Lulu is one of the neatest services I’ve seen in a long time, and I have been meaning to talk about it 
for a while.
What is Lulu?
Lulu provides short-run manufacturing of books for self publishers, among other things. It basically allows anyone to write and create a physical, paperback book. In addition, Lulu provides services for reviewing content, editing, formatting, and promoting your book.
The Pros
- The service is flexible. You can choose to print one copy, one hundred or one thousand. The quantity is up to you.
- The prices are pretty affordable.
- 35 copies of a 150-page book, black and white and bound = $243 ($6.92/copy)
- 100 copies of a 85-page book in full color and bound – $1550 ($15.50/copy)
- Lulu offers a free online store front to help you sell your masterpiece without the upfront production cost commitments typically associated with printing.
- You can get your ISBN number
- A wide range of services for editing, formatting and promoting your work.
The Cons
- Lulu doesn’t give cash advances to authors to allow them to quit your day job while you work on your masterpiece.
- Lulu doesn’t provide data about the number of authors who sell fewer than 500 copies to strangers (most) or just how many books get published each year (thousands).
Feedback/Insight
Have you or someone you know used Lulu? If so, let me know. I have been thinking about writing a basic guide to marketing for a while and Lulu seems like the perfect route for it.
Any feedback you have would be much appreciated.
