Look into Create Space. Setup costs are less than Lightning, and there’s an option to get into the big catalogs now, too. I think the value of those catalogs is limited, but the option’s there.

Using the “pro” option in Create Space is really worth it, in terms of break-even.

I’m curious what other people have to say about this, too.

I used iUniverse and cannot compare it with the others. It worked for me because The Unveiling was my first novel and they helped me structure my time and schedule the steps to be completed for publication once the draft manuscript was finished. The quality of the final product is excellent and very professional, but my husband is a digital artist and he designed the cover artwork. The turnaround time at each stage was good. I’m not sure how the costs compare with other POD publishers. iUniverse is always offering specials on new publishing contracts, but you have to pay extra if you want your books to be returnable at bookstores. The commission I get is 20%. My main complaint has been the high costs for all of the extra services they seem to push.

Thanks, this is all great feedback–I’d like as much info and advice as possible before I commit to ANYONE.

Kee-rist. I downloaded a ream of material from Lightning Source. It’s a good thing I’ve done some publishing before because I don’t think theirs’ is the most “user friendly” approach. Nonetheless, I am plowing through it, educating myself, making sure to read the fine print. Perhaps their customer service reps will turn out to be helpful–judging from this mound of printed paper, they’d better be…

I did a bunch of research myself last year and went with Lightning Source. Here’s a rundown of the key differences:

LS markets itself toward publishers, rather than authors — you need to have your own isbn, design, editing, etc, since they don’t offer any of these services. Your book will automatically show up on amazon US, international amazon sites, Barnes&noble.com, etc., and be available to libraries and book stores through the Ingram catalog (Ingram owns LS). The key advantage is that you can set your retail discount as little as 20% to these channels. (This will prevent brick and mortar stores from ordering your book, but in the vast majority of cases they weren’t going to anyway). At a 20% short discount, this means that if your book retails for $15, amazon takes $3, LS charges you around $5 to print it (depending on page count), and you make around $7 per book. If you have some sort of plan to get your book into retail outlets, you’re free to set your retailer discount higher. (For more information on LS and selling on amazon, I recommend Aaron Shepard’s “Aiming at Amazon”)

Createspace is owned by Amazon, and they do offer more services geared toward authors who are not as on top of the publishing game. They’re also much more user-friendly, since they actively market toward authors. Books automatically show up on Amazon US, but retail discount is set at a non-negotiable 55%. This means that if your book retails at $15, amazon will take $8.25, createspace will charge you around $5 to print it (depending on page count), and you’ll make around $3 per book. They also offer expanded distribution (international amazon sites, library catalogs, etc.) for an even higher retail discount.

I haven’t used Lulu myself, but my understanding is that their online cover design tools and tutorials are delightful. They charge more for printing that LS or CS, though, and books don’t show up for sale on other online retailers, only the Lulu store, making them a good option for hobbyists, but less so for people with loftier ambitions. I understand that it’s possible to utilize their deign tools and then take the finished product to another printer, FWIW.

Every other US Print-0n-Demand company (Outskirts, Xlibris, etc.) acts as a go-between from you to Lightning Source. They offer various packages for design, editing, marketing and so forth, then submit the book to LS for printing and distribution. Some offer better services and better deals than others, but if you plan to handle these things yourself, it’s worth doing the research to go straight to LS.

Good detailed advice–even better than what I was hoping for. Again, thanks for taking the time for the in-depth responses.
Authors and indie publishers aren’t in competition with each other, we’re colleagues, always quick to offer advice, support and, when required, a word of caution. Cheers!

I’m composing a lengthy list of questions for Lightning Source. Not touching the contract until I get clarification. Perhaps I’m misunderstanding but it seems like I pay one set-up fee for North America ($175-200) and another setup fee (same amount) if I want my book printed and sold in the U.K. Aren’t these PDF files transferable, zipped from one part of the world to another in nanoseconds? Similarly, there’s a $15.00 fee if I want to be listed in Lightning Source’s North American catalogue and, you guessed it, another $15.00 fee (or the equivalent in pounds) for the U.K. If that’s the case, I’m NOT a happy camper. I expect ONE FEE and when people start trying to add on costs, nickle and diming me, I get crazy. Will keep you apprised…