BiblioBoard and Pressbooks Create New Approach to Self-Publishing and Discovery
Charleston, South Carolina (PRWEB) December 07, 2015 -- BiblioBoard and Canadian-based e-publishing software company Pressbooks are excited to announce that Los Angeles Public Library, Cuyahoga County Public Library and Mid-Continent Public Library now offer patrons unlimited access to the beta version of Pressbooks Public, a robust self-publishing tool built to help authors to write, edit, design and publish their manuscripts as electronic and print books. Patrons are able to create books in all of the major eBook formats (ePUB, Mobi/Kindle, PDF) and get files that meet the requirements of multiple print-on-demand vendors. The program has launched in time for for NaNoWriMo with beta partners and will launch fully at ALA MidWinter in January.
This is the latest component of BiblioBoard’s ongoing effort to put libraries at the center of the indie book movement. This effort began in 2014 when BiblioBoard and Library Journal first introduced SELF-e Select, a solution for libraries seeking to acquire quality self-published eBooks from the millions that have been published. With Library Journal’s trusted curation process, SELF-e Select allows libraries to confidently introduce new literary voices to their patrons while helping indie authors expand their audience both locally and nationally.
“The first problem we needed to solve was helping authors that had published their books over the past 15 years,” says BiblioBoard founder and Chief Business Officer Mitchell Davis. “SELF-e solves that problem by taking books that have already been published and curating them for the right audiences. We have received submissions from thousands of authors over the past year and those books are finding new readers.”
Davis was previously the founder of a print-on-demand software company that went on to become Amazon’s CreateSpace. He believes that what he sees happening between public libraries and indie authors holds incredible promise for the future of publishing. “SELF-e was a good first step, but this partnership with Pressbooks gives libraries the ability to support their local author community through the entire lifecycle of their book; from the first word they type to commercial availability worldwide. This creates a much stronger role for the library in the future of the book.”
Libraries can now be full-service writing centers for self-published authors and can further cultivate a community of local authorship. “Pressbooks Public creates professional-quality print and digital books without requiring any designers or publishing services, giving indie authors control of the appearance and formats of their works,” adds Pressbooks founder Hugh McGuire. “Since the authors control their files and can update them at any time, they control their writing path.” All the libraries participating in the beta are making the service free to their library patrons.
For these libraries with community engagement initiatives at the forefront of their agendas, Pressbooks Public is a welcomed and sought after addition. “We are thrilled to add Pressbooks to our resources for our active local author community. It empowers our users to create a professional, polished final product, and it fits in beautifully with our use of the SELF-e service.” says Los Angeles Public Library Acquisitions Manager Catherine Royalty.
Patrons using Pressbooks Public will be able to seamlessly make their eBooks available to Library Journal curators via SELF-e Select and BiblioBoard’s statewide indie collections.
Emilie Hancock, Biblioboard, http://www.bibliolabs.com, +1 843-670-6791, [email protected]
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