Getting ready for publication.

Hello again! I haven't added to this blog for a long time, as I have been busy getting the document on the history of the Doris family in Lettermacaward ready for publication, scanning in pictures and experimenting with fonts and layouts. I have decided to use Lulu to publish it. This is an online self-publishing company - you upload the text and cover specifications to them electronically and then they print and bind a copy whenever anyone orders one, through Amazon or Lulu itself. Some people criticise Lulu and say that it is just a vanity publisher but it seems to be an ideal setup for people like me. There are no problems with distribution and no danger of producing too many copies. A book like this might conceivably sell five hundred copies worldwide if there are enough members of the family who are interested but the chances are that it will only be bought by a few dozen people. There is no way of knowing until it's published. So far, I am finding the Lulu process simple enough to understand but I am a bit confused by the cover instructions! Fortunately, I have a friend who is very good with computers and he has agreed to help me. Once the document has been uploaded, I will order a copy myself to see whether everything is OK and then it will be available for sale to the public. That's when the next phase begins. I doubt very much whether anyone has read this blog yet but as soon as the book is available, I will have to contact people with the names Doris, Doorish and Dorans to inform them about the blog and the book. I will do this through genealogy noticeboards, telephone directories and hopefully eventually through word of mouth among scattered members of the family. If there is anyone reading this, I will keep you posted on how things go and on the estimated timescale. Watch this space!