I am in the process of finishing my self help book on visualization. What companies are good for self publishing?

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No self-publishing is good. Here is how to get published in the real world. After printing out the pages, put it away from at least 6 weeks, the bare minimum. After that, read it through without making any changes or marks. How does it sound to you? Then, take a red pen and go crazy, making little margin notes, crossing out words, etc. Look for grammar, punctuation, syntax, etc. Buy a copy of Writer's Market and look for agent listings. When you've found one suitable, send out a query letter based on their guidelines. If they want to see the rest fo their book, either send it via email or snail mail, depending on the agency. If they agree to represent you, you are ahead of the ballgame. Now look in Writer's Market for publishers suitable to your genre. Send out a query-or not, some do not want them- specified to their guidelines. Wait 6 weeks to 2 months for a response. If, in the end, you're book will be published, the editor will suggest changes, and I recommend you listen, these guys know what they're talking about. Expect 6 months to a year and a half for it to hit the shelves. But expect rejection. Every writer has gotten it, you just need to eat it for breakfast and move on.

I'm just finishing up a self-published book that I did on LuLu. However, the reason I decided to self-publish is because it's a regional photography book that will not have a production run large enough for most publishers to consider it, but I know I have a local outlet. Self-publishing means not just writing a good book, but knowing how do attractive layout, proper formatting and marketing. LuLu has some options to help you sell your book, but it's your responsibility to make sure everything else is right including meeting all the regualtions neessary to get an ISBN number. For the most part, I agree with the above post. If you are writing a book for wide-spread publication and you can't find a publisher, it's probably because you don't yet have a product that is marketable. Also, while you may make a higher comission per copy, you will most likely loose this gain through much lower sales. However, if for what ever reasons, you feel self-publishing is right for you, there are many options out there that were not available only a few years ago. The price structure is usually related to how much hands on help they offer. LuLu has very few upfront fees, but no support, You can't even call them with a question. Other companies have a higher intitial fee, but will give you more help on layout, design, meeting specs, etc. Best of luck.