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This is fantastic news for authors!
Google have announced that they will partner with On Demand Books to offer the Google digital library for print-on-demand through the Espresso Book Machine.
The Espresso Book Machine prints and binds a paperback book while you wait. Here's a full post on it from my pilgrimage to see one.
It is essentially the ultimate and immediate print-on-demand – albeit a little clunky looking right now (like a large photocopier).
The big drawback has been that they had a very limited catalog you could order from. I want to be able to order and print my books from it. By using the Google Books library millions of titles will now be available for people to buy and print. It will start with the public domain books, but the Google settlement will hopefully enabled authors who have opted in to have their books on the catalog too.
I have opted into the Google Books design, and proactively submitted my work with the hope that this would happen. I am more concerned with obscurity than piracy! I want people to hear about my book, walk into a store and print one out immediately.
Author Moriah Jovan posted about the bookstore of the future, where you choose your book and they print it in front of you.
Now it looks like that reality may be closer than we think!
Here's the video showing you how it happens! Yes, it is a REAL book – printed, perfect bound, library quality paperback.
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