Print on demand (POD) is the commonly-used term
for the digital printing
technology that allows a complete book to be printed and bound in
a matter of minutes. POD technology makes it easy and cost-effective to
produce
books one or two at a time or in small lots,
rather than in larger print runs of several hundred or several
thousand.
POD has a number of applications. Commercial and academic
publishers
use it to print advance reading copies, or when they
can't justify the expense of producing and warehousing a sizeable print
run--for
instance, to keep backlist books available. Some
independent
publishers use it as a more economical fulfillment method, trading
lower
startup costs against smaller per-book profits (due to economies of
scale, digitally printed books have a higher unit production cost than
books
produced in large
runs on offset presses). Last but not least, there
are the POD-based publishing service providers, which offer a fee-based
service that can be described, depending on one's bias, as
either vanity publishing or self-publishing.
POD-based
Publishing Service Providers
Overview
Print on demand-based publishing service
providers (I'm going to
call them POD services for short) aren't publishers in the
traditional
sense, but purveyors of publishing services to writers. They charge a
fee
for publication, ranging anywhere from a few hundred to several
thousand
dollars.
They don't screen submissions (except perhaps to exclude pornography or
hate
literature)--anyone who is willing to pay will be published. They don't
routinely
provide editing, proofreading, or book marketing (though some offer
these
as add-ons to the basic publishing package, at additional
cost).
Title to the books belongs to the publisher, often nonexclusively
(which means the book could theoretically be sold elsewhere) but not
always; some POD services make a nonexclusive or exclusive claim on
subsidiary rights. Income to the author is a
royalty on sales.
Many POD services call themselves self-publishing services. Some will
even let you put the name of your
own imprint on your book, set your own cover prices, designate a
royalty percentage, and so on. However, there are important differences
between the POD services
and true self-publishing:
- Control. With self-publishing,
the writer controls all
aspects of the publishing process, from
cover art to print style to pricing. With POD services, choice is
limited to the package of services the publisher
offers.
- Revenue. With self-publishing, the writer keeps all
proceeds
from sales. With POD services, payment comes in the form of a royalty.
Basically, you're paying the publisher twice: once upfront, and
once
with each book produced and sold.
- Rights. With self-publishing, all rights
remain with the writer, who has full ownership of
his/her books. With most POD services, rights are held by the POD
service,
which has an exclusive or nonexclusive claim on them for
a set period of time.
In practice, POD services more closely resemble
vanity publishers--which is how they're generally regarded by readers,
reviewers, and
booksellers.
For writers who don't want to go through the submission process
required by commercial publishers, or feel
they've exhausted the possibilities of the commercial publishing
market, or just want to produce a few dozen
copies of a family memoir or genealogy or recipe book for private
distribution, a POD service can be an excellent solution. The best of
the PODs
provide
attractively-designed books at a far lower cost than
traditional self- or vanity publishing (although costs are steadily
rising, and some of the fancier POD packages are nearly
as expensive as old-style vanities like Vantage Press), and offer
many of the same benefits, including guaranteed publication and the
absence of editorial interference. Also, since the
book is produced only when ordered, you don't risk winding up with a
garage full of unsold volumes.
POD services offer an opportunity to established authors seeking
to bring their out-of-print books back
into circulation. A number of POD services offer
programs specifically targeted to such authors, often in association
with professional writers' groups. A POD service can also be a good
option for the motivated self-publisher who's able
to devote time and money to marketing
his/her product--typically, a nonfiction author with a niche market
s/he knows how to reach, or someone who tours
and speaks extensively and can sell books at these occasions.
But if you're a new writer looking to establish a career, a POD service
is probably not a good choice. As noted above, it's widely
equated with vanity publishing; it's not likely a book published this
way will be considered a professional credit. Nor is publishing with a
POD service likely, as some authors hope, to provide a stepping
stone to conventional publication. According to a 2004 article in the New
York Times, out of the 10,000 or so titles published by Xlibris
(one of the largest of the POD services), only 20 had been picked up by
commercial publishers.
Too, POD services' policies on pricing and marketing limit their books'
availability, resulting in small sales and readership even for authors
who diligently self-promote.
Sales Statistics
While there have been some highly
publicized successes, the average book from a POD service sells 150-175
copies, mostly to the authors and to "pocket"
markets surrounding them--friends, family, local retailers who can be
persuaded to place an order. According to the chief executive of
POD service iUniverse, quoted in the New York Times, 40%
of iUniverse's books are sold directly to authors.
POD services' own statistics support these
low sales figures. The most recent online Fact Sheet
for
AuthorHouse reported 27,000 authors and 33,000 titles, and a list of corporate
milestones claimed 5 million books printed as of December 2006. It
sounds like a lot, but averages out
to around 150 sales per title.
iUniverse's most recent Facts and
Figures sheet reports that the company published 22,265 titles
through 2005, with sales of 3.7 million: an average of 166 sales per
title. Obviously some titles can
boast better sales (Amy Fisher's If
I Knew Then sold over 32,000 copies)--but not many. According to
a 2004
article
in Publishers Weekly, only
83 of more than 18,000 iUniverse titles published during that year sold
at least 500 copies. In 2003, only 76 of 15,000 titles published sold
at least 500 copies.
Also as of 2004, stats for Xlibris were similar: according
to a Wall
Street Journal article, 85%
of its books had sold fewer than 200 copies, and only around 3%--or 352
in all--had sold
more than 500 copies. Things looked up in 2007: according to Xlibris's
own internal reports, recently obtained by Writer Beware, 4% of its
titles had sold more than 1,000 copies. However, the averages still
aren't good. As of mid-2007, Xlibris had 23,000 authors and had
published 23,500 titles, with total sales of over 3 million--around 127
sales per title.
One of the most popular and cost-effective of the POD services,
Lulu.com, is explicit about its business model. In a 2006 article in
the Times UK,
its founder identified the company's goal: "...to have a million
authors selling 100 copies each, rather than 100 authors selling a
million copies each."
A Lulu bestseller is a book that sells 500 copies. There
haven't been many of them.
Issues to Consider
Apart from the lack of sales and credibility
discussed above, there are
a number of additional issues to consider if you're thinking of using
a POD service.
- Booksellers don't like dealing with
POD services. In order to
sell books in significant numbers, you need bricks-and-mortar bookstore
placement. Don't believe
the hype about the power of the Internet: only around 10% of all new
books are bought online. Bookstores are still where most people
do their bookbuying.
Books from POD services are generally available through the service's
website, and from Amazon and other online booksellers. Most POD
services also list their books in the catalogue of a major
wholesaler such as Ingram, which ensures that they'll be available for
order
at just about any bookstore in the US. But "available" doesn't mean
"stocked" (a fact that some of the more deceptive POD services do their
best to obscure--see Deceptive Terminology,
below). By long tradition, booksellers are
accustomed
to a particular set of buying protocols--discounts of 40% or more, 60-
or 90-day
billing, and full returnability. Many POD services don't offer
industry-standard
discounts, however, and most require that orders be pre-paid. And while
some
services do offer returnability if authors pay an extra fee,
it's
usually a fairly restrictive policy that booksellers won't find
terribly attractive. All these
factors, together with the POD services' reputation as vanity
publishers, make booksellers very reluctant to stock a book from a POD
service.
If stores won't stock the books, they should at least be willing to
order them. But booksellers' policies on this vary. Some
will
order any book you ask for. Others are selective--Barnes & Noble,
for
instance, which owns a minority stake in fee-based POD iUniverse, at
one point
would
only order iUniverse books--and some booksellers refuse to carry books
from POD services in their computer systems at all. To make things
worse, complicated ordering protocols from wholesalers like Ingram
means that books may show up as out-of-stock. Some POD services have
taken steps to
deal
with this, but others have not.
Authors who are willing to go door-to-door can be successful
in
persuading local bookstores to stock their books (though
often they must sell them on consignment, or agree to buy back unsold
copies). By and large, however, books from POD services, like ebooks,
are available only through online sources.
- Books from POD services are expensive. POD services
base their pricing
on the amount of paper it takes to print the book. Some make an attempt
to hold prices down with flat or negotiable
rates, but in most cases your book will cost more--often a lot
more--than a similar book from a commercial
publisher. Readers may balk at paying $25 or $30 for a trade
paperback-size book, especially when its commercially-printed
counterpart costs around $16.
- Books from POD services may be of poor physical
quality.
POD-produced books can be almost indistinguishable from
traditionally-printed
trade paperbacks. But some POD services skimp on paper
and
cover stock, and don't pay enough attention to production standards.
Books from these companies can be shoddy in appearance, with
covers that curl and pages that fall out as you're reading them.
POD-produced
books are also often bound with a narrow spine, so that they look
more like pamphlets than books. Be sure,
if you're considering a POD service, to order one or two of its books
so
you can assess physical quality.
- Books from POD services are unlikely to be reviewed in
professional venues. Good reviews in
major newspapers and magazines, as well as trade journals like Publishers
Weekly and Library Journal, can
be a boost to sales. But trade journals will only review in advance of
publication, and POD services
rarely produce galleys or advance reading copies--or, if they do,
charge extra for it. Also, as noted
above, reviewers are wary of books from POD services.
- Your book will not be publicized. As has already
been mentioned, POD services aren't publishers, but purveyors
of publishing services to writers. Their primary interest is in selling
their
service to you. Selling your book to readers
is of secondary importance. A listing on the company's website and with
various online booksellers, as well as
inclusion in a wholesaler's catalogue, is all the publicity most POD
services provide. If you want more, you
will have to arrange it yourself.
Some POD services offer marketing packages or media kits for an extra
fee. But prices can top $1,000, and packages tend to be
based on minimally effective methods such as press releases, postcard
mailers, and mass solicitation of
media contacts (for a more detailed discussion of the inadequacies of
these marketing techniques, see the Writers'
Services page). They're usually a complete waste of money.
- There may be extra expenses. The cost of a POD
service can be substantially increased by additional costs not included
in
the initial package: renewal fees, extra charges for cover design,
extra
charges for obtaining an ISBN number or copyright registration, etc. Be
sure,
when you're assessing a service, to check for these kinds of costs.
- Your contract may be nonstandard. In commercial
publishing, contracts vary in their particulars, but
tend to share a basic boilerplate. With POD services, there's no
standardization. Many of the services offer decent time-limited,
nonexclusive contracts, but others
can be very author-unfriendly.
- Royalty income may be less than you think. POD
services are likely to base royalties not on a book's retail
price,
but on its net price--the retail price less discounts and/or the
publisher's
overhead (sometimes not specified, so you're not sure exactly how much
will
be deducted). What looks like a high royalty percentage may not
actually work out to a lot of money.
- Terms and conditions may be changed without warning.
One of the largest POD services has
changed its operating model a number of times since starting
up--eliminating its free service, raising
prices for services, changing its royalty structure, increasing book
prices. This company at least notifies its authors before changes take
effect, but I've heard from authors with other services who
didn't find out about changes until after the fact. This is a good
reason not to sign a contract that ties
you to the publisher for more than a year or two.
- Delays are possible. Some POD services have
trouble with timeliness in book production and order fulfillment.
Before choosing a service, it's a good idea to scout for complaints,
and to contact writers
who've used the service.
- Last but not least: take the hype with a (very large)
grain of salt. POD services often portray themselves as a
revolutionary new publishing model that's opening up a world of
opportunity for writers
locked out of the market by the narrow standards of the monopolistic
commercial publishing industry. Heady terms
like "paradigm" and "democratization" are tossed around. But there's
nothing new about paying
to get published--or about the opportunity it offers, which is mainly
for the publisher to make a profit. Most
of the traditional difficulties faced by authors who pay to publish are
duplicated in the POD service model.
POD-based
Independent Publishers
A growing number of independent publishers rely
on digital technology to produce their
books.
This saves money up front by eliminating cash outlays for large print
runs and reducing the need for warehousing.
The tradeoff is the higher unit production cost for digitally printed
books,
which
means that the publisher realizes a lower per-book
profit, especially if it makes an attempt to keep its prices in line
with those of larger commercial publishers. And of course any
print-on-demand-based
independent publisher has to deal with the POD stigma described in the
next section.
There are digitally-based indies that
function very much like their commercial counterparts--rigorously
screening
submissions, professionally editing and designing books, and marketing
to
the book trade. Some have garnered substantial critical and sales
success. Such publishers tend to have a hybrid business model that
combines POD and offset (for instance, doing an initial print run with
offset, and switching to POD for subsequent orders), since offset is
far more cost effective for print runs
of more than a few hundred. Success inevitably drives publishers away
from primary reliance on POD technology.
However, POD technology makes it easy and cheap for
unqualified
or unscrupulous people to set themselves up as publishers. The result,
over the past few years, has been an explosion of dubious publishing
companies.
These
come in several flavors--amateur micropresses run by people with
abundant
goodwill
but little or no expertise, vanity publishers
masquerading
as legitimate independent presses, and "author mills" that seek to turn
a
profit on enormous author volume. In all cases, the bottom line for
writers is
the
same:
no meaningful distribution or promotion, and tiny sales.
Some tips to help you evaluate POD-based independent publishers:
- Is there a fee? Many indies can't
afford to pay
advances, but they don't ask for money. A fee, no matter where you
encounter it in the publishing process, is a sign of a vanity
operation, or of a publishing
service like the ones described above.
Fee-charging publishers are often inventive about hiding their
fees. They may bury them in the fine print, so
it's not until you actually read the publishing contract that
you realize you have to pay a "setup" charge. Sometimes the fees are
shifted to items unrelated to
producing the book--for
instance, you may be required to pre-purchase
or pre-sell a large number of copies, or pay for editing, or sponsor
your own publicity campaign, or hire cover
designers from a list the publisher provides.
- Is there an advance? An advance, even of just a few
hundred dollars, suggests a
professional operation. Don't be fooled by token one- or two-digit
advances--this is usually a marketing ploy
designed to
produce an appearance of legitimacy, rather than a sign of legitimate
practice.
- How long has the publisher been in business?
POD-based independent publishers
spring up and wither like mushrooms. This can work out badly for you,
because a publisher that liquidates or goes
bankrupt can tie up your rights, or may pass them on to third parties
without your permission. This is a possibility
with any independent publisher--small publishers' finances are often
precarious. But if you go with a publisher
that's just starting up, or has been in business only a few months, you
are really taking a risk.
Look for evidence that the publisher has been in business for a year or
more, and that it has a backlist of published
books. This indicates at least some stability, as well as the capacity
to take books all the way through the production
process.You'll also be able to obtain a book to check physical
quality, and you'll be able to judge by the existence of professional
reviews and/or bookstore presence
whether the publisher is marketing to the book trade.
For a more in-depth discussion of why it's a good idea to avoid
brand-new publishers, see this
post from Writer Beware's blog.
While you don't want to choose a publisher that hasn't proved its
ability to publish, there's risk at the other
end of the spectrum too--namely, the "author mills". Author mills base
their business model
on author volume (selling small numbers of books from a very large
number of authors) rather than on book volume
(selling large numbers of books from a limited number of authors, as
commercial publishers do). Some of these publishers'
catalogues include thousands of authors, most of them
first-timers. Author mills don't usually charge fees, and often
misleadingly
present
themselves as "traditional" publishers (see Deceptive
Terminology, below)--but in practice they more
closely resemble the POD-based publishing service providers,
with the same open acceptance policies, high prices,
bookseller-unfriendly business practices, and minimal marketing
and distribution.
- Are the books professionally-produced and of good
physical quality? Order one or two. Have they been edited? Does the
print look good? Is
the formatting uniform? Is the
text free of errors? Bad writing, sloppy formatting, and large numbers
of typos or grammatical errors indicate a less-than-professional
operation.
Questionable or amateur POD-based indies also often produce shoddy,
badly-designed
books and ugly, unprofessional-looking covers.
Good physical quality and attractive covers are no guarantee that a
publisher is legitimate, of course, but their
absence does indicate a lack of professional expertise, and won't
enhance your book's appeal.
- Is the pricing reasonable? As noted, POD has a
higher unit cost than offset, and prices can be correspondingly higher.
This can be a
substantial
discouragement for readers--who wants to pay $30 for a trade-size
paperback?
A reputable POD-based publisher will make an effort to keep prices at
least generally comparable to traditionally-printed trade paperbacks,
which run between $12
and $18.
- Does the publisher accept returns? Again, this is a
sign of a more professional operation, and gives the publisher a better
chance of selling its books into stores. Beware, though--some POD-based
independents put so many restrictions on their
returns policies (for instance, limiting the return period to three
months, or offering returnability only on bulk orders) that
booksellers won't find them attractive. If the publisher tells
you it has a returns policy, be sure to ask for details.
- Are the books reviewed in professional venues
(Booklist, Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, etc.)?
Reviews
in these publications, which are read by booksellers and librarians,
indicate
that the company is sending out advance reading copies--an important
component of marketing to the book trade. (Note: amateur book review
websites don't count, as
their reviews are rarely of professional quality.)
- Is there bookstore presence? Not all indies are
able to get their books into stores, so lack of
bookstore presence doesn't necessarily mean the publisher isn't
reputable. If there is bookstore
presence, however--even if it's only regional--it's another
indication that the publisher is actively marketing its titles.
- Can you order the publisher's books in a
brick-and-mortar bookstore? Even if a bookstore isn't willing
to stock POD-produced books, it should at least be able to order them.
Publishers whose books can be obtained only from
the publisher's website, or from online booksellers like Amazon, are
further limiting already limited availability.
- What's the focus of the publisher's website?
Is it designed to promote the publisher's publishing services, or
to promote the publisher's books? A reputable publisher's marketing
will
be book-focused--it will publicize its authors, and try to attract
readers.
A questionable publisher's marketing will be service-focused--it will
promote
itself, and try to attract writers. Be wary of any publisher whose
website
contains large amounts of verbiage about how closed-minded the
"traditional"
publishing industry is, or tells scary stories about how hard it is for
new
writers to find publication, or touts itself as providing revolutionary
opportunities for overlooked writers. Be suspicious also of a publisher
that solicits
for authors, either in print, online, or by direct mail.
- Is the contract standard? The Internet- and
POD-fueled explosion of startup publishers has resulted
in a proliferation of atrocious publishing contracts. A reputable
POD-based indie will try as much as possible
to adhere to basic industry standards.
A questionable or amateur POD-based indie, on
the other hand, can ask you to sign your life away and then some.
Typical problems include demanding all rights for the full term of
copyright
without an adequate reversion clause, claiming subsidiary rights the
publisher isn't capable of marketing, basing royalties on net rather
than gross income,
retaining a financial interest in the author's work even after the
contract
has terminated, claiming the right to edit at will without seeking the
author's
permission, tying next-book option clauses to current contract terms,
tying
rights reversion to purchase of overstock, and offering a contract
that's not negotiable.
- Is the publisher forthcoming? Will it answer your
questions promptly, fully, and without evasion? A
publisher that refuses information, or scolds you for asking questions,
is a publisher to avoid.
The
"POD
Publisher" and the POD Stigma
Strictly speaking, "print on demand" describes a
type of
printing technology, not any particular business
model.
Over the past few years, however, digital
technology has become so firmly
associated
with a particular complex of business practices that the term "POD
publisher" has taken on specific meaning.
What defines a POD publisher?
- Minimal selectivity. Some POD
publishers accept everyone who submits. Others do more screening, but
aren't expert
enough to ensure high quality.
- Minimal editing. Some POD publishers do no more
than a light copy edit, releasing books that are essentially unedited.
Others employ inexperienced or amateur editors, to more or less
the same effect. Some POD publishers do no editing of any kind.
- High cover prices. As noted above, the unit cost for
digitally printed books is higher than for books printed on offset
presses. Cover prices, therefore,
must be correspondingly higher in order for the publisher to make a
profit. Depending on length, a POD
book can cost more than twice as much as its offset
counterpart.
- Short discounts. Booksellers expect discounts of 40%
or more. POD publishers often offer much smaller discounts.
- Nonreturnability. Booksellers expect to be able to
return unsold books to the publisher for full credit. POD publishers
rarely accept returns, or if they do, have such a limited returns
policy that it's hardly more attractive than no policy at all.
- Minimal marketing and distribution. POD publishers
don't
want to cut into their profits by spending money on book promotion.
They'll ensure that their books are available for order online
and through a wholesaler such as Ingram, but they won't advertise, and
will make little or no
effort to obtain professional reviews and bookstore placement.
- Other nonstandard practices. These may include
amateurish formatting, terrible
cover design, hellacious contracts, and fees of various kinds.
Most of these practices, including the fee, are
characteristic of the POD-based publishing service providers discussed
above.
However, they're increasingly common among digitally-based independent
publishers, whose often inexperienced staff may not have the skill to
rigorously select and edit (never mind market and promote) the
publisher's books,
and
whose shoestring budgets force them to keep costs as low as possible.
Not all POD-based independents employ these practices, of course.
Unfortunately, a great many do. Together with the
aggressive policies and poor-quality offerings of the POD services,
this has tainted print on demand in
general. Many booksellers,
reviewers, and readers are wary of POD on
principle, and may assume that any publisher
that relies exclusively or mainly on digital technology is a "POD
publisher," even if the publisher is entirely professional. This is the
POD
stigma--and it's something that anyone who's thinking of signing a
contract with a POD-based independent publisher needs to take into
account, because it can make marketing extremely difficult.
Deceptive
Terminology
Whether through ignorance or an active desire to
deceive, POD-based independent publishers often use misleading terms.
Below are some you may encounter.
Available in
Bookstores
Many POD-based independent publishers are eager
to
assure you that your book will be "available in bookstores." Unless the
publisher works with a distributor (as distinct from a wholesaler) and
actively markets to the book trade, what this
means is that your book can be special-ordered by a bookseller, usually
on a pre-paid basis, sometimes with an extra charge
to cover shipping and handling.
Unfortunately, inexperienced writers often assume that "available"
means "stocked," and expect that their books will appear on
bookstore shelves. Less-than-honest
POD-based indies take advantage of this by failing to explain what
"available" actually means, or
skewing their use of the word in ways that encourage authors to make
unrealistic assumptions.
A POD-based indie that provides honest information about its books'
availability gets extra points.
Print on Demand
vs. Publish on Demand
Some unscrupulous POD-based indies that
charge hidden fees or
otherwise operate according to a vanity publishing model attempt to
separate themselves from POD services
such as iUniverse by claiming that there's a difference between "print
on demand" and
"publish on demand".
"Print on demand", they say, is the digital technology that allows
books to be printed as the market demands. "Publish on demand", by
contrast, defines a vanity publishing operation--one that publishes
(for a fee) at the author's demand. "POD publisher", they claim, means
the latter. Despite their use of digital technology, therefore
(and despite the fact that they employ many of the same
bookseller-unfriendly business practices that vanity publishers do),
they
are not a POD publisher.
In fact, this is a meaningless distinction. The two terms are used
interchangeably throughout the industry, and aren't considered to have
different definitions, or to describe different operations.
Nor is the distinction recognized by booksellers--for whom,
unfortunately, the POD stigma is usually reason enough to avoid any
publisher that uses the technology exclusively, no matter what its
business policies.
Be wary, therefore, of a publisher that makes a show of denying that it
is "POD", despite its use of digital technology.
"Traditional"
Publishers
"Traditional publisher" is a term of very recent
origin. It was invented by the first of the
author mills in order to distinguish itself from the POD services
(whose business model, except for the
fee, it otherwise followed very closely). The term has no meaning in
the publishing industry, which by definition doesn't include vanity and
self-publishing operations. ("Commercial publisher" or "trade
publisher" is more appropriate.)
Unfortunately, the term has come into common usage, and you'll often
see a claim of "traditional" publishing on the websites of POD-based
independent publishers. The implication is that
though they're
smaller, they're essentially just like Random House or Penguin. In
fact, all you can count on is that the publisher won't ask for money on
contract signing. Other components of the commercial publishing model
are often missing (rigorous selectivity, standard discounts, a returns
policy, competitive book pricing, effective marketing), and elements
absent from the commercial model are often
present (nonstandard contract terms and peculiar business practices).
Publishers that call themselves "traditional" aren't necessarily
dishonest; many are simply inexperienced. Either way, be
aware that the term doesn't have an accepted definition, and tells you
nothing about how the publisher selects, produces, and markets its
books.
|
