The Returning Agent
So in the wake of finally getting the letter I needed for my magic tax number from the IRS, I made the most important decision thus far in my self-publishing adventure. Get someone to help me. So with a few checks and with the advice given by good old Richard in mind, I tracked down a returning agent. An accountant with certification to deal with the US tax code. So after making initial contact, I was told that a color copy of my passport was required. Still confused, I asked the returning agent how I would get one since the trouble I had with Passport Canada the first time around. He told me that making a color copy at Staples was fine. I asked three times to confirm exactly what he just told me. A $1.00 copy just didn't sound legal. But he calmly told me that he could sign it and send it off.
So within a few days, a quick meeting, $160 in fees and my application was off to the IRS for a second time.
But there was a problem. To change on Fastpencil, even for electronic distribution, I had only two options. Launch a new edition, keeping the old edition up. Or withdraw the old edition, and put up the new one, restarting the whole process again. Either way, I will have to pay again, and this time the full price. After much hand wringing and knowing full well that I could not afford the republishing cost, I withdrew my book from Fastpencil.
While Createspace didn't seem to have the "world wide distribution" that Fastpencil had promised, it did have first pick to the biggest game on the block, Amazon. It also was free. Well they do took a small royalty, but there is no obligatory upfront $270 cost that Fastpenicl had, which was big relief. It also had the electronic version of the Tax form that had taken so long to resolve with Fastpencil, and rather than weeks, it took a few minutes to fill out and few days to get confirmation.
Overall Creatspace, should have been my first stop, but now I know and knowing is half the battle.
So within a few days, a quick meeting, $160 in fees and my application was off to the IRS for a second time.
A short six weeks
Much to my surprise and delight my second application came back in a mere six weeks. My application for the ITIN was accepted and I was good to go. Now by this time, I had already pressed the publish button to get my coupon discount before it vanished. It otherwise had sat for quite a while untouched, until I logged in to enter my magic tax number. I had no sales, though the site was pretty unclear if sales only showed after each finical quarter. But overall I wasn't really worried about that. Now I had looked through a physical proof and an electronic proof of my book long before pressing the publish button, as well as having other sets of eyes look through it as well. But, for reasons only known to my unconscious mind, I decided to take another look through my book. Perhaps it was vanity, confirming to myself that my work was finally done. And then I saw I them.Errors
My book was filled with errors. Not just a few, but a lot. My brain flat-lined, as some of the errors I was sure I had fixed before publishing. Did I somehow upload the wrong files? How did I miss these in two proofs? I had no idea. So I all I could do is suck it up, and fix it.But there was a problem. To change on Fastpencil, even for electronic distribution, I had only two options. Launch a new edition, keeping the old edition up. Or withdraw the old edition, and put up the new one, restarting the whole process again. Either way, I will have to pay again, and this time the full price. After much hand wringing and knowing full well that I could not afford the republishing cost, I withdrew my book from Fastpencil.
Creatspace
After the collapse of the Fastpencil experience, I decided to move to new route nearly a year after finishing my book. So I finally decided to do a little research, and found my way to Createspace.While Createspace didn't seem to have the "world wide distribution" that Fastpencil had promised, it did have first pick to the biggest game on the block, Amazon. It also was free. Well they do took a small royalty, but there is no obligatory upfront $270 cost that Fastpenicl had, which was big relief. It also had the electronic version of the Tax form that had taken so long to resolve with Fastpencil, and rather than weeks, it took a few minutes to fill out and few days to get confirmation.
Overall Creatspace, should have been my first stop, but now I know and knowing is half the battle.
Wait, Error, Fixed
So everything went fine, until like the biggest idiot on the planet I noticed a mispelling in my title.... "againts" instead of "against". WHAT, sigh. I dreaded the issues I had with Fastpencil rearing their ugly head again. However, with a quick email the folks at Creatspace reopened editing and got it fix super quick, not cost. So major props.
The future
With Death Race against the Patriarchy finally back up in the wide world, what's the next step. Well, other distributors, perhaps like Smashwords and Book Baby. For any future projects starting with Creatspace makes sense, and any money spent will go to promos and advert instead. More to come as I head towards other routes.
