UPDATED Self-Publishing Tip: Platforms & Printing
How to get started in publishing, PART 1.
**This post has been updated with new royalty information since it first went out on March 7.**
Note: When I first put out a call on Instagram for questions related to writing, editing, submitting, and self-publishing, someone asked how to get started with self-publishing a poetry collection. So I’ll be releasing a mini series of self-publishing tips over the next few months.
Having self-published FIVE poetry collections, I feel confident in the process and sharing advice. However, I do not claim to be an expert on self-publishing, and I know I have so much to learn still.
Self-publishing is a great way to save money and time on submissions and to maintain full creative freedom over your book. While you won’t have an experienced press handling formatting, proofing, and publishing, you can easily do all of these things yourself.
The best place to start?
Decide how you want to publish your book.
Consider the printing cost, royalties, file guidelines, and distribution of each option to determine what works best for you. Here are a few routes you can take:
Self-Publishing Platforms
Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) - What I’ve used for all of my books.
60% royalty on Amazon print sales / 40% royalty on expanded distribution print sales / 70% on e-books
~$2.30 printing cost per book (number is based on my own poetry books at 5.5” x 8.5”, 80 - 100 pages, black text on white paper, matte cover)
Does not allow pre-orders
45% royalty for print books / 85% royalty for e-books
~$2.54 printing cost per copy (number based on same info listed under KDP section)
E-book conversion at $0.60 per page
$25 print revision fee after first 60 days post-publication
Allows pre-orders
~80% royalty (depends on distribution discounts to retailers)
~$4.34 printing cost per copy (number based on same info listed under KDP section)
Alternative Options
Local printer - if you just want to sell books on your website/Etsy or at local markets and events
PDF - if you want to avoid printing costs altogether and keep 100% of royalties
As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, I am not by any means an expert on self-publishing platforms and have only used KDP, so if you decide to go that route, please do some additional research to decide which one works best for you.
Why do I use KDP?
When I published my first book in 2019, I mostly chose KDP for ease of use . . . and because it was just the most commonly used option at the time. When I published my second book in 2021, I did more research on IngramSpark with the intention to switch to that platform. However, at that time, Ingram charged a fee per book ($49 for print, $25 for e-book) and revision fees* in addition to printing costs, so I decided to stick with KDP. *Note that Ingram no longer charges these fees and has reduced its revision fees.
I don’t LOVE printing my books (or buying books) through Amazon, even though they’re published under my own name (more on that in the next post). This is why I started offering PDF versions of all my books. Though not an ideal format, it does provide a purchase option for those who want to avoid using Amazon.
My ideal? To print my book through a local printer and only sell it through my website and Etsy. But that requires a little more finesse and a lot less social anxiety than I’m currently prepared to invest in (printing a set amount of books in the hopes that they sell vs. only taking pre-orders so I can print the exact amount; directly communicating with local bookstores about stocking my books).
Will I always use KDP? Will I ever pursue traditional publishing? I’m not ruling either out. I’ll definitely look more into Ingram and Lulu before self-publishing my next book, though I’ll likely stick with KDP. And while I seriously considered going the traditional route for my most recent book, Blue Rose, I ultimately decided that I wanted full creative freedom, and I just didn’t have it in my budget to cover submission fees. (And, honestly, I just didn’t want to wait to see if anyone would publish it.) But maybe the next one!
Have questions about writing poetry, revision, submitting, or self-publishing?
Leave a comment, send me a DM, or email me at hello@kaitquinn.com, and I’ll answer them in future posts!
This is so thoughtfully put together, Kait! It's such a balance between hating Amazon and not wanting to be a part of their platform... and also just wanting it to be easy to sell a book. <3 I did a combo of KDP, Ingram AND selling on my site.
Your books look lovely. I’m interested in buying one. Which one would you recommend? Lately I’ve been into fairytales and mystical kind of poems. 🥳 I just started a 2nd publication all about self-publishing. So this was helpful to read. I used IngramSpark for publishing both of my poetry books.