Should I Use Friesen Press or Lulu to Get My Book Published?

For the past couple of years, I've been working on writing a book. I really don't know if it will go anywhere. In fact, I really felt compelled to write this book for my kids, and maybe some friends and family. I thought maybe, just maybe, others might be interested (you know, like my grandma's neighbor, or mom's friend). I really have put a lot of time and effort into it though, so I figured I'd look into different publishing options. I sent an inquiry letter out to one company, and they actually offered me some advice rather than completely reject me. Because they showed a little interest, I decided to make use of their suggestions. I'm not naive enough to believe they'll be interested in the completed manuscript, but I figured since I wasn't completely turned away, I should also look into self-publishing as plan B.

My husband and I have a relative who used FriesenPress, and I was curious about the company. It was difficult finding very many negative reviews on-line. This made me skeptical. Their claim to have published Harry Potter made me even more leery. That's why I continued my search. I'm sure many others have also toyed with the idea of publishing with them. I really found these sites helpful and figured I should share. Here's one about Lulu. This woman blogged about her experience with FriesenPress and shared the last two links which I found to be particularly helpful. This one is about FriesenPress. Finally, there's a thread I found helpful here.




If I don't find a publishing company to take my manuscript right away, I might still self-publish, but I think I'll do it solo. I'm hoping this will be helpful to other real and wanna-be authors. For those who know a thing or two about publishing, what route did you decide to go, and if you're done...are you pleased? I'd love to know. I'm also curious if blurb.com works the same way.

Anyhow, our relative seems pleased with FriesenPress for the time being, and just got his second book out through them. He's been working on a trilogy. I haven't read the finished results of his first book, but enjoyed his first draft and know he put a lot more work into it later sprucing it up. If you're looking for a book, why not buy a copy or two to help him out? I'm certainly planning on buying them to put under our Christmas tree.

By the way, if you're thinking about sending a manuscript/inquiry letter into a publishing company, I found a website with a list of publishing companies who you can send your stuff to directly, without an agent. I'll have to find the link and post that soon.