U. A. Kiran was born in Cannanore in Kerala, India. From Kerala, he came to Howrah in West Bengal to learn Bengali, Hindi and finally English which became the medium of expression and the language of his creativity. Having completed his Diploma in Management in West Bengal he worked in…
Author: maddingcrowd
The Cost of Self Publishing
One question that is often asked by authors contacting us is that related to the cost of publishing. I have attempted to answer that question here although it is nearly impossible to give an exact figure considering the fact that almost every book is unique in some aspects. What follows…
The Grammar Nazi and the Zen Grammarian
Grammar Nazis and the Zen Grammarian Towards the fag end of the second World War, a rumour was running through the Allied countries, characterized by this paragraph from Time Magazine: “But what of the top Nazis who cannot hide? With a compact army of young SS and Hitler Youth fanatics,…
The end of the book as we know it?
The definition of a book might soon change. While we are all used to it’s current definition as “a written work or composition that has been published (printed on pages bound together)”, advances in technology and increasing expectations from readers may converge to ensure that that definition no longer holds…
Impending Doom or Misplaced Fears?
There is much debate on whether the printed book will survive the onslaught of its electronic counterpart. With newer devices being produced almost everyday that make e-books easy to access, it seems like e-books are here to stay. While many publishers are apprehensive of the impact of e-books on their…
Riding the e-book wave!
It was already about e-books. From the Kindle to the Nook to the very unimaginatively named Sony Reader, e-book Readers were fast to come by and offer those on the move a new way to read books. e-book Readers offered a truckload of choices – from the ability to carry…
Everything you wanted to know about the ISBN but were too afraid to ask
Many authors seem perplexed when faced with the question of whether they prefer an ISBN for their book. They are not sure whether an ISBN is required, what are its benefits and how it should be obtained. Here is an attempt to answer these questions. Much of this is borrowed…
Our first sales!!!
On the 29th of March, 2010, Mira Koreth’s bookpad at Banerghatta Road, Bangalore registered its first sales. For us at fivex5, it was a vindication of our belief that fivex5 was a concept whose time had come. First some background. fivex5 was conceptualized as an alternate channel for selling books…
Meet Our Authors – Dr. Shiva C. Aithal and Abhay B. Solunke
This is the first in a series of blogs where we will introduce you to our authors. Our authors have chosen to follow the self-publishing route for many reasons, yet propelled by one underlying desire – to make their work accessible to everyone. The authors we cover today are distinguished…
Crossing those t’s…
There are many reasons why a book won’t sell. Primary among them is editing – that is hastily done, or worse, altogether avoided. If first impressions do make a difference, it is a well edited book, not an exquisitely designed cover, that will sell your book. It therefore makes terrible…