Concerning Publishing

[Eunice P.]

Hi, I'm a freelancer and I'm interested in publishing my comics in
Singapore. May I know if there is any publishing company which I can
try submit my works to?

Thanks.

[JF]

Hi Eunice,

An obvious one would be Asiapac. They recently published an
adaptation of "A Dream of Red Mansions". You might also consider self-
publishing. A number of Singapore creators have successfully self-
published their own books.

JF

[Eunice P.]

Thanks for the info, JF.

I have another question. If self publishing, that would mean I would
have to look for a suitable printing company.
Do you know of any printing company that most new comic creators would
visit to get their works published at affordable price?

[JF]

Sorry I don't know the answer. You can easily find out by asking
veterans like Otto Fong and Troy Chin, or by asking friends who use
printing services in their like of work. You should also explore
print-on-demand which would lower total upfront cost at the expense of
unit cost, and also e-publishing options like Lulu and Smashwords.

JF

[Eunice P.]

Thanks again JF. I will check on the options you've suggested.

[Johnny]

Hey there. You are doing what I did ten years ago. Before you take the
next step, be aware that your biggest problem is distribution, not the
printing itself. I'd recommend going print-on-demand so you don't
incur too much upfront costs. Then you only pay when someone actually
wants to order a copy. You should only go the traditional printing run
route if you have a very good distributor backing you and putting your
books all over the island.

Alternatively, I'd also recommend making it a webcomic first. It's
free. If people like it, then give them the option to buy a hardcopy.
Good luck.

Johnny
johnnytay.net

[Eunice P.]

Thanks for the input, Johnny. I had done plenty of webcomic before
but haven't gotten the chance to self publish.

I am currently sourcing for print-on-demand services in Singapore. Do
you have any recommendations?

[Johnny]

Hi there.

Print-on-demand services don't exist in Singapore. You need to go to
international POD providers such as the ones JF mentioned. That's good
for you because anyone in the world can read your webcomic and order
from your POD channel. In fact, I'd recommend that you don't limit
yourself to the Singapore market in terms of scope and work!

This seems a little like self-promo, but recently I penned down all my
self-publishing experience on my website (the url below my name).
Maybe you can get something out of it if you have time to visit. From
there, if you still have questions, I'll try to help. :)


Johnny
johnnytay.net

[JF]

Johnny, thanks for sharing your self-publishing experience! It's
important that those who are further along this journey show the way
for others coming in, and it's great to receive your generosity :-)

JF

[Eunice P.]

Thanks again for your advice, Johnny. I must say you have a very
impressive amount of work done for your comics. Where do you usually
get your books published?

I'm quite surprised to hear that POD services don't exist in
Singapore.
Actually, I am familar with some of the ways to market my works
internationally. I have looked into Lulu but I found that the books
are really overpriced. I wanted my readers to have an option to
purchase my book at affordable value so I thought of printing my books
in Singapore and distribute by my own means. However, the main
concern I'm facing is to find the right one that provides printing of
books at budgeted value.

On May 16, 2:06 am, Johnny <email.of...@gmail.com> wrote:

[Johnny]

Hey there,

Thanks! I'm glad you found my experiences useful. I wrote them mainly
so I won't forget them myself, but it's nice if it helps others too. I
find that most writers/artists are loners who don't network. So many
end up making the same mistakes because others are not sharing their
missteps with the future generation.

I hear that Smashwords is pretty good for graphic novels.

Print-on-demand is best for people in our position. If you do a
traditional print run and distribute on your own, first of all there
is a minimum run of 2000-3000 - which is very costly. And then it's
very hard to distribute and sell this many books on your own. With POD
you only pay when someone buys. If it costs a bit more, it's fine;
better than sinking several thousand dollars upfront.

POD is quite a new concept. Only a few companies in the WORLD provide
this service reliably, actually.

Rgds!