Printing with the SPA

In our efforts to build better tools for publishers to use, we have developed a system for getting your publications printed by sharing group rates not available to individuals...and we've designed it to be as easy to use as possible. It's as simple as answering the questions that are on your mind about it. Let's run them down:

• Do I qualify?
• What are the restrictions?
• What's it cost?

1. Do I Qualify?

A: The easy answer is MOST LIKELY. The basic qualification is that you are a member of the SPA in some form, the simplest of which is being a member in good standing of the website you are reading this information on. So if you are registered here, and can log in, then you pass the basic qualification. If for any reason you account is not in good standing - then we're going to have to ask that you contact the SPA Leadership to work out why.

B: The printing service we offer is NOT for everyone. If you want complete control over every step of everything, you can go find your own printer, because we have very specific guidelines and standards for files which allow us to qualify for the group rates we have negotiated. It is for SPA MEMBER publishers who do not want to have to handle dealing with printers, because you deal with us on a personal level instead, and we teach you how to get your files set up to be 100% load and go ready, and then we handle the running of the order through the best printer we have to cover the order you want to run. We do not limit ourselves to being JUST ONE PRINT SHOP: we work with many, who specialize in the areas we offer, to get the best quality and prices possible.

C: There will be required use SPA tools (member logos), and a general working together family tone (we can print up to an R rating, but overt sex - we won't print). You don't have to be an SPA Comics imprint member to get printed by us, but you will have to do things our way to get our benefits. This includes: If you are coming here looking for a fast rush job to get something done for a show that you can't seem to get anyone else to agree to get done in time - don't bother asking us. We can get things printed fast, but we will NOT make any time guarantees, nor agree to rush something and get stuck paying rush shipping that doesn't get paid back by the publisher. That was one of the big things that shut us down last time we were running printing for outside publishers, so we will NOT get into the situation again.

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2. What are the restrictions?

A: You will be asked to promote that you are a member of the SPA in your publication, HOWEVER, you are NOT allowed to imply or otherwise infer that you are a member of the SPA Comics Group. The SPA Comics Group is a separate organization, that shares parts of the publishing experience between our books, including co-branding logos, and other aspects you can learn about by reading the SPA Comics Group website. Using the SPA Printing service does not make you a member of that group. If you attempt to, in and way that we discover, try to pass yourself off as part of the SPA Comics Group, and you are NOT, then you will be open to legal action for us to protect our brand name.

B: The logo that you are required to display inside your book, NOT on the outside cover, front OR back, but inside the book, on a text page or other space set aside for copyright/printing information, can be found HERE. The general use policies are explained on that page, and are the same for all SPA members, whether they use the service or not. Some people like to show their support of the SPA and print on their desktop printers, etc, in smaller formats...and on websites. Using the printing service, you are require to, if we don't find it when we are prepping the book, we will ask for it to be added. Also, near the logo, we need to see "Printed through the SPA. www.dimestoreproductions.com" or other similar verbiage.

C: We used to have a PG limit on materials we would print. We have been able to raise that to a R rating, so horror material, an occasional nude flash, is OK. We still, however, will not print anything we deem overtly sex-related, that crosses any major lines of good taste that would make it something that we would not want to have our service used to print.

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3. What's it COST?

A: The cost of printing is A LOT more up to YOU than it is to us. It depends completely on what you are printing, how many copies you want/need, and how fancy you want to get. We have developed pages that will help you figure out, for yourself, what it's going to cost to print what you want to, through US specifically, although the KNOWLEDGE on the pages, can be applied to ANY printer. If you are a publisher, it's stuff you REALLY need to know or learn, before you say "I want to print this 32 page comic, what's it going to cost me.

B: There is a MEMBER USAGE FEE of just 2 cents per copy of whatever you are printing. Everything else is AT OUR COST of what we have negotiated based on group rates for the membership. If it's not the lowest price for the quality available, we want to know where is better, so we can work with them to lower YOUR costs. With this notation: The 2 cent fee, helps keep Dimestore and the SPA afloat, so that we can work to negotiate group terms that beat what you can get for prices on your own.

C: The pages you need to visit, and know when to revisit, when you want to print something, are in the navigation block for this section of the site, at the top of the content section. They are: Calculating, NUMBERS!, and Shipping. These are the pages to use to figure out your price to print something.

D: OVER-RUNS: printers frequently print a little more than the order calls for. Sometimes they destroy those copies. In our system, however, Dimestore automatically receives those extra copies above the ordered print run, and then adds those to it's available stock, takes them to shows, and tried to sell them for you. You will get 90% of the cover price from the sales of those copies...however, you account is also charged for the per copy cost of them, so you don't have to pay up front for those copies, but will pay for them as they sell. Talk to us more if you don't understand this, and how we report on # of over run copies, etc.

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