The Espresso Book Machine: Print A Book In 6 Minutes

The Espresso Book machine allows bookstores and libraries to print books on demand in about 6 minutes. This allows independent authors to buy print copies of their books; something that has been a boon even to traditional authors wishing to emancipate their backlist and sell it themselves.

The following is from the Bookshop Santa Cruz:

The EBM [Espresso Book Machine] offers Bookshop customers instant access to over eight million titles that are written in a variety of languages. With the push of a button, any book from EspressNet(R), On Demand Books’ digital catalog of content, can be printed, bound and trimmed, creating a paperback book that is virtually indistinguishable from the publisher’s version. Patrons can also use the EBM to self-publish their own work on-site and will have the option to make their book available for sale through EBMs worldwide. Bookshop Santa Cruz is the first location in the Bay Area to have an EBM and one of only twelve bookstores nationwide to have one.

Here's a video of the book machine in action:


Espresso Book Machine at Bookshop Santa Cruz from Vernon Alexander on Vimeo.

How much do POD books cost?
The Santa Cruz bookstore charges the following:

The base printing price for the EBM is $5.00 + 4.5 cents a page, although we do offer some bulk discounts and price breaks depending on the nature of the project.  We also have publishing packages which include various levels of service including graphic design, proof copies, obtaining an ISBN, etc. (Self Publishing at Book Santa Cruz ...)

Let's say we want to print one copy of a 300 page book:

$5 + (300 * 4.5 cents) = $5 + 1350 cents = $5 + $13.50 = $18.50

$18.50 for one copy of a book isn't too bad, but the writer would want to earn something on each sale, let's say 10%. 10% of $18.50 is $1.85, so the sale price would be $20.35. Before tax.

Another source, though, claims that an indie writer could use an Espresso Book Machine to print 100 copies of their book for an average cost of 8 dollars each:

[T]he prospect of a vast inventory of millions of titles to choose from and the excitement for authors of holding a book while still warm "with a laminated cover and bright white paper" at a price of $8 per book for 100 copies is a major attraction. (With This Machine, You Can ...)

This makes CreateSpace look attractive. If you go to this page and click the "Buying Copies" tab you'll be able to see how much you'd have to pay per book, as well as how much it would cost to ship your books. I've just taken out a Create Space account and, so far, the site seems very helpful.

I've never seen an Espresso Book Machine, but I'd love to! It would be an amazing experiencing having a book printed right before my eyes. Thanks to Kim for sending me a link to the article, Self Publishing at Book Santa Cruz Using the Espresso Book Machine.

Here is a link to a listing of all the Espresso Book Machines in the world! Thanks to Peter Smalley for the link.

Other articles you might be interested in:
- Amazon's KDP Select Program: The Power Of Free
- The Secret Of Learning To Write Well: Write
- Jim Butcher, Harry Dresden and the Dresden Files

Photo credit: Politics and Prose Bookstore

Jen Talty: Amazon's CreateSpace Vs LIghtning Source

I love Jen's posts! This time she examines the pros and cons of two print on demand (POD) providers, Amazon's Create Space and Lightning Source. She breaks down the cost of each and then gives her conclusion: Cool Gus Publishing is switching from Lightning Source to CreateSpace.

Here is Jen's breakdown of cost:

Lightning Source:

• $75.00 Upload fee for Cover/Interior
• $12.00 US Distribution (a year)
• $12.00 UK Distribution (a year)
• $30.00 Proof
• Change your files it will cost $40.00 per Interior and $40.00 per Cover
• $1.50 Shipping and Handling charge per order
• must provide own ISBN

****No services provided on cover, editing, or anything else that goes into the making of a book

CreateSpace:

• FREE self-service (there are services you can pay for, but the basic upload is free)
• $25.00 Expanded Distribution (one time fee)
• A proof is the cost of printing plus shipping.
• Can use CreateSpace ISBN for free

****There are many services that CreateSpace offers from building your book, editing and cover design that are all at the author’s expense, but they are not required at all

Jen concludes:

The bottom line for us came down to customer service AND ease of the system. LSI is a bit clunky and if you don’t know what you are doing with formatting a book, cover, etc., you are bound to make a mistake. I made a few the first time around. CreateSpace gives you templates (for free) for both interior and exterior so your book looks professional. They also have a cover tool. I have not used it since I’m an InDesign junky, but I’ve played with it and for the novice user, its pretty good, but my big caveat is most of us are not cover artists and always best to hire a professional.

Between talking with my team to wargame the best course of action, the ease of their on-line system was the deal closer. They have this 360 digital proof that shows you the cover and how it wraps around the book, well that right there sold me. Their entire system is very easy to use and while I just created more work for myself as we are going to transfer ALL of our books, I highly recommend CreateSpace.

Well, there you have it. I'd encourage you to read Jen's article in its entirety: Why is Cool Gus Publishing switching from Lightning Source to CreateSpace?

I haven't used a POD service yet, but I had been planning on giving Lightning Source a try. Now I think I'll go with CreateSpace. I love getting recommendations from unbiased industry professionals!

Related reading:
- Espresso Book Machine: Create A Book In 5 Minutes For 1 Cent A Page (Video)