Your choice of binding will depend on the expected market for your book, the number of books being bound, and the size of your book, among other factors. If you expect to market your book by mail order, there’s no need for a hardbound edition. Hardbinding simply increases your binding and shipping expenses.
There are seven basic methods of binding your book:
1. side-stitching,
2. saddle-stitching,
3. riveting,
4. spiral,
5. plastic comb,
6. perfect binding (glue), and
7. hardbinding.
Side-Stitcking
This is the least expensive method. The left-hand sides of the pages are simply stapled together; when tape is used to cover the staples, it’s called Holland tape.
Side-stitching can be done to a book of several hundred pages. The disadvantage is that the book won't lie flat when opened.
SaddU-Stitcbing
A saddle-stitched book is stapled directly on its fold—hence the term “saddle.” Use at least three staples in order to qualify for the reduced book rate at the post office.
This binding is usually limited to books that are less than a quarter-inch thick, or less than eighty pages, unless unusually thin paper is used.
Riveting
This method is similar to side-stitching, although much more expensive. Rivets are driven through pre-punched holes.
This is a good method of binding bound galleys, which a few trade magazines require for review purposes. This technique is also called “velo binding.”
Spiral
This method is often employed for extremely short-run books that are being used to test-market a book via mail-order sales. It is popular for cookbooks, automotive manuals, and other books that must lie flat when in use.
Holes are punched and a metal or plastic wire in spiral form is woven through the holes. This method, too, is expensive, running as much as 70 to 90 cents per copy.
Bookstores and libraries don’t particularly like books with spiral bindings, as they cannot be stacked neatly or displayed spine out.
Plastic Comb
This resembles the spiral form, in that the book can be opened flat. Its name describes its form. It is less expensive than the
spiral form, though, being often available at 40 to 70 cents per copy, depending on the book size.
The advantages are that it looks better than staples and is far less expensive than perfect binding when only a few hundred copies are being bound. In addition, the comb can be printed with the usual spine information.
Perfect Binding
The term for this form of binding is a misnomer. A “perfect bound” book has its cover glued to its pages. If the covers are improperly glued, they can become detached from the pages of the book. Or the individual pages can loosen and fall away.
Nevertheless, this is the most common form of binding for softbound books. It is also far less expensive than the spiral or plastic comb methods when a thousand or more books are being bound. At 1985 prices, it costs approximately 30 cents each to perfect bind a thousand standard-size books.
Hardbinding
Hardbound books are also called “casebound” books. Their pages can be either sewn or glued together. Then a heavy paper is wrapped around the spine, which is called an endpaper. Thick boards of cardboard or plastic material are sized, covered with either cloth or similar material, and then glued to the spine of the gathered pages.
Binding a hardcover can cost three to five times more than binding a paperback. For just a few hundred books, it can run as high as $4 to $6 per book.
The author suggests that this form of binding not be used for an initial printing, as primary demand for such binding comes from libraries. Wait until such demand occurs. Chapter 31 describes how softbound books can be easily converted to hardbound form as needed, at reasonable cost.
Binding a Softbound Edition
Having your signatures bound is the last step in the production of your book. In the past, it has been traditional to bind a new book in hard cover first. Later, if sales warrant, a lower-priced softbound is released for wider distribution. The logic behind this rationale is weak, especially for a small publisher.
In most instances, it makes more sense for a small publisher to issue the less expensive softbound edition initially. A hardbound edition is warranted only if library demand or other special circumstances develop. Then the small publisher can convert softbound books to hardbound as needed.
Disregard tradition in the binding of your books. Consider your market and bind accordingly.
When to Bind in Soft Cover
If you expect the demand for your book will be primarily in bookstores, then bind your book for this market—in soft cover, where your price will be competitive.
A softbound book is also a wise choice for the author-publisher with limited funds. As mentioned earlier, binding in hard cover adds another $1.50 to $1.75 to the cost of each book (in runs of no fewer than a thousand books).
When your expected market is a mail-order one, also bind in soft cover. A mail-order customer does not care whether a book is hardbound or softbound. He simply wishes to purchase the information at a reasonable price.
Recipe books and repair manuals can be softbound, too. You may wish to use a plastic comb or spiral binding, which permits pages to lie flat when the book is opened.
Major reviewers prefer to review books that are available in hard cover. The fact that you have a hardbound edition available can be spelled out on the cover of your advance review copies. On this cover, you simply list the price of both bindings.
Binding In Hard Cover And Soft Cover At The Same Time
If you are extremely optimistic (as most author-publishers are the first time) and have adequate funds, you may choose to bind in both soft cover and hard cover. The author did this with his first book, and the gamble worked. Both library and bookstore orders were forthcoming, but the title was irresistible: Hemorrhoids: A Cure and Preventative. There were forty million sufferers, the book was prepared well, and no competition existed. The resulting profits from the combined printings were superior to what they otherwise would have been.
Keep a Reserve of Unbound Signatures
This book does not suggest that you gamble. An alternative to initial hardbinding is to leave a number of your signatures unbound. Then if library demand for your book develops, you can quickly bind a hardbound edition. Otherwise, these unbound signatures can be used to bind more softbound books.
Converting Softbound to Hardbound
The most economical alternative is to bind all your books initially in soft cover, and then convert these to hardbound books as needed.
To find firms that convert softbound books to hardbindings, pick up your telephone and call a few libraries. Most libraries do this type of converting all the time. Simply ask the acquisition librarians at these libraries whom they use to convert their softbound books.
If local libraries cannot help you, you can write to the following address to locate such a bindery:
Library Binding Institute Suite 51
1421 E. Wayzata Blvd.
Wayzata, MN 55391
When you’ve located a reasonably priced converter, have a few books converted to check the results. Often, these firms insist on a minimum order of ten books. If the quality of the converted books is acceptable, you have an inexpensive method of meeting demand for your book in hard cover.
Obtaining Quotes From Binderies
There are fewer binderies than there are printers in your locale. You may even find that it’s necessary to seek out binderies some distance from where you live. Start by asking your signature printer whom he or she uses for binding jobs. Also consult the classified section of a large telephone directory.
Other author-publishers you’ve met can probably refer you to reliable binderies.
What the Bindery Must Know
Be prepared to furnish the following information to binderies:
1. The finish (trim) si2e of your book page.
2. The head trim (side of the book to be bound).
3. The number of books to be bound.
4. The number of signatures in your book.
5. The folding requirements of the signatures.
6. The inserting requirements for signatures.
7. The gathering requirements for signatures.
The “trim size” of a softbound book is the exact size the page will be in the finished book. The “head trim” of most books is the left-hand side of the folded signature.
When a signature is “folded,” it is folded into halves until its pages are in the proper sequence. Signatures may require “inserting” when one signature must be inserted inside another. Then the signatures for each book must be arranged in proper order by “gathering” them.
What to Ask the Bindery
Ask if the bindery uses a machine to insen and gather folded signatures, or if this work is done by hand. If it’s done by hand, ask how much you can save by doing this work yourself. In the case of the author’s Bond book, a one-quarter savings in the binding bill for a thousand books resulted when the author and his wife spent an afternoon inserting and gathering signatures.
When a bindery provides a quote, usually in the form of a cost per copy, ask what their quote number is. Should you later decide to use their services, they can quickly refer to their quote when you provide them this number.
Many binderies offer free pickup and delivery. Ask if there are any charges in your area, as these can influence the total cost of binding, especially if you have to go outside your local area to find a bindery.
Also ask that the books be packaged in boxes weighing no more than forty pounds. If you don’t specify the weight of delivered and boxed books, you may receive sixty- to seventy-pound boxes, which will be difficult for you to move, store, and ship.
Check For Defective Bindings Immediately
When you receive bound books, always check the quality of the bindings immediately. If a company truck delivers the books, open at least one box and inspect all its books in the presence of the driver. If any irregularities appear, make a note of them on the receipt that you sign for the books. Also contact the bindery to detail the problem as soon as you’ve checked the rest of the boxes.
In one instance, the author discovered that a third of a shipment had badly wrinkled pages. These books were unsalable. The damage had occurred during folding, which was done at the time the books were bound. Since payment had to be made on delivery, a telephone call was made to the bindery while the delivery truck waited. Payment was made after deducting 33 percent from the invoice figure.
In a second instance, a bindery broke the spine of every other book due to poor adjustment in their binding equipment. As delivery was being taken at the bindery, the author summoned a "quality control” person and proceeded to open the rest of the boxes. Each box had the same problem; every other spine was damaged. The bindery agreed to bind additional books at no cost as compensation. If time had not been taken to inspect these books, this adjustment might not have been forthcoming. The bindery was located a hundred miles away, and a trip would have been necessary to prove the extent of the damage.
Check your books, invoice forms, promotional flyers, mailing labels, and all other printed material when you take delivery. This is the best time to ensure that appropriate adjustments are made to correct printing errors.
Binding a Hardbound Edition
There are two methods of hardbinding your book: binding the original signatures, or converting softbound books as described in the previous chapter. Which method you should use depends on how you plan to market the book and where the demand for it occurs.
If you are binding a book that is expected to have a library market, be a gift, or be purchased by collectors, then bind in hard cover.
Libraries prefer hardbinding and will pay a premium for it. Buyers of gift books prefer the fancier binding. Collectors also favor hardbound books.
If you choose to bind a hard-cover edition, the binder must be given the following information:
1. The number of books to be bound.
2. The weight of paper used to print signatures.
3. The number of pages in the book.
4. The finish (trim) size of the book pages.
5. The head trim (side to be bound).
6. Whether a rounded or squared spine is desired.
7. The type of flyleaf paper preferred,
8. Whether flyleaves are to be printed on.
9. The binding material desired.
10. The color of material for the hard cover.
11. Spine decoration.
12. Front cover decoration.
13- Folding requirements (if any) for the signatures.
14. Insertion requirements (if any) for the signatures.
15. Gathering requirements (if any) for the signatures.
16. If dust jackets are to be placed on the books.
Most binderies do not make dust jackets. Dust jacket printers, who are discussed in the next chapter, must be contracted separately.
Most people prefer a rounded spine on books, although more can be printed on a square spine.
The flyleaf of a book is the heavy paper between the covers and the first and last pages of the book. The printer must be told what type of paper to use and whether it is to be printed on.
It is difficult to select a material and color for the hardbound cover unless you personally visit the bindery to view available alternatives. If you choose material that is already in stock, you might be able to save a small amount.
You will be charged for imprints on the spine or front cover of your book. The spine must be stamped with the book’s title and at least your last name. You can also stamp any image you wish on the front.
Wrap Your Own Dust Jackets
When you have dust jackets, don't let the bindery wrap them around your books. When books with dust jackets are stacked in boxes at a bindery, their dust jackets often become scratched or smudged. By doing this job yourself, you can eliminate the possibility of such damage.
The following chapter describes how to wrap your own dust jackets.
Have the Books Delivered in Small Boxes
Remember, do not have books delivered in boxes that weigh over forty pounds. Smaller containers are easier to move, store, and ship. Small boxes can also be used to pack orders.
Printing Your Dust Jacket