Matte or Glossy, That is the Question
When I'm put in an unfavorable situation, I try to look on the bright side of things. More often than not, the bright side is always the same: a learning experience. Whether it's a bad breakup, a civil suit, or a risk like investing in my novel, there's always a learning experience. And I love learning.
I identify as a scholar, as a student, no matter if I'm enrolled in study or not. And this entire book adventure has been one heck of a learning experience. I always thought I was good at manipulating Microsoft Word, but I discovered new options and standards than what I knew before. Not to mention all the learning of how to write better to even get the book finished.
I received my first proof on April 16th for my novel The Un-Life of William Moore. Getting it proof-ready was a challenge in itself. I didn't embed fonts right the first time, had a bunch of hidden blank pages I had to deal with. But the first proof wasn't that bad. Needed some margin work, but otherwise it turned out splendidly. I fixed what I had to and then ordered another proof.
My second proof I got today, and it's even closer to finished than the last one. This time I got a glossy finish, whereas I got a matte version previously. Aside from a deeper black on the glossy (and the actual gloss), there's not that much of a difference visually between them. Matte is supposed to have more color detail, but the difference is hardly noticeable and isn't really a deciding favor for the final product. However, I didn't like how the glossy version started to curl so quickly when I only handled it gently for about an hour, whereas my aunt creased the matte book immediately and it still managed to bounce back to nearly flat again without much encouragement.
All in all, it's looking like matte is the way to go. It's also what my fellow KDP published author friend told me to get; that the industry standard is switching more towards matte than glossy. And I see his point. I am noticing a lot more matte book covers than glossy - either that, or they are a combination of the two with "spot UV coating" (which sadly KDP does not offer). I'm not a huge fan of the texture of KDP matte covers, but it's not too weird that I wouldn't use it.
I'm working on more ways to talk about The Un-Life as we wait for the final release. The estimated release date has been moved forward by a month, landing us now at May 17th for release. However, it could possibly be even sooner. If I get back this next proof and it's perfect (which it should be, just did a little bit more perfecting of the margins), then I'll release the book immediately. It may be at least another couple weeks from now, though. I will definitely be ready for my June 14th book signing.
Don't want to wait? The Smashwords e-book version of The Un-Life of William Moore is available for pre-order now! Get the book in multiple ebook formats, from epub to pdb to mobi and more. It will be released May 16th unless I can get it released sooner. You can read the first 15% or about 10,000 words of the novel right now for free if you can't wait to sink your fangs into this story. Since there is multiple chapters in that sample, I have removed the excerpts and first couple chapters that I had posted on this website. Sorry!
Thank you again everyone who has been supporting me through this journey and helped me learn what I need to do to make all this happen. Now that I'm in the pre-ordering phase, I need to call out to you - yes, you - to help me make a successful book launch. If you see me sharing info, links, or pictures on social media, please share and like. The most important thing for an indie author is exposure, and the biggest part of that is the power of the fans and supporters of that author. Thank you for believing in me, now I need to believe in you.
Let's do this.
-Dana Lockhart
I identify as a scholar, as a student, no matter if I'm enrolled in study or not. And this entire book adventure has been one heck of a learning experience. I always thought I was good at manipulating Microsoft Word, but I discovered new options and standards than what I knew before. Not to mention all the learning of how to write better to even get the book finished.
I received my first proof on April 16th for my novel The Un-Life of William Moore. Getting it proof-ready was a challenge in itself. I didn't embed fonts right the first time, had a bunch of hidden blank pages I had to deal with. But the first proof wasn't that bad. Needed some margin work, but otherwise it turned out splendidly. I fixed what I had to and then ordered another proof.
My second proof I got today, and it's even closer to finished than the last one. This time I got a glossy finish, whereas I got a matte version previously. Aside from a deeper black on the glossy (and the actual gloss), there's not that much of a difference visually between them. Matte is supposed to have more color detail, but the difference is hardly noticeable and isn't really a deciding favor for the final product. However, I didn't like how the glossy version started to curl so quickly when I only handled it gently for about an hour, whereas my aunt creased the matte book immediately and it still managed to bounce back to nearly flat again without much encouragement.
All in all, it's looking like matte is the way to go. It's also what my fellow KDP published author friend told me to get; that the industry standard is switching more towards matte than glossy. And I see his point. I am noticing a lot more matte book covers than glossy - either that, or they are a combination of the two with "spot UV coating" (which sadly KDP does not offer). I'm not a huge fan of the texture of KDP matte covers, but it's not too weird that I wouldn't use it.
 |
| Get a free bookmark with your purchase when you go to one of my book signings! |
I'm working on more ways to talk about The Un-Life as we wait for the final release. The estimated release date has been moved forward by a month, landing us now at May 17th for release. However, it could possibly be even sooner. If I get back this next proof and it's perfect (which it should be, just did a little bit more perfecting of the margins), then I'll release the book immediately. It may be at least another couple weeks from now, though. I will definitely be ready for my June 14th book signing.
Don't want to wait? The Smashwords e-book version of The Un-Life of William Moore is available for pre-order now! Get the book in multiple ebook formats, from epub to pdb to mobi and more. It will be released May 16th unless I can get it released sooner. You can read the first 15% or about 10,000 words of the novel right now for free if you can't wait to sink your fangs into this story. Since there is multiple chapters in that sample, I have removed the excerpts and first couple chapters that I had posted on this website. Sorry!
Thank you again everyone who has been supporting me through this journey and helped me learn what I need to do to make all this happen. Now that I'm in the pre-ordering phase, I need to call out to you - yes, you - to help me make a successful book launch. If you see me sharing info, links, or pictures on social media, please share and like. The most important thing for an indie author is exposure, and the biggest part of that is the power of the fans and supporters of that author. Thank you for believing in me, now I need to believe in you.
Let's do this.
-Dana Lockhart
Comments
Post a Comment