Why do you think self publishing is terrible? I can agree that self publishing a book that 99% of established publishers passed on would be a waste of time, but what if you decided to not go with a publisher from the get go. (Which is the case here)

Micro presses can release things of high quality, though they certainly wont have any real chance of having similar results as an established publisher.

Most publishers don't do any of that either.

Interested in the answer as well, if you feel like elaborating. The couple of occasions I've looked into it (not for myself) I remember it being ridiculously expensive even if they dodged the editing/formatting fees -- like we struggled to get it below $10 per book for a smallish-largish run of.... 1000? 5000?

And then it's up to the author to sell them without any distribution help.

There's also many times where self-publishing makes a lot more sense.

It depends on her goals with the book

I know several people who have killed it self-publishing, and there was good reason why they went self-publishing over using a publisher.

There's pros/cons to doing both, but sounds like you aren't familiar with them.

this does not mean you understand the business side of it. from your posts, you're showing that you don't fully understand many of the things in the industry.

that's wayyyyyy too expensive

For a small project like this she'd be much better off just publishing through Amazon for ebooks and CreateSpace for real books. She could also add in Smashwords and a couple of others to expand her reach.

With the exception of an illustrator and PR she could do everything herself in less than 5 hours for way less than your offering. Amazon offers 70% royalty for the author. Its incredibly easy to get the formatting right and publish a book yourself. If you have trouble you can get someone from Elance to format the book for less than $50.

As for an illustrator, and PR she could easily find plenty of decent options via elance who most likely know way more about each of those areas than you do.

Sounds like your making this way harder than it is and charging her way more than your services are worth.

I did a quick Google search and found some decent explanations here.

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/in...1180357AAPthFl

First, most self-publishing is a scam. Very few people ever make money self-publishing.

But beyond that if she is, in fact, serious about her writing it behooves her to actually go the legit route for numerous different reasons. Above all else, no writers, publishers, editors, etc. will ever take her writing seriously if it’s self-published. Again, there may be that 1 in 100 time when that happens but it happens about as frequently as porn actresses transition into Hollywood.

Because self-published books are not taken seriously by writers, intellectuals, academics, or industry people, they’re incredibly hard to sell through normal channels or to market in any real way. Real, legit people don’t review self-published books. Journals, newspapers, critics, etc. will entirely ignore her “book.” The marketing will basically come down to duping hapless people who don’t know any better into buying the book online.

Also, if she is serious about writing, she needs a real editor and readers to push her to improve her craft. She needs those people to read every word and push her to improve her writing. With all due respect, someone who is posting on 2+2 BFI about self-publishing a friend’s book is going to add no value to her writing. None. She needs to be meeting people who can actually help her in her writing career. I guarantee you that OP cannot do that.

If she has any talent at all, she should be able to find a legit publisher (even if it’s a boutique type press) with all the knowledge, connections, resources, and support that that entails. That’s all assuming she is serious about being a writer. If it’s a vanity or ****s and giggles thing, then fine self-publish.

Just because a lot of idiots self-publish doesn't make it a scam. It means that a lot of people are idiots and think they have a book that is worth publishing.

No one will review someone's first publication for the most part either.

The idea that publishers throw a ton of weight behind unknown authors is laughable. And that's not even factoring in the garbage royalties you get.

If you have curated your own audience, it's often best to self-publish for your first work while retaining the rights. If you haven't curated your own audience, it doesn't matter, your book isn't selling jack **** anyway.

James Altucher writes about this a ton, and he's sold a lot of books.

http://www.jamesaltucher.com/2011/05...lished-a-book/

EDIT: But yes, you need at least two editors anyway - one for content, one for layout - as well as connections who can guide you along the way. That doesn't invalidate self-publishing, because again, many publishers don't even offer decent options here for first-time unknown authors without a following (if they pick you up at all).

kyleb,

Much of what you say is true, of course, but that doesn't change the fact that self-publishing is a bad idea for just about any writer who wants to be taken seriously. They used to be called vanity presses for a reason: it's because the self-published books were published with absolutely no standards other than someone having the money to pay the press costs. They have zero credibility. No serious writers, editors, intellectuals, etc. take them as real books. Everyone simply ignores them. It's the functional equivalent of getting a degree from the University of Pheonix or some other for-profit "school." Certain people don't realize what it really is and buy a degree. They take their degree to a job interview and realize no one takes it seriously. Sure, you can find some that work out OK, but wouldn't you recommend every single time that someone go to a real school?

Again, I'm not saying self-publishing doesn't serve a small purpose, but I never go my question answered by OP. What is her purpose? Does she want to be a serious writer? Or is she interested in the vanity part? Or does she have the almost certainly false idea that she can make money off of it by self-publishing?

Its an illustrated children's book... it would be hard to say that she wants to become a "serious writer", though there are some legends out there. And while she is commited to doing everything to suppport / promote the book, she does not want to make a career out of writing children's books.

well then you're competing with the Steven Colbert's and the Evangeline Lily's of this world. Those 2 published childrens books, but of course the former has a show on the air while the latter can get a spot on ANY venue to publicise it. People buy them because of the star power, not any other reason. best of luck because the lotto is a better gamble.

Exactly.

Self publishing/PoD makes sense for people who already have a name and big social presence. In turn, they can leverage their big social presence into sales and get a bigger cut than traditional publishers get.

If you are just some random, then traditional publisher will at least put some pressure on to get at least a few sales. They help with all that stuff and they certainly don't want to lose money on your book.

So yeah, if Galfont or Durr self-publishes, they're in the money and getting bigger margins per book. But if some random dude starts to self-publish, they just disappear into the abyss of million competing products.