Print-on-Demand: Publish Conservatively

Apparently I’ve had my head in the clouds.  I have recently been introduced, through my Media Publishing and Distribution graduate course, to the world of print-on-demand.  What a groundbreaking, revolutionary concept!  I’m ashamed to say I wasn’t aware of its existence, but I’m ecstatic it does.  For those of you who are unfamiliar with the term (I hope I am not the only one out there), print-on-demand services, otherwise known as PODs, offer exactly that- printing on demand.  When a book goes to print, a publisher normally requires a certain number be manufactured in order to make the job more “worthwhile”.  Also, as more copies are printed, the price per book is reduced, so technically, people think they are getting a bargain when they have extra copies made.  However, what many people fail to realize, is that most of these copies are never bought.  They are printed, and then sent to a warehouse to collect dust, until eventually, like an abandoned toy, the books are thrown away or destroyed.  What does this mean for the environment?  Well, it’s not good.

 

Think about all of the unnecessary trees that are cut down and turned into pulp in order to produce these books that are never even opened and read.  Think about all of the energy it takes to run the printing machines and the energy consumed and pollution produced from the factories, as well the gas and emissions of delivery vehicles.  And think about all of the books out there.  For every book in existence, the majority of copies are most certainly not in use.  Even for people who purchase books, how many times are they read before they are put on a shelf amongst all of the others?

Print-on-demand services are going, and have begun, to revolutionize the printing industry.  Now, not only are these services allowing many writers to self-publish, meaning they don’t have to have their work “picked up” by a publishing company who often buys the rights to the manuscript and then publishes and sells it as it pleases, but they also only print copies of the book as needed.  When someone places an order or purchases a copy, the print-on-demand company makes a copy for that buyer.  Books are made as they are needed.  And you can sell your books electronically through these services as well, which opens up the market to even more perspective buyers.

There are many PODs currently available.  Many are very similar, yet many offer certain perks or services that others do not.  So, when researching potential companies, it is important you choose the right fit for you.  Some, like CreateSpace,  an Amazon company, are larger and more powerful.  Obviously working with Amazon, you have the ability to utilize its customer base and distribution channels.  Others, are smaller. 

Xlibris is a pioneer in the industry and has published over 25,000 authors.  I was exploring their services and entered my name, email address, and phone number, in order to receive a free publishing kit.  The following day, I received a call from one of the Xlibris representatives, who was interested in learning more about my book, and wanted to know how she could help get me published.  My point is, is that anyone out there who may be working on a manuscript, or even who has an idea but has been reluctant to pursue it, there are user-friendly services available to assist you every step of the way.  I encourage everyone to follow their dreams.  You never know- you may very well have a bestseller on your hands or in your head.  But, with the advent of PODs, that idea can soon be on paper, and in possession of those who order it- not in boxes in your basement, or warehouses, or a landfill.

And these services don’t just apply to writers and books.  Musicians, filmmakers, and business owners can cash in on PODs as well.  Riverside Graphics Corporation created and follows a Conservation by Design  initiative, which is a 5-step conservation strategy to reduce waste and to recycle what’s left.  They use recycled stock paper for their printing and only print what’s needed- nothing more.  Next time you have to print a company brochure or anything in large quantities, think first before you place your order.  There are more and more companies every day that can, and will, cater to your needs and the needs of the environment.  So, two things to take away from this article: follow your dreams, but do so efficiently.

Similar Movies, Similar Plot, Same Time?

In a class discussion recently, a fellow student raised the question as to whether we thought movies are released in a strategic fashion.  I decided to do a little investigating and found the answer to be without a doubt, absolutely…at least sometimes.   There are countless forums, blog posts, and articles, which discuss this topic, and some of the commentators have really interesting takes.  Obviously, each particular circumstance has its own chain of events which influence why a certain film is made and when.  Some movies are rushed into production, while other movies bounce from desk to desk for years until any progress is made.  And this bouncing from desk to desk and studio to studio could be a major contributing factor in itself.  The more people who read a plot, the more people inspired and influenced by that plot.  A studio may choose to pass on a particular script, but may inherently like the idea, so decide to tweak some details and call it their own- a major reason why most screenwriters need to be represented by agents: to alleviate a lot of the “you stole my idea” drama.

It definitely seems as if movies, or similar movies I should say, come in waves.  Sometimes it seems that if one movie is extremely successful, all of a sudden, other people want to jump on that bandwagon.  Think about the explosion of vampire movies after Twilight mania.  As of May, there were at least 10 new vampire movies in the making.  The same even holds true for television shows.  Think Glee/Smash, American Idol/The Voice/X Factor, So You Think You Can Dance/Dancing with the Stars.

However, there is also a race to make movies with the same concept, even before a pioneering movie has paved the way for success.  Recently, there were two different movies being made simultaneously about Snow White, with Lily Collins playing the lead in Mirror Mirror, which just came out March 16th, and Kristen Stewart playing the lead in Snow White and the Huntsman, due to be released June 1st.  There are, and will continue to be, tons of comparisons made between the two pictures.  The anticipation of paralleling the two films really helps advertise and hype each individually, and has begun to do so already, because they are based on the same fairy tale.  Apparently each is very different from the other, telling the story in completely distinctive ways.  Regardless, the media frenzy is definitely going to help both films cash in at the box office. 

Here are two links to websites that list movies which were released around the same time about the same topic.  There are a lot more than I realized!

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DuelingMovies
 

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:ProhibitOnions/List_of_films_with_similar_themes_and_release_dates

I’m sure now I will be paying closer attention to movies in production and movie releases, and will notice more and more of a strategy and trend as to when and why a movie gets the green light when it does, after having done this research.  Movies have the potential to generate enormous sums of money, which justifies all of the strategizing, competing, and racing through production and release.  If public acceptance and approval was an exact science, all films would be major blockbusters and everyone would profit.  But for now, while all anyone can do is speculate, I’m sure the trends and the rivalries will continue, so stay tuned.