POD Publishing — What It Is

How it Works (simplified)
Traditional Publishing Compared to Self-Publishing
Print On Demand vs Traditional Printing — Advantages and Disadvantages
The "Long Tail" Theory

How it Works (simplified)

A digital file of the book is stored on computer.
The book title is added to various distribution channel and online bookstore catalogs.
A customer orders the book from:
- An online store such as Amazon, Borders, Barnes & Noble, Powells, etc.
- From a "real" bookstore via phone or visit.
- From a publisher or author website.
The customer pays for book with:
- Credit card
- PayPal
- Cash or check (at real store only)
- Some other method
The order is entered into the electronic POD system.
The book file is downloaded to a POD press from data storage.
The POD press automatically prints and binds the book as part of a single integrated process.
The book is shipped:
- Direct to customer.
- To bookstore for pick up at the store.
- To an online store's shipping department for reshipping to the customer.

Traditional Publishing Compared to Self-Publishing

Back in Ben Franklin's time, if you wrote something and wanted to publish it, you bought a printing press or hired a printer, ran off a few hundred copies, and then peddled them to whomever you could (sometimes from a wheelbarrow). Since there was no copyright law, if your work proved popular, booksellers and others were free to reprint and sell your work without paying you a tuppence. From that humble seed has grown the mainstream corporate publishing cartels that we know and love today.

Now it's more complicated than it was when Poor Richard's Almanac was coming hot off the press. In the 21st Century there are a range of publishing options from mainstream at one end to vanity press at the other. (Though most of us now sneer at "vanity publishing," printing and selling his own work made Franklin honored and wealthy.)

While from a writer's point of view each kind of publishing has advantages and disadvantages, most authors today would rank the main types of publishing in order of preference as:

#1 Mainstream
#2 Small press
#3 Self-published

But not always. For example, an author who really knows a specific niche market might generate greater sales and make more money by self-publishing a work aimed at that market than by having it published and mishandled by a mainstream press.

Types of Publishing Compared

Mainstream Small Press Self-Publish

Maximum prestige & validation.
Mainstream publishing is the most prestigious. For the publishing community, mainstream publication implicitly validates a book's provenance. Prestige and validation vary widely.
A few well-established independent presses are almost as prestigious as mainstream publishers. Less well known small presses carry less prestige and provide less validation for the books they publish. Little prestige, no validation.

Bookstores will stock.
Most bookstores — including the major chains — will usually stock at least a few copies of a mainstream book as a matter of routine. How long it stays on the shelves depends on how well it sells.
Because the book is on bookstore shelves, readers browsing for something to catch their interest will see it and possibly buy it.
Some bookstores might stock.
A few bookstores regularly stock small press books, some do so only rarely, some only for certain topics, some never. The better known a small press is, the greater the chance that a bookstore will stock some of its titles. Few (if any) bookstores stock self-published books on their shelves.
Sometimes a store will take a few copies on a consignment basis if the author personally meets with them and convinces them to do so.
Because a self-published book is rarely on bookstore shelves, readers browsing for something that catches their interest never see it. Thus, this large segment of the book market is essentially closed to self-published work.

Large publications may review the book. Might be possible to get reviews, but harder than for mainstream books. Very difficult to get reviews.

Rights ownership is matter of negotiation and haggling.
Some mainstream publishers may try to coerce authors into signing an "all-rights" or "work-for-hire" contract that transfers all ownership rights to the publisher. Rights contracts and terms vary widely.
Authors willing to stand up for themselves can usually retain most subsidiary rights. All (or most) rights are usually owned by the author.

Authors receive royalties on each copy sold.
Authors are usually paid a (small) advance against royalties. Depending on the contract terms, the book format, and the type of sale, royalties usually range from 5% to 15% of cover price. Royalties are usually small or non-existent.
Authors are rarely paid advances.
POD Publisher — Royalties vary.
No advances. As a general rule of thumb, royalties from POD Publishers should be significantly higher than those paid by mainstream publishers because the author pays for book production costs.
POD Printer — Profit, not royalties.
No advances. Authors receive the full cover price for each copy sold minus the bookseller's discount and the cost of printing & shipping. Depending on the cover price and printing-shipping costs, an author might earn far more for each copy sold than the royalties paid by a mainstream publisher

Types of Publishing Compared
Mainstream	Small Press	Self-Publish
Maximum prestige & validation. Mainstream publishing is the most prestigious. For the publishing community, mainstream publication implicitly validates a book's provenance.	Prestige and validation vary widely. A few well-established independent presses are almost as prestigious as mainstream publishers. Less well known small presses carry less prestige and provide less validation for the books they publish.	Little prestige, no validation.
Bookstores will stock. Most bookstores — including the major chains — will usually stock at least a few copies of a mainstream book as a matter of routine. How long it stays on the shelves depends on how well it sells. Because the book is on bookstore shelves, readers browsing for something to catch their interest will see it and possibly buy it.	Some bookstores might stock. A few bookstores regularly stock small press books, some do so only rarely, some only for certain topics, some never. The better known a small press is, the greater the chance that a bookstore will stock some of its titles.	Few (if any) bookstores stock self-published books on their shelves. Sometimes a store will take a few copies on a consignment basis if the author personally meets with them and convinces them to do so. Because a self-published book is rarely on bookstore shelves, readers browsing for something that catches their interest never see it. Thus, this large segment of the book market is essentially closed to self-published work.
Large publications may review the book.	Might be possible to get reviews, but harder than for mainstream books.	Very difficult to get reviews.
Rights ownership is matter of negotiation and haggling. Some mainstream publishers may try to coerce authors into signing an "all-rights" or "work-for-hire" contract that transfers all ownership rights to the publisher.	Rights contracts and terms vary widely. Authors willing to stand up for themselves can usually retain most subsidiary rights.	All (or most) rights are usually owned by the author.
Authors receive royalties on each copy sold. Authors are usually paid a (small) advance against royalties. Depending on the contract terms, the book format, and the type of sale, royalties usually range from 5% to 15% of cover price.	Royalties are usually small or non-existent. Authors are rarely paid advances.	POD Publisher — Royalties vary. No advances. As a general rule of thumb, royalties from POD Publishers should be significantly higher than those paid by mainstream publishers because the author pays for book production costs. POD Printer — Profit, not royalties. No advances. Authors receive the full cover price for each copy sold minus the bookseller's discount and the cost of printing & shipping. Depending on the cover price and printing-shipping costs, an author might earn far more for each copy sold than the royalties paid by a mainstream publisher

In most cases, a mainstream publisher will sell far more copies of a book than a small press or a self-publisher. And an established independent press will sell more copies than a self-publisher or unknown small press. But if a self-publisher is adept at promoting the book, and has appropriately balanced the cover price against the printing-shipping costs, it is possible (in rare cases) for a self-published author to make more money than if published by a mainstream press.

Conclusion: For most authors, being published by a mainstream press results in more money and more prestige than being published by a small press or self-publishing. But the advantages and disadvantages of being published by a small press and self-publishing with POD are becoming more evenly balanced.

Print on Demand vs Traditional Printing — Advantages and Disadvantages

For an author who decides to self-publish, the choice is between POD printing or traditional printing on an off-set press:

Self-Publishing
Print on Demand (POD) Compared to Traditional Printing

Print on Demand (POD) Traditional Printing

Print quality roughly equal to average of traditional printing.
Few (or no) print quality choices (you take what you get) Print quality varies widely according to choices you make
Therefore, if you choose to pay for higher quality, print-quality can be much better than that provided by POD.

No initial print run
No initial outlay for printing hundreds or thousands of books Initial print run of hundreds or thousands of books
Large initial outlay in thousands of dollars.

Lower initial setup costs. Higher per-book printing costs
Therefore: Lower overall per-book printing costs for small number of books (less than 250), but higher costs for greater number of books. Higher initial setup costs. Lower per-book printing costs
Therefore: Lower per-book printing costs for large number of books (more than 500), but higher per-book costs for small press runs.

No book-storage costs or other inventory costs
No loss or damage to stored books due to mildew, page curl, etc. Books must be stored until sold, incurring inventory costs
Risk of book loss due to mildew, page curl, etc.

No unsold copies
Copies are only printed when they are sold. Copies can remain unsold
Copies are printed before they are sold. If they are not sold, they are a loss.

Profit or loss
Because setup costs are low and there is no initial outlay for printing a large number of books, initial investment costs are low and fewer books have to be sold to reach break-even point. Therefore, if the book fails to find a market, less has been invested and there is less to lose.
Because per-book costs are higher, less is earned on each copy sold. If the book does well, total publisher-income is less than with traditional printing. Profit or loss
Because a large amount of money has to be laid out for the initial print run, investment is high and more books have to be sold to reach the break-even point. Therefore, if the book fails to find a big enough market, losses can be large.
Because per-book costs are lower, more is earned on each copy sold. If the book does well, total publisher-income is greater than with POD and that might mean greater income for the author.

No man but a blockhead ever wrote execpt for money. — Samuel Johnson

Self-Publishing Print on Demand (POD) Compared to Traditional Printing
Print on Demand (POD)	Traditional Printing
Print quality roughly equal to average of traditional printing. Few (or no) print quality choices (you take what you get)	Print quality varies widely according to choices you make Therefore, if you choose to pay for higher quality, print-quality can be much better than that provided by POD.
No initial print run No initial outlay for printing hundreds or thousands of books	Initial print run of hundreds or thousands of books Large initial outlay in thousands of dollars.
Lower initial setup costs. Higher per-book printing costs Therefore: Lower overall per-book printing costs for small number of books (less than 250), but higher costs for greater number of books.	Higher initial setup costs. Lower per-book printing costs Therefore: Lower per-book printing costs for large number of books (more than 500), but higher per-book costs for small press runs.
No book-storage costs or other inventory costs No loss or damage to stored books due to mildew, page curl, etc.	Books must be stored until sold, incurring inventory costs Risk of book loss due to mildew, page curl, etc.
No unsold copies Copies are only printed when they are sold.	Copies can remain unsold Copies are printed before they are sold. If they are not sold, they are a loss.
Profit or loss Because setup costs are low and there is no initial outlay for printing a large number of books, initial investment costs are low and fewer books have to be sold to reach break-even point. Therefore, if the book fails to find a market, less has been invested and there is less to lose. Because per-book costs are higher, less is earned on each copy sold. If the book does well, total publisher-income is less than with traditional printing.	Profit or loss Because a large amount of money has to be laid out for the initial print run, investment is high and more books have to be sold to reach the break-even point. Therefore, if the book fails to find a big enough market, losses can be large. Because per-book costs are lower, more is earned on each copy sold. If the book does well, total publisher-income is greater than with POD and that might mean greater income for the author.
No man but a blockhead ever wrote execpt for money. — Samuel Johnson

The "Long Tail" Theory

"The future of entertainment is in the millions of niche markets at the shallow end of the bitstream." -- Wired Magazine

The quote above refers to the "Long Tail theory." As it applies to books, the essence of this theory is that publishers, online booksellers, and self-published writers can make good money by selling a few copies a month over a long time.

With traditional publishing, inventory costs prohibit keeping books in print after monthly sales dwindle below a certain minimum threshold. This is because warehouse space costs money, books deteriorate over time due to page-curl, mildew, insects, and so on, and some states tax stored inventory. Similarly, because of limited shelf-space, it is not cost-effective for a bookstore to keep a slow moving title on the shelves.

But the inventory costs of POD books stored digitally on a computer are minuscule, there is no deterioration, and no limit on the number of books that can be maintained. Therefore, once the initial setup is completed, the cost of keeping a POD book "in print" or in-stock is trivial, which means that for publishers and online bookstores it is profitable to sell a few copies of a book a year — year after year after year. Therefore, a POD publisher can profitably keep a book "in print" and available indefinitely, and an online bookstore can stock and profitably sell a million different titles even if each individual title is only sold once or twice a month.

(Note that POD fundamentally alters the meaning of "out of print." Authors who have publishing contracts, or who are considering signing a contract, need to carefully examine any "out of print," "remaindering," or similar contract clauses.)

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