Forgotten Titles specialises in bringing 'forgotten' titles back to life and into print. Their latest project A Caravan Holiday - A Trip Down Memory Lane on Two Wheels - recalls a holiday made by Len Smith, his wife and friends around the south of England in 1932. Len, an accredited war artist, painted watercolours every step of the way and kept a daily diary. Until now his diary has only been read by his immediate family.

We asked Chandler Design to handle the complete design of this title. It was far from being a straight forward project. It has colour images (watercolors) on almost every page and also black and white photographs as well. The text needed to reflect the hand-written charm of the original diary. John came up with many suggestions to enhance the look of the book and his technical and artistic ability has meant that we have ended up with a very strong product. Calling on his ability has enabled us, a very small publisher, to level the playing field when we are competing with the very large publishing houses. The design was also completed on time and everyone who picks up the book comments on it high quality. We look forward to working with him on our next title which is also likely to be technically challenging." Tim Barlass/Founder, Forgotten Titles

Working on this job was one of the nicest I have ever done. Although the client specified the format and briefed me on how he wanted to make it look like a note book written in a hand written font he was happy for me take complete control of the design from that point on. I suggested that perhaps we could complement the original scrap book by using paper effects and different colours. Tim was a little unsure as he could only envisage white pages, but when he saw the first few drafts we created while he was here in the office he was won over. The fact is we worked well together and he let me have a free hand on the design once I got an understanding of what he was after. I thoroughly enjoyed the project from start to finish - my only regret was that it finished, but all good things must come to an end! The fact is I used all my working knowledge of the programs I use to be able to created a reproduction of the original so it would look as if it had been painted on the actual book.

The end product has turned out even better than we imagined and the cover as a paper case cover with the gold lettering was the icing on the cake. The attention to detail from cover through to back is evident on the final product. It has had good press from the Daily Telegraph a number of local newspapers in the South East, it was featured on Radio 4's The Today programme and book sales have started well.

This project was certainly as enjoyable for me as for the client and we genuinely had a good time on it. John Chandler

To find out more about the titles that Forgotten Titles publish please visit www.forgottentitles.com

Congratulations to Tim Barlass and the team at Forgotten Titles on their recent appearance on BBC Radio 4's Today programme and for their feature in The Daily Telegraph.

As a published author I know what it's like to have my work in print. Unquestionably having a publisher is prestigious but you can lose some control over the final result. For instance I was allowed to make suggestions as to the covers of my books and the blurb on the back pages but didn't have the final say. I was limited to the type and amount of photographs I could use, and the font, paper, lay out and price were all determined for me.

In return for taking away the risk and responsibility of having my books printed, I receive a small royalty payment based on the retail price of every book sold. In essence it is a good system but can take months from the time you actually submit your manuscript, have it accepted and finally get it in print. Also, unless you are in the same league as Jackie Collins, Stephen King, or J K Rowling, the financial return is not brilliant, and you have to wait for the twice annual statements to arrive to see how many books you've actually sold.

Although publishers do promote books they rely on the author to do most of the marketing, so when I completed my latest book I decided to go it alone. Since I had done all the work I decided I deserved all the reward! However, even knowing what to expect the prospect was daunting, and obviously my main considerations about self-publishing were the initial cost involved and the minimum amount of books I would have to order.

Having made a few enquires I was pleasantly surprised when I discovered Chandler Book Design. This friendly and helpful company will arrange to print a minimum of 100 books, and once the design has been finalised and the story laid out to your satisfaction you can go on to have as many reprints as you want.

They made the whole process very easy for me. Starting with a telephone call they then set up a meeting to discuss the content of my book. They wanted to gain an insight into what I wanted so would be in a good position to advise on the size, format, cover design, paper quality, colour, images, print type and suitable retail price, should these be required. They also advised on copyright, how to get an ISBN, proof reading and editing if necessary, and also the legal deposit.

By the time the meeting had ended I had a rough idea of how much my venture would cost and within a couple of days I knew the exact amount. It was then a simple matter of verifying the different stages and waiting for the final result. Communication was prompt, efficient and friendly.

I think my latest book is visually more impressive than those I've had done through publishers, and I had complete control over the entire layout and cover design.

Thank you for making Mercury Poisoning – It's Not In Our Heads Any More really mine. If Jodi's Journey Goes On it will certainly be heading in your direction!