How to Self-Publish in the Age of Print-On-Demand
A. R. Bledsoe
Self-publishing is FULL of decisions and choices with hidden fees and requirements. It can be scary especially when you’re on a tight budget. Believe me-I know! I had to search SO MANY articles and even then they were not clear on pricing or what was best because they were normally trying to sell you a service. After publishing my first book, I think I’ve found something that works for me. Hopefully, I can help you do the same without all the stress!
In this article I will go over
- the process of editing and designing your book
- the legal requirements of selling,
- where to sell, and
- how to get yourself out there.
I hope this guide will help you feel confident enough to make informed decisions on your book’s future. It’s as all-inclusive as I can make it so hopefully you don’t have to do any further research. If you have questions, email me and I’ll try to help!
Editing & Designing Your Book
For editing my novel, Google gave me a price range of $900 to $1,200 for a content editor (someone who does the content editing) and then $400 to $600 for a copy editor (grammar and spell check). Grammarly is a cheap and helpful tool if you need to cut costs. You can use the free version or pay monthly/annually for premium features. If you need to find an editor you can check out freelance editors on Fiver. I fortunately knew someone who was willing to edit my book so I cannot vouch for the processes I mentioned (besides free Grammarly).
For designing the interior page, I used InDesign to design the pages of my book. I am familiar with InDesign but I still had to watch a bunch of Youtube videos to figure out things like page numbers, table of contents, etc…
But you don’t need to invest in big software you have to learn. In my research, I found that some people have used Word for interior page design. Lulu offers in depth tutorials and a list of programs you can use for interior pages. Read their article here.
For designing the cover page, I recommend using Canva or Adobe Express if you don’t have access to other design tools like Photoshop and InDesign. You can also hire a design professional like me or from Fiverr.
For designing the copyright page, here are some templates to use. Read below on a breakdown of each element required for this crucial (and expensive) page.
Legal Requirements to Sell
First of all, your book should have a copyright page to protect your book when you sell it. Global Distribution channels (used by print-on-demand companies like KDP, Ingram, and Lulu) require you to have these elements on it:
- Title/Subtitle
- Author
- Copyright Date
- Print Book ISBN
- Library of Congress number (optional)
Here is the breakdown of what goes on a copyright page:
Get an ISBN.
An ISBN is short for: International Standard Book Number. It’s the name for the serial numbers around the barcode of a book.
Your options:
- Buy an ISBN from Bowker. It’s $125 for the ISBN*. You must have this to sell your book and must buy one PER FORMAT (so hardback, paperback, etc). ISBNs are optional for digital products like an ebook or audiobook. Bowker is the official place to buy an ISBN, beware of scammers who say otherwise! Buy an ISBN from Bowker here. *NOTE: Bowker offers a barcode to go with the ISBN, but most print-on-demand companies will automatically give you a barcode to go with your ISBN for free.
TIP: I used Ingram, a print-on-demand company, to purchase a discounted ISBN at $85 (which was still sold through Bowker). But I didn’t have to print books through Ingram to use my ISBN.
- Free ISBN. You can get a free ISBN if you go through a print-on-demand company (I go through my top three below). You can get a free ISBN through them or buy your own. The only thing with a free ISBN is you can only sell your book through that company—I think it’s like giving them exclusive rights to sell your book.
Make your book library-friendly.
NOTE: It’s not required to sell but it helps put your book in libraries—and you’ll have your book at the Library of Congress!
Your options:
- You can just get an LCCN. LCCN/Library of Congress Control Number: you must preassign this to your book before publishing. They will give the number to you which you put in your book. The number is free, but you must ship a physical copy of your book to the library of congress for it to be official. Preassign here.
- Or you can also buy a CIP data block too. If you want to really make sure your book gets a chance to be placed in a library. You can look at getting a CIP data block. It costs on average of about $90. (This is relatively new and it helps librarians organize the book in the library.)
Register Copyright— Online Registration: $65
It’s not technically necessary to officially register your book (according to US law your work is protected from the moment it’s written). But when it starts flying off of the shelves, the thieves will be tempted to steal–and they could take you to court no matter how much proof you might have. Registering your copyright gives solid, unquestionable proof that your book is indeed yours and–from what I hear–takes court out of the equation. Click here to register your book.
Printing and Selling Options
For one, I had to ask myself do I want to sell my book myself or pay for someone else to do it?
1. Sell on Your Own Options
Amazon. I chose to pay Lulu Printing to print my books for me and then I sell them myself on Amazon as an Amazon Seller it’s $0.99 per sale for the individual plan*. There are also purchase fees. My book has $5 total in fees with the list price of $12.99 per book (after Amazon fees and print cost I make a profit of $5/book). A perk of selling through Amazon is you get discounted shipping if bought through Amazon.
(NOTE: I’ve experienced that the initial setup causes you to have the premium plan which is $40–once purchased, make sure to downgrade before the month is up!)
Online Store. It’s expensive and better for those who are in the upscale stage of their business. An online store can cost at least $26 per month plus transaction fees. On top of that, you have to deal with tax fees and filing sales taxes. For first-time broke authors like me, Amazon is an excellent route to go if you want to sell your books yourself and don’t want to deal with sales taxes. Learn more about Amazon’s tax policy here.
2. Global Distribution
You can choose to have a print-on-demand company print AND distribute your book through Amazon, Barnes, and Noble, etc. The upfront cost is $0 (besides the cost of receiving a physical proof of your book). This is the cheapest route to go but also the least profitable. I made $2 per book and had to list it way above market price versus on my own where I made $5 per book selling at market price. I only recommend this option for those who aren’t wanting to build a personal brand and are willing to spend as much money as the other options into marketing.
My Top 3 Print-On-Demand Companies
1. Lulu Printing (This is what I use because I found it has the cheapest and best print quality compared to KDP. Also, it’s easy to use however it has the longest time to ship [up to 14 days]…Use this code for 10% off: LKAB317CD)
2. Kindle Direct Printing (Fast shipping, but low printing quality. They will sell your books on Amazon for you--though you can do this with Lulu and Ingram as well. It's the best option I know for selling ebooks through Amazon.
3. Ingram Spark (I never tried this but I hear it has good quality and they just got rid of their upfront fees.)
Get Your Book Out There
- Create an author profile on Amazon and Goodreads (it’s free). Through these you can promote your books and collect reviews!
I hope this information helps! The self-publishing world is constantly changing so please let me know if I missed anything or if the info has changed!
