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It's Easier Than Ever To Be John Q. Publish

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By SUSAN HEMMINGWAY

The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 1, 2008

TAMPA - Everybody always told Joe Pelkington he should write a book. Pelkington had a million stories about being a police officer in Tampa for 25 years, from 1960 to 1985, and the police chief in Treasure Island until he retired in 2005.

One night after his wife, Alice, went to bed, Pelkington sat down at his computer and started pounding out the stories of his 43-year career. He wrote about discrimination against Tampa's few black police officers in the 1960s and tragedies he had witnessed. He gave a policeman's perspective of the legendary riot at Tampa Stadium after Led Zeppelin bailed because of lightning in 1977.

He didn't leave out the humor that could happen even when chasing down a fleeing suspect. Once, an angry Chihuahua clamped down tightly on his leg and wouldn't let go as Pelkington chased and arrested the dog's owner.

Last fall, his manuscript was completed. By December, it was a 231-page hardback called "Shades of Blue: From Street Cop to Police Chief." Pelkington was able to achieve the quick turnaround by not trying to sign on with an agent or standard publisher.

Instead, he joined the legions of authors self-publishing their memoirs, how-to's and fiction. They are catered to by a self-publishing book industry that gives them royalties and Web sites. Dozens of these companies can be found on the Web, charging from less than $100 to thousands of dollars, depending on the package and options.

Pelkington chose Xlibris to publish his manuscript. He got hardback copies and paperbacks, a Web site and marketing material, including posters, bookmarks and business cards.

The package cost $10,000, which Pelkington isn't likely to recover in sales. But the standard way of getting published - no upfront cash but years of rejection slips - would have slowed him down.

"Most people write books for different reasons; not always to make a lot of money," he says. "I wanted people in law enforcement to read it - particularly in the Tampa Bay area - and the citizens of Tampa Bay to read it."

Recently, Pelkington has started to think about distribution and marketing. This is the tough task self-published authors usually must handle themselves. He has spoken about "Shades of Blue" at places such as the Kiwanis Club and estimates selling about 50 copies. His first royalty check - for $500 - arrived recently.

Like most self-published books, it's available on the Internet through online sellers such as Amazon, but not in actual bookstores. Chains such as Barnes & Noble won't stock self-published books but will order them on request.

Planting A Seed

But there is always an inspiring story of a self-published author who hit the big-time. Garden writer Pamela Crawford is one. A landscape designer in Lake Worth, she switched career paths in 2001 to focus on writing books for Florida gardeners.

She knew exactly what she wanted - full color photos and easy-to-follow guides - but publishers told her it wouldn't work. The book should be published in black-and-white and cut in half, they said.

Crawford then took a leap of faith. She started her own company, Color Garden Publishing.

"It was very expensive. I actually took out a small-business loan to start it," says Crawford, who now lives in Canton, Ga.

"I had no idea how to get books into bookstores. My business plan was to write a gardening book with information and pictures that I knew I could sell at plant sales."

Despite the learning curve, the book became a surprising success. In Fort Lauderdale, a Barnes & Noble store agreed to sell it. "Easy Gardens" became the store's best seller for 18 months.

"'The South Beach Diet' and Harry Potter IV 'Goblet of Fire' knocked me out," Crawford says.

Since then, she has written three other Florida gardening books. All of them can be found on the shelves of major chains and many independent booksellers. She now plans to expand by publishing gardening books for other regions of the country.

Volumes A La Carte

Meanwhile, self-publishing companies are making it easier than ever to produce your own book, even if it is a small novella that only your family ends up buying.

Changes in printing technology and the Internet make it possible, says Keith Ogorek, director of marketing at Author's Solution, a self-publishing company with 50,000 titles. Publishers can print on demand, which means books are printed only as needed. That can be as little as one or two volumes at a time. Jobs can be customized, and, overall, it's cheaper.

To see the diversity of topics that people across America find interesting enough to write about, visit Amazon and type in "AuthorHouse." More than 3,800 titles will come up, such as the memoir of a World War II combat photographer, an illustrated dictionary of physical geography, poems by the homeless, what people need to know about teeth and how to scrimshaw.

Ray Hintz, co-owner of Haslam's bookstore in St. Petersburg, gets a first-hand look at the popularity of self-publishing. Two to three self-published writers, often from the Bay area, call his store or stop by every day.

"Many are moved by the spirit - there are a lot of religious and spiritual books. They write about the remission of terminal illness or a religious experience," Hintz says.

Hintz appreciates their efforts but has to burst bubbles. He explains that bookstores buy books at wholesale. Self-published authors often aren't able to sell wholesale unless they don't mind losing money. They purchase their books from self-publishing companies at what Hintz considers to be retail or higher.

But selling lots of copies isn't all of what self-publishing is about. Hintz likes to tell self-published writers who stop by his store about the husband whose wife worked on a book for 10 years. The husband paid to have two copies self-published. He gave one to his wife as a gift, and she burst into tears. The other copy was placed on Haslam's shelves; Hintz took it on consignment.

It's 'A Godsend'

In Sun City Center, author Camille Mariani writes because she loves to. Now 76, she retired from a career in public relations at a New York college and as a newspaper editor.

She writes mysteries with interesting characters. Her latest is "Aletha's Will," set in her native Maine, which was published by iUniverse. Mariani doesn't say what she paid to have her books printed but says having a finished product keeps her going. She might toss manuscripts into a drawer and stop writing otherwise.

"It's a godsend, really. ... It's so difficult to get an agent or publisher to even look at things you write, and I had been trying to do that for years," she says. "The disadvantage is you have to do your own publicity and get out there and push for sales." Mariana calls writing her hobby but isn't ruling out trying to find a mainstream publisher.

Meanwhile, seeing her first book published by iUniverse, "Lucille's Lie," was pretty heady. It was early 2002, and "I was going around to everyone and saying, 'Have you seen this?'" Mariani recalls. It was how she met her husband, Albert, later that year. She noticed that he was usually reading at the King's Point swimming pool, introduced herself and showed him her book.

BEFORE YOU JUMP

Ready to become a self-published author? Lots of companies are making promises on the Internet. Don't risk being ensnared by a scam or having your dreams crushed. Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America suggests asking these questions:

Is there a fee? A fee is a sign of a vanity or self-publishing operation. Being asked to buy and sell a large number of books before publication or pay for editing are examples of fees.

How long has the company been in business? You don't want your book or money tied up in a fly-by-night company that goes under. Look for proven track records in companies that have been open for at least a year.

Are the books professionally produced? Order one or two books published by the company. Look at the quality of editing and the physical appearance of the book. Bad writing, large numbers of typos and grammatical errors are red flags.

Want to learn more? To see more information about evaluating a self-publishing company, go the guide at www.sfwa.org/beware/ printondemand.html.

Susan Hemmingway can be reached at (813) 259-7951 or shemmingway@tampatrib.com.

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