webpage, and I can hear the sound on my computer after I record, to sad, because apparently other people are only getting “buffering” or “connecting” endlessly when they click on the audio.
Any idea what we’re doing wrong? I won’t be able to understand the answer, but will pass it on to the boyfriend!
Signed,
Sad
p.s. He used something called Audacity.
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[...] – multi-format poetry publishing! – Want poetry readers? publish in multiple formats, some free – Multi-format poetry publishing – production steps [...]