The travails of an Australian author with an UK publisher
I am super excited about my new release, Fables & Lies being published. However, I thought I’d share with you the frustrations of being an Australian author with an overseas publisher. I am so thankful both The Book Guild and Bolinda Audio believed in my book. This means it is available worldwide in digital, paperback and audio editions on all platforms. You can easily buy the ebook or audiobook with a click – but there is a rub with the paperback. The publisher stocks the book in the UK for distribution to UK retailers. Elsewhere in the world, the book is produced via POD i.e. Print on Demand.
What does Print on Demand mean?
Print on demand has revolutionised bookselling, especially for authors who are published by small presses such as The Book Guild. Instead of having a print run of thousands of books that need to be warehoused then distributed, a print on demand book is just that – printed on demand, one book at a time, when a reader orders one. The printing is usually performed by a company such as Lightning Source (non Amazon retailers) or Brilliance (Amazon). If a book becomes popular, then a bookshop may request a few to be printed in advance. Delivery times should be normal – say 2-5 days depending on whether it is expedited.
Varying prices and delivery times
Some Australian retailers are generally reluctant to sell POD books produced by Lightning Source. In doing so, they make it difficult for authors such as myself (who arguably should be supported by them!) This means you’ll find my book selling for $60 to $90 in some Australian online stores such as Dymocks and Readings. This perplexes me given the Recommended Retail Price is only $40.60 (which is usually discounted to around $26 – see the retailers below.)
Recommended Australian online stores
I would dearly love to laud all Australian online stores but the ones I’ve discovered are viable for my Australian readers are Booktopia, Sanity and Angus & Robertson.
The mighty 'Zon - the horns of a dilemma
Of course, Fables & Lies is available for a reasonable price and the quickest delivery times on Amazon.com.au.
‘Buy from the evil ‘Zon!’ I hear you say. Well, perhaps you might spare a thought for authors, like myself, who find Amazon produces their POD book with the most advantageous price and delivery conditions.
So you might hate the mighty ‘Zon but you’re harming an author more than Jeff Bezos when you boycott it. Given my book is about moral conflicts and impossible choices – I’ll leave you to decide :)
You can find links to various retailers across all global territories on my Fables & Lies book page.
