Application


	It’s easy to get all the materials and services you need to publish your book in one place...

Step 1 is the fun part... Write your book!

Use a popular word processor like MS Word or WordPerfect to write your manuscript. Include a brief 100 word bio “about the author,” and a brief 300-400 word description “about the book.”

Format the manuscript as one continuous file, with no header or footer, and no section breaks of any kind. You may justify the text, or leave it flush left at your discretion. You may use bold or italic as needed.

Fonts:
You can specify most common fonts, but unusual fonts could cause difficulty with your printer.

Margins & Spacing:
Please leave your file single spaced and set with margins at 1” on all sides.

IMAGES
If you have images you want us to use in your cover art please send them as 300dpi resolution .tif files. (No .gif or .jpg) You can also just send in photos for scanning

Size: not to exceed 5” wide by 7” deep

HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR MATERIALS
Just attach your manuscript file to an email!




	Author Services Form


	Step 2 - Select your Author Service Options

		Here’s How The Application Process Works... Click the PDF icon or this link to open and fill out your Author Services Form completely Select your SERVICE options: (Custom Cover, Editorial Support, Web Showcase, etc) Select your Payment Option - Visa, MC, AMEX are accepted!


	Fill this form out electronically on your computer, and just press the submit via e-mail button (upper right) to sent it to the Writing Shop. You can also use the print button (upper left) to print yourself a copy of the order. (If you don’t have Adobe Acrobat Reader, you can get it free from Adobe.)

A complete application will contain:

1 Complete Application Form (PDF)
1 Digital Manuscript File: (in MS Word or WordPerfect)
A Short (Up to 1 Page) “About the Author” file (Separate from Manuscript file)
A Brief (Up to 400 Words) promotional statement about your book.
Any image files you want included for your cover or book interior


	Step 3 - WHAT HAPPENS AFTER YOU ORDER?


	Once your package has been received you will be contacted by the Writing Shop to acknowledge your service order. Any questions you may have will be answered by a Writing Shop Associate. Your package will be completed within a 15-30 day timeframe, depending on services ordered.

	If you ordered web services, your web showcase, if ordered, will be designed and placed on-line, and registered in all top search engines so you can begin generating promotion and excitement about your book!
	If you ordered editorial support, we will do two reviews of your manuscript, one for formatting and then one final edit. (We have found that even the best editors cannot catch every error on one sweep). Your corrected manuscript will be returned on disk or via e-mail. Phrases highlighted in green will alert you to potential problem areas that you may wish to review, and we will suggest corrections.
	If you ordered a book block format without editing you will receive a PDF to review and may make up to 20 revisions free, so please be sure your file is just the way you want it. If you need to revise more than 20 things after reviewing the PDF, then you will have to make revisions directly in the formatted book block (Word File) we will send you and resubmit that file. The book block formatting process usually does not involve any revision of your manuscript text on our part unless you order editing services. The only changes we make at this point are to correct line orphans, page balance, margins, leading and kerning issues, etc.
	If you ordered cover design, your cover art will be provided on CD-ROM formatted to exact size requirements for the book size you anticipate. This is generally done after the book block is finalized, as the book block will determine the spine width for the cover. We will work with you until we achieve the desired result for your cover.

Contact Us Here


	Already have a publisher? When your service order is complete you will be sent the digital files required for printing a book using any popular POD (Print On Demand) Service. Want your own label? We can also show you how to save money by establishing your own “Publisher’s Account” at Lightning Source, a leading POD publishing service. We can then submit your digital files directly to them in the correct formats and set up your title library. All you have to do is log on to your account, and order. They will usually send you one complete, finished book with the title setup order. This gives you a last chance to look at your work ‘between the dignity of two covers’ and see if there are any last minute changes required. The Writing Shop will make any final revisions and resubmit the digital files for you. When you are satisfied, you can then place your first book order! The minimum order is 25 books, and there is no maximum. You can even set the price you want to charge for wholesale and retail book orders. Lightning Source will prepare your bar code to print on the back book cover. The only thing you need to provide is the ISBN number of your book, and we can show you how to obtain that. Now that you are published, with books in hand, the real work starts. Learning how to market and promote your book is the hardest part of the process, but Lightning Source will get you set up in the Ingram book distribution database, and in popular on-line book sites like Amazon.com. The quality of your book, and the effort you put into marketing, will determine whether or not you get rich and famous! There are very few writers who can actually make a living at their craft, but who knows...the next big success story could be yours! But How Do You Get There from here?

		The success or failure of your book will now depend on how well it is marketed. Choose from over 15 valuable marketing tools and learn how you can get your book featured in a range of vital Internet formats like e-books or the popular Amazon Kindle format. Marketing Tools