The Future of Publishing: Cory Doctorow

“My guiding principle in this project has been thrift. Without a publisher to capitalize the book, I’m doing my darndest to spend money only when it makes me money. Lucky for me, today’s world is one where that constraint is well accommodated. Obviously, the print-on-demand paperbacks don’t cost anything — the book doesn’t exist until you order and pay for it! And I’d doing the limited hardcovers in lots of 20, to minimize my expense there. The CDs of the audiobook are also produced on demand, of course.” – Cory Doctorow

Cory Doctorow’s With a Little Help is the closest model I’ve seen to my vision for the future of publishing.

• Premium Hardcover: $275 ( yes, $275!!)
• On-demand Paperback: $18 (via LuLu)
• eBook: $0 (6 formats including HTML & plain text)
• Audio Book: $0, $5.50, and $10 (5 formats)
• Monthly Financials out in the open.
• A clear, well-used ‘Report Typo‘ section
• A way to give the book to libraries & schools.
• Running on WordPress install under the author’s domain name.