Blurb

Over the weekend, I came across a website called "Blurb." While searching for a "second job" on Craigslist, one of the company posting the ad was called Blurb. Wanting to know more about the company before I send in my resume, I went to the site to check it out. It turns out to be an interesting place. They are a start up company, providing service similar to what Apple is offering - creating books. If you are familiar with the Apple Photo book, then you can instantly understand the kind of products they are providing. However, Blurb offers a more extensive choices, in terms of publishing products.

Some of the products offered are cook book, portfolio, photo book, poetry book, baby book, etc. The idea is to give any user who is interested in creating ANY type of publication, an instant tool to publish their own book. The service is free, and the cost only comes when you've decided to print out your book.

The process is pain-free. First, you download their program called "BookSmart" (both PC and Mac). Then you are ready to go. Templates are well-organized, though selections may be limited at this point of time. Blurb will store your files for you, until they are ready to be published. Their prices are competitive, and not overwhelmingly expensive.

Another cool feature is "Selling Your Book." Yes, you can sell your book through Blurb. Whatever profits you make are all yours to keep. I am not sure about that process yet, since I have yet to finish creating my trial book.

Overall, Blurb has managed to bring me back to their site, and become their member. There may be similar kind of places offering the same service already, but this is my first encounter of a company providing such service. Needless to say, I have not used all the features available, and the software "BookSmart" is still a Beta version. So, if you decide to give it a try, be ready for things that can still go wrong during your publishing process. However, it is free of charge at this point, and there is still a lot of possibilities for them to grow into.

Oh, I've got so interested in their product that I've forgot to send them my resume!