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Writing and Publishing, Part 25:
Becoming your own publisher:
Our Suppliers:
The most important thing to remember about our suppliers is that
the good ones are our allies. They realize that they can succeed
only to the extent that their customers succeed. This makes them,
in a very real way, our partners. Well, who are these partners?
The most obvious partner is the book manufacturer. These are the folks who take our data files and turn them into real books that we can hold in our hands and feel and smell. Many of these firms are located very near to major universities. Universities do a great deal of short run book manufacturing and these firms are aware of that.
You can find book manufacturer's advertisements in the newsletters from PMA and SPAN. Once you join some associations, the manufacturers will find you. You won't have to seek them out. Selecting a book manufacturer can be something of a crap shoot. Not all of them are created equal. I have had some very bitter experiences with a couple. I can tell you about a few that you would do well to stay away from, but I am not going to publish the list. I want to spend my time writing not fighting in a stupid court of law.
In the selection process, there are some tests you can apply. Here are some things to look for. If book manufacturing is a sideline, if they are manufacturing something else, like washing machine energy labels, skip them. If the plant is dirty, skip them. Dirt can ruin a book. One tiny particle of junk on a plate can reproduce through the whole book. There are a million clues, and they all have to do with carelessness. Any signs of carelessness should be a red flag. To be sure, if they don't want you to see their facilities, write them off. The best ones will be quite proud of their facilities and their people.
One other thing in book manufacturers; it is a good idea to be careful of a cavalier attitude. If you ask a question, and the answer is, "Don't worry about that," start to worry. Another point, if you find a majority of the clerk's and worker's titles have some variation or synonym of the word executive, you may want to wonder. Titles are sometimes used in lieu of decent pay and/or training.
Another thing to consider is location. There are some overseas firms which will give you remarkable pricing. You may use them at your own peril. Keep in mind that you are dealing with a company which is not under the jurisdiction of American law. I have read just one horror story about a publisher whose books were impounded because the content offended Red China. It was enough for me. There is also the issue of morality. Those very low prices are usually the result of human suffering.
Finally, there are a large number of book manufacturers around. There is no reason at all to give any of them a second chance if they mess up your job.
We also have other suppliers who support us in various other ways. R. R. Bowker supports us by keeping track of and supplying our International Standard Book Number (ISBN). The Library of Congress supports us by registering our copyrights and supplying the Library of Congress Catalog Number (LCCN).
I also use a company which specializes in creating bar codes
for books. This type of bar code is called an EAN bare code. There
are other types for other kinds of products. The company I use
is Fotel Inc. The address is:
FOTEL, INC.
1125 E. St. Charles Rd., Suite 100
Lombard, IL 60148
Tel: 630-932-7520
800-834-4920
Fax: 630-932-7610
You can also find a link to their website on our weblinks pages
under Williiam's Favorites. The URL is http://www.fotel.com.
These folks are quite good. I simply call them on the phone, give
them an ISBN number, the price of the book and the book manufacturer's
specification for the film. A few days later I receive a film
master which the manufacturer can insert into the cover file.
Although, we can buy software to create our own bar codes I consider
that to be misdirection of attention. The bar code for my last
book only cost $24:00. I can find better ways to spend my time
that competing with these people.
Just as in any business, we will have needs for office supplies and computer products. Just as a note, the office supply business is very competitive. Many times, the ones who claim the best prices are out of line; sometimes grossly out of line. More often that not, I find that Sam's Warehouse Club will underprice many of the traditional suppliers. The point is, shop around.
About computer hardware and software supplies; the folks in this business do not think of us as partners. I believe they consider us and everyone else to be victims; legal prey.
That's enough on suppliers. Next time I will get into the Design
and Manufacturing Techniques.
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