FAQ: Buying Southern Flourish Issues

Even though we offer the digital version of our magazine 100% for free, we here at Southern Flourish think it’s important to be open and honest about our printed and downloadable issue pricing.

Why does the full-color coffee table book cost $45 or $50 (depending on the issue)?
Because our books are printed on-demand, it means that we don’t reap the savings that a typical publisher does when they order, say, 10,000 copies of a book from a printer. As such, the price mostly reflects LuLu.com’s manufacturing costs. We make a profit of between $4.50 – $6.50 per book — which helps pay writers, photographers and other expenses. If you’re looking for a lower cost copy of an issue, consider purchasing the PDF, eBook or B&W coffee table book.

What are the benefits to printing on-demand?
It saves both paper and money! If we printed 10,000 copies of the book and only sold 5,000, we’d be out some serious cash, as well as wasted a ton of paper. We try to keep our business as eco-friendly as possible.

What’s the difference between the two coffee table style books?
Both books have gorgeous, full color covers. The difference is on the inside. One is full-color and the other is grayscale. Both are really pretty, but if you’re looking for a more cost-effective option, the B&W version is the way to go! If you’ve got the cash to burn, we highly suggest the full-color one…it’s something special.

Why is the downloadable version $5.99?
This is the average price of most home, garden and women’s interest publications on the newsstand and a fair price to pay for our great content!

Am I allowed to print the downloadable version once I buy it?
Yes, but we ask that you only print it on your home printer or a single copy at a local copy shop like Kinkos. You are definitely not allowed to sell copies for profit.

How large is the PDF file?
LARGE. The PDF file is about 100 MB, so be sure you have a reliable, fast internet connection when you start downloading the file.

Do you have any plans to offer discounts for subscriptions to either the printed or downloadable versions?
We’re working on it! We hope to offer subscription options in 2011. In the mean time, you can subscribe to our monthly e-newsletter.

Why don’t you offer on-demand printing in a typical magazine format?
While there are some decent options out there for on-demad magazine printing, they can’t handle magazines of our page length (150+ pages). Plus, the manufacturing costs alone for an on-demand magazine of around 100 pages is $18, not including our mark-up. We’ll continue to explore this option and jump at any chance to offer it in a high quality, cost-effective manner.