The New World of "Micro-Publishing"

Small is bountiful: At The Publishing Pro, LLC, we're beginning to favor the term "micro-publishing" over "self-publishing." Actually, both terms have meaning. "Self-publishing" refers to the practice of an author publishing his or her own book. "Micro-publishing," as we use it, refers to the practice of planning projects that are viable with very small press runs. In the "olden days" (maybe ten years ago), publishers generally thought they had to sell thousands of books before a book project went into the black. With the advent of short-run printing technologies, including but not limited to "on-demand" technologies, that has changed. At The Publishing Pro, LLC, we often work with projects that become viable at runs of between 200 and 1000. Some projects work at much smaller projects. The planning is exactly the same as it is in traditional publishing. In other words, it's basically a four-step process. First, you develop the concept. Second, you estimate how many books you can sell--and where you might sell them. Third, you calculate the cost of a logical press run based on your sales estimate. Fourth, you use a formula to determine a price that will generate a profit on your press run. If the numbers don't work, you repeat the cycle until it works or you ditch the project. And whether you are a "self-publisher" or a publisher of other author's material doesn't matter. The Publishing Pro, LLC.