Does my book have to be in a digital (computer) file?
How does Vox Pop Publishing prefer to receive files?
Does the cover need to be in an electronic file, too?
Does Vox Pop Publishing do hardcovers?
What kind of paper and covers do you use?
Is it worth it to me to do my own formatting on the text?
What if I find something I want to change after my book has been printed?
Does Vox Pop Publishing charge extra for helping to design a cover?
What about photos and graphics in the text?
How's the quality of the books made by Vox Pop Publishing?
What if I hate the books you've made? What's your return policy?
What if you need to mail something back to the author?
Does Vox Pop Publishing help authors sell their books?
What is your royalty to the author?
What if I have more questions?
Q: Does my book have to be in a digital (computer) file? What if have only a hard copy?
A: Yes, we need the manuscript in an electronic file. If you have only a hard copy, we can perhaps help you find someone to re-type or scan it into a digital file for you. The cost for that is usually $1 a page, but we need to see the hard copy to give you a firm price.
Q: How does Vox Pop Publishing prefer to receive files?
A: Many of our authors email their files to us as attachments. You can also send them to us or drop them off at the store on disks, either floppies or CDs. We prefer to receive text files as Word documents or PDFs.
Q: Does the cover need to be in an electronic file, too?
A: We prefer it, but we can scan in an image that you really want on the cover, usually for a modest additional fee. If you have an image for the cover, give us a .jpg or a .gif and we can work with you on how to use it. Remember, a .jpg or .gif is easiest for us to work with.
Q: Does Vox Pop Publishing do hardcovers?
A: Yes – for a price calculated by page count we can supply you with these books – either case laminate or library cloth, with or without jacket.
A: We print our standard books at 5.5 inches by 8.5 inches -- half the size of a letter page -- and then trim them to 5.25 x 8.25 inches. We can also make books in the standard letter-page size, 8.5 x 11 inches, which trims to 8.25 x 10.5 inches. We may eventually be able to do other sizes, too, but the costs will be higher.
Q: What kind of paper and covers do you use?
A: We can use lots of different varieties, but our standard is 20-pound bright white (recycled, of course) for the text and 110-pound matte stock for the covers. If you want something different, such as higher quality paper for the text or cover, including glossy covers, let's talk about it.
A:Our normal covers, for the basic price, are laminated. The standard weights we use are 10 pt. C1S for the covers; the white paper is 444 ppi and the creme 400 ppi. We can offer linen-finish matte covers (white, gray and ivory) for a little more money.
Q: Is it worth it to me to do my own formatting on the text?
A: Maybe, maybe not. We can do it pretty quickly; the minimum charge is $50. By the time you install or download formatting software and figure out how to use it, you may wish you had told us to do it in the first place. But you can follow the instructions under How to Submit Your Book on this site.
A:Sure, for a modest additional shipping and handling charge (USPS, UPS or FedEx), which you make when you pay for your order, we'll make one copy and send it to you. If you ask for only a few minor changes, we'll make them for no additional charge. But if you want a lot of changes in what you originally submitted or we need to re-format, especially in editing the text, we'll have to charge more. So it's best to catch all those typos before you have us make a proof for you.
Q: What if I find something I want to change after my book has been printed?
A: We can make the changes in the next printing, but there may be another formatting charge if we have to go back in and edit your text for you. Again, it's best to make all your corrections before you submit the book.
A: You can pay by credit card over the phone or by going to PayPal.com (you don't have to register). You can pay by check made out to "Vox Pop Inc." We need the full amount, in advance, for at least one printing. This is because most of our work goes into the setup. If you pay by credit card, we have to ship to the person named on the credit card, to the address on file with the credit company. If you need to send to a different address, you can pay by check. This is because of our return -- actually our no-return -- policy. See below.
Q: Does Vox Pop Publishing charge extra for helping to design a cover?
A: Sometimes. Most of the time we'll simply put together a basic cover for you at no extra charge, following your general directions and using whatever you want us to put on the front and back covers. But if it's more complicated -- graphics, a lot of color or colors, fancy fonts -- we may charge you. The minimum charge will probably be $50, but we'll let you know if it's more.
Q: What about photos and graphics in the text?
A: We can currently do an unlimited amount of black and white graphics in our books for no additional charge. As for color pages, at the moment, there is no way to insert color graphics so you’ll have to pay for the entire page count under a higher price. The cost for color books is usually 3x the cost of book printed with a black and white interior unless we are printing in offset volumes.
A: No problem with color on covers – we can do a full bleed or partial bleed. The bleed in many cases needs to be extended by .125" if you are designing it yourself, but email us if you want to work your order this way and we’ll give you the specifications. With color graphics we’ll have to do the entire book under the higher color price, but the images look great and it is sometimes worth the expense, especially if the page count is low.
Q: How's the quality of the books made by Vox Pop Publishing?
A:So far the overwhelming majority of our customers have been very pleased. Unless you're in the printing/publishing business, you're probably not going to notice much difference between our books and anyone else's. We supply laserjet printed books and we have had greater satisfaction than ever before.
Q: What if I hate the books you've made? What's your return policy?
A:It is probably the case that you did not order a proof which we always recommend, but if there is some sort of inconsistent quality control issue, we’ll be glad to talk to you about replacing the order.
Q: What if you need to mail something back to the author?
A: We charge additional for postage and handling if we need to send books back to you. It's usually the postage charges plus a few dollars for packing and our time.
Q: Does Vox Pop Publishing help authors sell their books?
A: Our business now works with Amazon which offers a great boost for the possibility of sales. We have distribution not only in the United States, but in Germany and in the United Kingdom. As with all self-publishing, it's up to authors to a certain extent to market their books. We sell their books on our site and from the online marketplace of Amazon. Our new packages offer the option of book events at Vox Pop Brooklyn, so if you live locally or are on tour with your book, you’ll have a great opportunity to sell.
Q: What is your royalty to the author?
A: The author currently earns 15% of the retail sale of their book which is awarded annually in the form of a royalty check. We usually suggest a retail price that takes into consideration the cost to manufacture the book (usually by page count).
Q: What if I have more questions?
A: First and foremost, check out the rest of our site, www.voxpoppublishing.com. Most of your questions can be answered on these pages. If you still have questions, just send an email to Gabriel at voxpoppublishing@gmail.com. We'll get back to you as soon as we can.