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About Print On Demand
(Answers)
What is a POD Publisher? Go Back to the Top
A POD Publisher is a publisher who publishes books strictly on an as needed basis using a POD printer. They carry no inventory and sell on an as needed basis. While a handful of legitimate POD publishers do exist, most POD publishers are Vanity Press Publishers who charge authors a premium to publish their book.
What is a POD Printer? Go Back to the Top
Under the strict definition of the term, there are very few true POD printers (one book at a time). Under the evolved definition (short run) there are many. Whatever the case, the printer is the one who actually owns the equipment that prints and binds the books.
What is the difference between a POD Publisher and a POD Printer? Go Back to the Top
The printer is the company who owns the equipment needed to print short run books. The printer sells printed books to the publisher or printing services company. Very few publishers have their own printing equipment.
Are you really a Self Publisher? Go Back to the Top
Self Publishing is made up of two words: Self which refers to you (self) in the first person and Publishing which implies there is a Publisher as in a Publishing company. In order to be recognized as a publishing company by the book industry you need to own a series ISBN numbers. NOBODY can sell, give or assign you an ISBN except for RR Bowker, the North American ISBN agency. If you did not buy an ISBN directly from RR Bowker you are not a publisher, therefore you are not a self-publisher. You might be an author who paid a Vanity Press to publish your book so you can call yourself a “Published Author”, but you are not a self-publisher. To read more about the Vanity Press issue click here.
What makes this different from Xlibris, IUNiverse or 1st Books Library? Go Back to the Top
The above mentioned companies are the leading Vanity Press publishers in the country. If you want to pay a premium to have someone “Publish” your book you go to a company like them. If, on the other hand, you want to self publish your book, you need to be the publisher. The way you become the publisher is to order a set of ISBNs from RR Bowker. If you have any questions concerning ISBN’s plick here http://www.isbn.org/standards/home/isbn/us/isbnqa.asp . If you are ready to order your ISBN click here http://www.isbn.org/standards/home/isbn/us/secureapp.asp Thor Distribution only works with publishers. To read more about the Vanity Press issue click here http://www.publishingbasics.com/newsletter/april2003/askron.html
What is the difference between the Thor Program and other POD programs? Go Back to the Top
The idea of POD was original developed to allow large publishers an opportunity to keep their backlist alive indefinitely after the titles had run their course through the system. Instead of having to reprint a couple thousand books to keep a title in print, a publisher only needed to have a digital copy on file at a POD printer so books could be ordered on an as needed basis. This is still the primary use of POD.
The Vanity Press publishers jumped on the POD idea as a method to limit their printing expense while maximizing the profits made off their authors. Vanity Press publishers sell very few books to anyone but the author and the authors friends and family and make most of their money from up front costs to their customers. The last thing that the Vanity Publisher needs is inventory because they aren’t going to sell any books anyhow.
Thor Distribution looks at POD as a starting point for a new title in the bookstore sales process. It is meant to serve as a “place saver” for the publisher until bookstore sales get to the point where it pays to have a book distributed through a traditional book distributor. Bookstore income is treated as “Found money” while the publisher devotes time and effort into obtaining publicity and selling inventory copies into the special sales market. That is why the Thor distribution is only offered as an add-on to a regular print run (minimum 100 copies, suggested at least 500 copies)
