Where do I print my self published books & why them?
Step 2 in the ‘How do I self publish a Children’s Book’ exploration.
(The words and opinions of this blog are that of the author and her experiences. This is not professional advice, and should not be used in lieu of that.)I would love to begin this entry with a strong reminder that this is MY personal experience and preferences and NOT the only way/s, the best way/s (well, for me I actually feel it is), or the worst way/s. There are MANY print houses and publishers that are available and offer, finding who you feel benefits YOU is crucial to your experience. Take my blogs as research, and then keep researching to find your way.
I feel I have been clear and repetitive in the fact my experience is self published only, I did in the beginning submit the manuscript of My Brain is a Race Car (I never attempted for My Body has a Bubble or My Feelings are Waves) to a couple of publishers / literary agents but pretty much never heard anything back, so my experience there is very limited and, again, my own. Please don’t think that yours will automatically be the same.
First, the BIG question - WHERE do I print?
When you self publish your book, you are literally the Publisher! Little ol’ YOU is the Publishing House - like Penguin, Scholastic, and Hays House! Where you print through is your print house. For me, Ingram Spark and Amazon (KDP) is my duo. I personally picked Ingram Spark due to their print house locations, that the factories would be ethical, and of acceptable working standards and pay rates. And Amazon, well, it is the corporate beast that can’t be beat - in shipping and delivery times.
Two print houses!? Why, you ask?
Ingram Spark
Has print houses in Australia, America and the UK.
Unique distribution opportunities (my books are on Target US website and Barnes and Noble thanks to Ingram!).
I like to keep stock and sell via my website / expos / etc. and the more you order the better wholesale you get.
Higher quality in print vs Amazon (to me) and books under 72 pages cannot be printed in hardcover through KDP.
More options in print sizes, styles, and paper.
No minimum or maximum order.
Amazon
Is a print on demand service, so there is no initial cost outlay for me through them.
Has print houses in Australia, America and Uk too AND their own packing and shipping service.
Can get a book anywhere faster than I could posting myself.
Great potential international exposure.
Why do you decide the print house / publisher before going further?
There’s so many different reasons why! All have different rules, expectations, and requirements so its best to check in with who you are going to go with.
Each print house has different book sizes and layouts. Knowing if your page will be square, rectangular, or another shape altogether is critical for you page layout and file building - even for the illustrator and knowing their canvas shape.
Bleed lines. This is something I will get in deep when we get to the ‘file building’ as it was something that was tricky to wrap my head around at first. Hindsight now its so easy and obvious but in my early days it was like another language. Bleed lines can be variable in what the print house requests, so being armed with that knowledge will help you (and your artist if they are a separate person).
File format. Some print houses accept the standard PDF file (the one that you export from anywhere and everywhere), while others (for example Ingram Spark require the PDF needs to be a 2001 version file that I believe you can only do through Adobe InDesign).
For those commercial / traditional publisher route. Some publishers want manuscript only to begin with, and some have an in house illustrator catalogue to work with. So in order to not waste your time (and money) or the time of others, look and read the requirements, submission open times, and rules on each publishers website (usually scroll right to the bottom and there be a tab of ‘book submissions’ or something similar).
Once you have decided your print house (or if you are going to pursue a traditional publishing contract, taking that route), start an account and begin to mock up your file. There will be options on what your book dimensions and requirements will be - SCREEN SHOT OR WRITE THIS DOWN as this info is critical for you when you begin illustrating / sourcing an illustrator and building the files.
You will also be asked about an ISBN - another blog coming on what that is, where to source and why.
Hopefully I haven’t overwhelmed you! This entry is so much meatier (ironic being I’m a vegetarian) than I anticipated. At least it’s here in text and you can revisit as much as you need, and hopefully laid out in a way that is constructive for you.
Now, I’d like to break down an overview of my personal opinions on BOTH the pros and cons of Publisher vs Self Publishing:
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You have creative control. You decide down to the smallest details how your final product looks, feels, and who you collaborate with.
You have marketing control. How its presented to the world, where its shown and found,
Control in how much you charge. And more, what you give away (colour ins, resources, etc.) and what you sell.
It moves at your pace. You’re excited and inspired, you are desperate to get this creation of yours out in the world, the only person holding you up is you.
Higher royalties. You’re setting the price, and your financial outlay is the cost of creating the product, the printing of the book. Because you are also going to be every department, all the profits are going to you (or where you decide to outsource to).
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Limited distribution channels. A lot of larger book stores and book chains only purchase from their known distributors / contractors. If your dream is to be in book stores, this can be a bit of a challenge. (But to combat this point, there have been unique distribution opportunities that have come from being self published - remember me mentioning Target and Barnes & Noble!).
Marketing and exposure is completely up to you. A con as much as it is a pro. People think the hard part is getting this amazing concept into a physical product. The hard part is getting it out into the world AND THEN reminding the world continuously that your book exists.
You’re inexperienced. When comparing yourself to large Publishers who literally have departments and especially if it’s your first rodeo. Inexperience doesn’t mean failure, but my gosh there is SO MUCH TO LEARN and sometimes it gets overwhelming.
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No marketing pressure. It’s taken off your hands and run through their processes, marketing department and the publisher having a team of experienced professionals.
Expanded reach. Point 1 rolls into point 2, while your royalty rate is lower -your volume has the potential to be a lot higher and exposed to different opportunities.
Highly polished end product. I’m not saying that being self published doesn’t get you a high end polished product, but if you’re a self published author (or aspiring if you’re reading this blog), theres a lot of lessons along the way that come from experience. Publishers have editors, experienced artists, file builders, printers, etc. all on hand - they know what they’re doing.
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Lower royalty rate. This is a big difference. While the volume is higher - the income is lower. If I was receiving the traditional publishing royalty, I would need to sell 7 books through them for every 1 I sell self published. Most publishers royalty is 10% of retail value. So if your book RRP is $10, then your royalty is $1. If you have collaborated with an artist then you’re splitting that $1 between you.
Limited / minimal control. Marketing, pricing, where it is sold and how it is presented is in majority out of your control. For me this is critical as my goal is to make my books as affordable and accessible as possible, as well as having compete read throughs available on my socials (which I cannot imagine a publishing house would enjoy or condone).
Slower process. Turnaround isn’t as fast as what a lot of people would like, as there are different processes. So I’ve heard anyway, remember I’m not experienced in this. From my research you can expect 6 weeks - 3 months on average to get a response from a literary agent, who then will pitch your manuscript on your behalf, then the time for the negotiations and contract agreement. THEN the creation process…
You need an agent. Most of the time anyway, again, so I’ve heard. A lot of publishers will not deal with an author directly, particularly when it comes to contract negotiations. Getting a literary agent seems just as hard as getting a commercial publishing contract.
So that’s my breakdown on self publishing, the part about choosing the print house and why this step starts here. If you have any questions, please drop them in my email or DM me on my socials!
