Two days ago I received a promotional e-mail from Blurb, the online self-publishing service that makes it easy for almost anyone to be the proverbial “published author.” The promotion offered a discount for publishing a notebook format book that could include numerous pictures and little or no text. Since I’ve been spending a lot of time in the past couple of years doing photographs to promote Hiram Farm, I thought this might be a good way to use some of those pictures to provide another promotional channel and perhaps generate a small amount of income for their program of providing vocational services to adults with autism.
So, I downloaded their “BookSmart” composition software complete with the notebook template, and in a matter of a few hours developed a finished layout for the book. While the BookSmart software doesn’t give one the kind of flexibility and control I’m used to with applications like InDesign, it was adequate for this simple project. In less than a day’s time I was able to complete the layout, make a few revisions and finally publish the book which is now available for purchase on the Blurb website. Hiram Farm will also have a few copies for sale at their upcoming fall festival.
Over the past few years, photographers have begun to use Blurb, or any of several other self-publishing services, to make promotional books as well as wedding albums, portrait albums and other products that expand the income potential of their core business. One of the best features of these online publishing services is that you do not have to purchase large numbers of books up front. Just make it available online and customers can order as many as they want. No extra work for the photographer, just collect your [small] royalty from each sale.