Strawberry Bandits Publishing

Category: Countertop Smart Garden Logbook

  • First Edition, in paperback, coming February 10th

  • New proofs

    I was unable to get a hardcover proof shipped from the US to Canada.

    I have two proofs arriving on Tuesday, February 10th, one for each edition of the BLUE TO GREEN Countertop Smart Garden Logbook.

    If they look good…

    I’ll be republishing the first edition and I’ll be publishing the second edition in paperback and hardcover. I’ll promptly order a hard cover, so I can actually review it.

  • More changes

    In fleshing out my second book I realize it’s coming in at more than 180 pages.

    I split it in two. Floor-standing Smart Gardens and BYO Photons Hydroponics. I cap both logbooks at 180 pages.

    I revisited the Countertop logbook and increase its page count from 120 pages to 180 pages.

    I lock in my pricing for the first edition. It’s 120 pages and is going to basically be my loss leader.

    The second edition, 180 pages, in paperback and hard cover is priced just past the 50%-60% KDP boundary. The print cost is more, especially in countries like Australia (44% more than Canada).

    I delve into Ingram Spark.

    I get everything setup and then discover that IS doesn’t like my PDFs that Amazon was okay with. IS doesn’t like my colour profile. Again, Amazon was okay with my files. I look into what I’d need to do. Upgrade my Standard version of Corel Draw. Not happening.

    So, I’m not going to use Ingram Spark.

  • BLUE To GREEN Countertop Smart Garden Logbook

    2026.01.29

    The trim size I initially selected was B5 JIS. I used a gutter of 15mm and 10mm for the other borders. I initially set a page limit of 120 pages.

    Library and Archives Canada denied my ISBN request. Stated that I could send in a copy of my book if I disagreed with their decision. I sent in a copy and proceeded to publish on Amazon with just the barcode supplied by Amazon.

    Requested proof copies, but foolishly pressed publish before getting the proofs.

    Library and Archives Canada comes back, approving me for an ISBN.

    Proofs arrive and the gutter is tighter than I’d like. The other margins are a little erratic. This is where I discover that Amazon allows for 1/8″ variance with print on demand.

    Great. I unpublish my book, but I can’t delete it. Amazon just leaves it there, as unavailable.

    I change my trim size to 7″ by 10″, a more standard trim size allowed on Amazon for both softcover, hardcover and extended distribution. I increase the gutter to 3/4″. The other margins are set to 1/4″. The great thing about Corel Draw is that it’s a vector drawing program and everything can be resized very easily. I request more proofs.

    I also flesh out the page count for the floor-standing logbook. It’s coming in at 180 pages. I decide to change my first book from 120 pages to 180 pages, and issue it as the “Second Edition”.

    I request more proofs. They arrive. The gutter is still tight for my liking, this time because of the increase in page count. I find some small formatting errors and one content error. I increase the gutter to 1″ and bump the other margins by around 1/16″ to ensure everything falls inside the KDP no bleed page boundaries.

    I need to redo the cover. I might be able to put the book name on the spine.

    PREVIOUSLY…

    In Canada, just creating the product grants you the copyright to it. However, you can still register your copyright with the Canadian government.

    I’ve registered the domain “StrawberryBanditsPublishing.ca” and redirected it to my WordPress site that I was planning on using to blog mushroom foraging in Saskatchewan. Maybe later!

    I snagged the eMail address “StrawberryBanditsPublishing@gmail.com“