New Indie RPG released - The Blight
Chris_Chinn:
Hi Iain,
A third option for getting into print is to use a print on demand publisher like Lulu.com. Lots of folks here have used lulu or similar services and it works well - customers order from the site, they print up the book and send it to the customer, the fees for printing are taken out, and you get your money. You keep all of your copyrights, and can even amend or change things fairly easily as they print from PDFs that you upload. (Do a search for "roleplaying games" on Lulu, you'll see a lot of them!)
Granted, POD sites cost significantly more per unit than traditional printing, but it does mean that you're not paying for printing up front, warehouse/storage fees, shipping, or inventory tax.
As far as building community, the #1 thing which we've seen work over time is actual play! Posting about your actual play, having your players/playtest groups talk about it, running demos or full sessions at conventions, etc. When people talk about what your game does well, and differently than other games, it draws attention. (When people talk about what your game doesn't do well, it can also draw good attention- sometimes a negative review sparks people going, "But, that's TOTALLY the game I want!" - Burning Wheel has this experience a lot on forums like rpg.net.)
Chris
Nathan P.:
Iain, you may also want to look at OneBookShelf (which operates RPGNow and DriveThruRPG), as they are the largest PDF "distributor" and just started a print-on-demand service as well. So, it's a way to get your work out in front of more eyeballs, and then provide customers with a choice of PDF or a printed book, without any additional cost to you. Of course, you'll get less of each sale (they take about 30% of cover for PDF downloads, I dont know what the cut is for POD), but I've found that OneBookShelf sales seem to be in addition to my direct sales, not replacing them (that is, I haven't had a downturn in direct sales since I started offering PDFs on OBS).
Also, one of the most convenient tools they offer is that you can send updated PDFs to everyone who's bought one in the past with one button-click. Worth keeping in mind if you're planning on updating your PDFs over time.
If your goal is to spend the minimum of money on publishing while getting it out there, the model of PDF/POD sales + enthusiastic support and actual play is pretty well-traveled ground around these parts.The key determinate is getting the word out (whether by AP reports, reviews, paid advertising, convention presence, word-of-mouth in other venues, and so on)
darkveil:
Hi
Many thanks for all the suggestions - I have created a PDF for Lulu and am looking at the OneBookShelf option - it seems reasonable.
What about a 3rd option? Has anyone had any success getting a 3rd party publisher of games to take things of this sort? And if so any lists available that I can tout round with proof copy?
Many thanks
Iain
Ron Edwards:
Hi Iain,
That third option exists, as the default as many see it. This website includes the mission of repudiating that viewpoint. My take, and that of the co-founder (Ed Healy), his successor and founder of the current format (Clinton Nixon), and my current partner (Vincent Baker), is that this option is universally abusive to the author of the game. No matter how much yipyap about IP is involved, or royalties deals, or anything like that. The Forge is about fully owning what you create.
I'm not going to preach at you about it, nor do I think you should stop information-gathering. But I strongly advise you to look past the blandishments and promises, to examine what really happens when people let others take over their work, and to compare it with what can happen when you maintain full control. In this hobby, anyone and everyone can publish, and there is no special Guy who can make or break you, or act as your angel into "real" publishing. I suggest that in the short or long run, people who pose as this Guy screw the author, every time.
Best, Ron
darkveil:
Hi Ron
I see what you are saying - having done some by-the-word writing in the past i know how poor the returns are and how little your work is respected. Based on this I am more than happy to explore other avenues. With some of the sites that the guys above have mentioned, it really is possible to publish yourself (which it wasn't 10 years ago), but the problem I see is how do you get your game noticed. If you go the way of the publisher then that becomes their problem (which I am sure they sting you heavily for). I am more than happy to give the game away for free if I think it would actually help it take off, but this is self-defeating if it does not produce a core of gamers and a critical mass.
I guess it all comes down to spreading the word
Hmmm. All very tricky
iain
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