Writer’s Block // Print On Demand, The Future of Publishing Now!

I’m gleaning some ideas from various sources here but the topic of the day is this whole Print On Demand revolution in Publishing. Yes, I dare say “revolution” with a small “r.” I say this with a small “r” because this revolution is going on unnoticed by most of the reader’s market out there. It’s sort of just developing and happening without any one really being outwardly cognizant of it going on.

In this way, the Internet came on the scene in a similar way that is, at least until the whole dot.com era hit Wall Street and IPO’s were being formed as commonly as major commercial real estate closings. It was at this point that people began to take notice and of course, pour all sorts of monies into these companies with the hope of riding on the coat tails of each dot.com’s success. By the time the general public became aware of this, the major money to made had been made. That doesn’t mean no money can be made regarding the Internet today but different models have to be formed and created.

Well, the Print On Demand technology and process is at the point where not that many people are aware of it’s growth potential. Which means now is the time to be a part of this publishing model, whether it be actually as a user of the technology or as an investor in this technology.

And there are different ways to get involved as an investor. One of the primary methods would be to search out and research some of the Print On Demand companies out there. An example would be Random House Publishing, which owns (for all practical purposes) Xlibris, one of leaders and pioneers in this new technology and methods of bookselling and distribution. There are others and I will try to list a few more of them in the future.

The other way to invest is to seek out an author who is trying to publish his/her writings. This method has pluses and minuses. On the plus side, you have the advantage of being close to the creative talent and, if one has an entrepreneurial bent, to influence and develop a marketing plan for the publication’s distribution and consequently work out an agreement as to a share of the profits. The downside of this methodology is that this area is still new and this definitely requires work both on your part along with the author. But then, it is a way to get into the publishing field with as a minimal cost as possible. I’ll also try to expand on some of these ideas in the near future.

And then of course, the primary method of getting involved is as a creative talent user of the technology. This all depends on your own particular creative bent and if you have something to offer. The key is that you believe that you have something to offer. If it’s something you believe in, it will be something worth the effort to put into the whole process of creating, editing, copywriting, and publishing, along with developing a blog and /or a website for distribution. Of course, some of the companies out there already offer many of these tools. Again, in the near future, I also hope to expand on this some of the opportunities available out there.