Because re-flowing the text to a new size will adjust page count. As will art to text ratios and general openness of layout. All fun stuff to consider! ;)

We were discussing the limits of the 6x9 / Digest size over the weekend. General opinion seems to be it breaks down round about the "spirit of the century limit" of 400-odd pages. This is around the point where the small and light turns into thick and unweildy.

-Matt

Realms Publishing

Do Lulu print in a straight A4 size, as with traditional softback RPGs?

http://www.solipsist-rpg.com/

Lulu's size FAQ'

-Matt

Realms Publishing

Ouch, much of that page seems to say, if you don't have Distiller, InDesign or Acrobat, and you are using a Mac, then practically any PDF (as opposed to postscript file) that you create is not going to work on Lulu.

http://www.solipsist-rpg.com/

Pretty much the standard sizes for the RPG industry are Letter (8.5x11in) and 6x9in. If a book is short, do it as 6x9 with a single column layout. If it's long, do it as Letter with a 2 column layout.

The counterpoint to what Matt said about SotC being too thick for the small size: in many ways Questers is too thin for the large size.

There's an aesthetic issue about, um, handleability. There's also a finance/marketing one: it seems to me that people take much more account of page numbers than book size when forming a perception of what's an appropriate price. Therefore, you can get away with a higher price if the book is small with more pages. That's important because Lulu costs are a fixed chunk plus a very small amount per page, so the more pages you have the lower the cost per page gets and the easier it gets to make a profit.

Tim Gray
Silver Branch Games
www.silverbranch.co.uk

I am considering A4 for Eeekamouse in Atlantis because, well, the illustrations are A4 :)

http://www.solipsist-rpg.com/

Cheers Matt for the lulu faq, that clears up some more of the questions I have further down the road :)

Regards

;O)Newt
D101games -An Imaginary Company

Thanks for all your answers, I have a much clear idea of what is going on.

The magazine (Hearts in Glorantha) is going to be A4 softcover saddlestiched

The book, SimpleQuest, the dury's still out on that one since its not straight forward case of doing an A4 softcover and A4 hardcover...or so it seems from a quick look. Need to do some more research and a 'test' book (which is going to be an uber secret very limited edition I'm doing for Continuum).

Regards

;O)Newt
D101games -An Imaginary Company

Newt said .... which is going to be an uber secret very limited edition I'm doing for Continuum

So super secret that you choose to announce it on this site!
Look forward to seeing the-book-that-shall-not-be-named at Continuum

neil

Take the King's shilling at http://www.omnihedron.co.uk/dutyandhonour/

Drat foiled again. You CE chaps are to cleaver by half.

Regards

;O)Newt
D101games -An Imaginary Company

If you want to do hardcover through Lulu then you're limited to two sizes, IIRC - 6x9 and more-or-less-Letter.

Tim Gray
Silver Branch Games
www.silverbranch.co.uk