The opportunities for self-published authors to make money with their books continue to expand
Most first-time authors dream of making money by having their book on Amazon, it’s their ultimate goal. Yet that is not the only place to sell and make money as a self-published author. Would you like to have your book online at other retailers, like Barnes and Noble and Books-A-Million too?
Did you know your book can be available at online bookstore across the globe and to libraries and independent bookstores? We recommend using multiple platforms such as IngramSpark and Kindle Direct Publishing (Amazon) to make sure your books have the widest distribution available.
The Statistics on Self-Published Books and Author Sales
There is plenty of positive news according to Wordsrated, a non-commercial, international research data and analytics group for books, authors, and the publishing industry. (See article here)
- 300 million self-published books are sold each year
- $1.25 billion worth of self-published books are sold each year
- 67% of top-rated, self-published books are written by women compared to just 39% of books that are traditionally published
- The global publishing market is expected to grow at 1% CAGR per year, whereas the self-publishing market is expected to grow at 17%
- The number of self-published books has increased 264% in the last five years
“The more places you sell your book, the more opportunities there are to make money.”
Wholesale Distribution for Self-Published Authors
IngramSpark is a wholesale distributor of books for self-published authors. That means the bookstores and retailers buy the books directly from IngramSpark using their print-on-demand service. As the author-publisher you upload your book to IngramSpark and the retailers buy your book at the wholesale discount you choose. The wholesale price gives them an incentive to carry your book in their store, plus they ship the book for you.
Using Print-on-Demand
In the past, if an author was not able to get a contract with a traditional publisher, they could take their manuscript to an off-set commercial printer and “self-publish”. They would pay for the layout and design for the book, and pay $1000’s for a minimum print run of their books themselves. The author then had the responsibility of storing their own printed books AND selling them, and collecting the money and shipping the sold book to the customer, etc. again and again until they all sold or they were buried in the back of the garage.
Today’s self-published author does not have to pay $1000’s of dollars to print their own books and store them in the garage. Print-on-Demand technology uses the author’s digital files to print the books one at a time and send them directly to the customer. Companies such as KDP (Amazon’s publishing arm) and IngramSpark store your digital files and print the books as needed at a printing house nearest the customer’s location. This saves shipping and keeps storage costs down and the author doesn’t have run to the post office every other day.
eBooks
This post will focus on print and eBooks but we have a post that focuses specifically on preparing your eBook for sale and distribution here. The revenue you can make on an eBook varies and that post will help you understand the opportunities available.
Understanding Advances, Royalties, Profit, and Pricing
How does an author make money? If you work with us, our job is to make a beautiful book and provide you with the services you need to release it to your audience. We only charge you for the services you need. We do not take any portion of your book sale. You own all the rights and decide how much profit you’ll make per book.
As a self-published author working with us, you make all the profit on each book sold.
“Royalties are typical in traditional publishing, where Authors sell the rights to their book to a publisher. In self-publishing, royalties don’t exist because the Author sets the prices and decides on the profit margin.” – Scribe Media
To know what your profit is, it’s important to understand the cost of distribution. How much you profit on each book depends on the Amazon and IngramSpark costs.
What does distribution cost?
Uploading your formatted book to the distributors (KDP/Amazon, IngramSpark, Draft-to-Digital, etc.) doesn’t cost anything. (IngramSpark has a $49 fee—they charge to upload the files each time, but we usually have a code to get it done for free through our partner membership with Alliance of Independent Authors).
Your profit
You choose how much profit you make when you decide what your retail price will be on each format (paperback, ebook or hardcover) The price you set must cover the cost of printing each book and pay the distributors to offer your book to their customers. Each distributor offers a slightly different rate.
Doing the math for trade paperbacks and KDP
KDP offers a fixed 60% profit rate on paperbacks sold on Amazon marketplaces where KDP supports paperback distribution. Your profit is 60% of your list price. KDP then subtracts printing costs, which depend on page count, ink type, and the Amazon marketplace your paperback was ordered from. Read more here.
The profit rate on eBooks is different, especially if you participate in Kindle Direct. Please read this article to understand that program’s pros and cons.
Doing the math with wholesale distribution through IngramSpark
As I mentioned before, IngramSpark is a wholesale distributor. When you self-publish with IngramSpark, you are plugged in to one of the publishing industry’s largest global book distribution networks, including access to over 40,000…
- Independent bookstores
- Online stores
- Chain stores
- Ebook retailers
- Libraries
- Universities
They are also a print-on-demand company but they distribute to book retailers, not to the general public. When a title is first enabled for distribution, they send out a metadata feed to their distribution partners and their retailers. Your book is always virtually in stock and available for order from IngramSpark. Any distribution orders they receive are printed within 1-2 business days of receiving the order and then shipped to the retailer.
As the publisher, you offer a discount (wholesale price) to their distribution partners and book retailers to sell your book at their store, the discount can be 30-55% off the retail price.
Think of it this way: if your book list price is $19, minus a wholesale discount of 55%, minus the print fee of $3.66* you’ll earn $4.89 per book. Calculate your exact book costs here with IngramSpark.
*Printing cost varies with format size and page count, etc. This is an example only.
Finding Your Earnings Report and Money in the Bank
Once your book is published and you start selling books, it will take 60-90 days to get your first earnings. So be prepared to be patient. The time lapse allows for book returns to give you the most accurate reports.
KDP/Amazon starts paying their authors 60 days after the first sale is made. They will continue paying each month for the prior 30 days’ earnings. You will be paid with direct deposit to the bank account you assigned upon account creation.
You can view your sales report on Amazon’s AuthorCentral.com. Author Central allow you access to the U.S. NPD BookScan data including Amazon sales by geography for your book. It also allows you to keep track of your Sales Rank and Customer Reviews on Amazon.
IngramSpark will make its first payment to your account 90 days after the end of the month in which your book generated sales. Yes, it’s a long time, but they have to allow all the retailers time to deal with their customers and submit their data and payments before they compensate you.
You can view your sales and compensation reports on your dashboard. They also have a listing on how many books you’ve sold on the home page dashboard, but that includes books you’ve purchased, so don’t calculate your earnings from there.
Once the first few months are over you’ll see a regular payment each month to your account as long as you are selling books. Yes, those first few months seem like forever, but then you’ll see your hard work rewarded!
Why is Amazon Cutting My Book Price?
- You will be paid the normal amount for every copy sold, regardless of the price the customer pays.
- Amazon sees that the book is selling well and they elect to offer a discount to incentivize more sales, this doesn’t impact your royalty. The good news here is YOUR BOOK IS SELLING WELL and Amazon noticed!
- Your earnings are based on the list price you set on your KDP print page, not on the price at which Amazon chooses to sell it.
The links below have more information concerning the way Amazon manages the pricing of your book.
Buying Author Copies of Your Book
You can purchase your own books directly from KDP or IngramSpark at the cost of printing. They consider these “author copies.” To purchase your own books, go to the dashboard of IngramSpark or your bookshelf on KDP.
Ingram offers a “place order” button next to each title or choose ORDERS on the left-hand navigation. Be aware that printing and shipping a book takes time, sometimes weeks, so order sooner than later if you have a specific date you wish to have them in your hands.
To order your author copies through KDP, go to the book title and click on the “hamburger” (or three lines next to your print book) and click on ORDER AUTHOR COPIES. They use your Amazon shopping cart to fulfill your order, so expect to see them there when they’re ready. It can take a few days for these as well, so plan accordingly. They will not send them using PRIME—so you will pay shipping and handling for them.
Other Opportunities for Selling Your Book
Did you know you can sell your eBook and print format book on your own website?
“Direct sales not only bring higher revenue, they allow us to learn more about our readers, create a direct relationship with them, and strengthen our author platform in numerous ways.” – The Alliance of Independent Authors
You’ll need to make sure you can have product and transactions on your site. These are two platforms that can you help you process those sales. Lulu.com works with print books and BookFunnel.com does an amazing job with digital products.
Lulu Direct enables authors, creators, businesses, and publishers to take advantage of direct-to-consumer sales, combined with the ease and flexibility of print-on-demand. Now available with popular ecommerce and hosting platforms like Shopify and WooCommerce on WordPress, this cutting-edge technology makes fulfillment and supply chain logistics easy for creators.
Sell eBooks through your online store and BookFunnel will deliver to your buyers. If your reader has any trouble with the book, their excellent support staff is available to lend a hand.
Additional Reading and Final Thoughts
Making sure your book is available through as many distribution partners as possible is just the first step. Don’t be under the impression that just because your book is available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble your work is done. They don’t sell the book for you, they don’t advertise the book, they just make it available—YOU need to make sure there is a demand for you book! We have a post with some creative ideas that our authors have used to get their books in places perfect for their audience.
Selling eBooks: Best Practices for Self-Published Authors
10 Business Models for Indie Authors
Selling Your Book On Your Website
Questions or Comments?
Do you still have questions about how self-published authors can distribute their books and make money? Would you like a quote on our design services or our self-publishing assistance?
We offer a less stressful design and self-publishing experience, leading you all the way to through the process of publishing your book.
We’d love to hear from you! Use this form here or set up an appointment to speak to Becky directly.
