Questions? Call or Email!
We know you may not be used to reaching a live person when you call, but we answer your calls during business hours. Reach out to us by phone or email. If we don’t answer the phone please leave a message that includes your phone number. We ask that you repeat the phone number slowly so that we can get it noted and call you back right away. Our office hours are 8 to 5 PM Monday – Thursday and 8 – 12 PM Friday, Central Time. Email us anytime at book@cookbookspecialists.com Meeting in person or Skype – Feel free to call or email and request a meeting with us. If you would like to meet with us in person at our facility in Independence, Iowa please call to schedule an appointment 1-800-383-1679.
There are many tips and hints in our cookbook blog. Many of the articles are based on questions we receive from customers. Click here to view our blog.
Photo quality in a cookbook is only as good as the image you send in. Try to send images as PDF or jpg with at least 300 dpi.
According to the copyright office, a list of ingredients is not copyrightable. It’s always a good idea to submit your recipes in your own words or with your variations added. That’s what makes those recipes yours. We cannot use other people’s copyrighted images in your cookbook unless you provide us with a copyright release form from that person.
We want your book to look as perfect as possible, but it can only be done with your proofing effort. Proofing your book is one of the most important elements in the whole process. If you are submitting your book online, we ask that you proofread your recipes for grammatical errors, spelling and punctuation before submitting. You will also want to check to make sure the recipes are in the correct category and order you want them to appear in. It is also important to read through the recipes you have entered to make sure the recipe is complete and steps are not missing. For books that we type, we ask that you check to make sure recipes are complete and have all steps included before you mail them in. We also ask that you check to make sure recipes are in the correct category and in the order that you want them to appear. It is also helpful to print contributor names carefully so they can be easily typed. Once your book is together, we will send your choice of a PDF or hardcopy proof to review. Alterations can be made during the proofing process. Please mark your changes in red. Examples of alterations are adding or changing recipes, contributor names, ingredients, instructions or locations. If we type your book any errors we have made will be corrected at no charge. All other alterations will be corrected based on an hourly rate with the first 30 minutes free. All alterations will be checked in house prior to going to press. If you request a second proof there is a $25 charge and you may delay your book production.
Most typically double the cost of their book to come up with a retail price. A lot will depend on what your area will support and the type of cookbook you have created. One recommendation previous customers have had is to price your book a little more than you actually want from it then offer a discount for two. For example, if you want to charge $15 consider charging $20 for one book or $30 for two. It’s always easier to reduce the cost of a book or offer a special than to increase the cost.
Yes, reorders are available. Reorders are based on page count and number of books ordered along with any special features added onto your book. Our attempt is to keep electronic files on hand of your book for at least 5 years but we have been able to recreate books from the 70’s based on a copy provided by the customer.
A little depends on how you are submitting your recipes and if you have requested a PDF proof or hardcopy proof. For a web submitted order with PDF proof that is returned in 3 business days you could have your book in under 4 weeks. We also offer rush processing for customers under a tight deadline.
To make a nice size book, we recommend 250+ recipes.
Yes, as long as they are part of the same recipe, such as icing with a cake recipe. They will not have titles or appear in the index. We average two recipes per page. A recipe may be counted as more than one recipe depending on its length.
Only if we are typesetting your recipes and errors are obvious. Otherwise, we typeset them exactly as they are written, but will use standard abbreviations in the ingredient list. If you enter your recipes online through a web account, we do not edit your recipes. You will receive a free pdf proof of your cookbook before we begin printing. A hard copy proof is available for $25.