Twelve Pros and Cons of Print on Demand Publishing

Print on Demand or POD publishing isn’t for everyone. There are a number of pros as well as cons to consider before deciding to venture into the world of POD publishing and self-publishing.

The advantages or pros which I found to be a convincing argument to choose POD for my book GETTING OUT ALIVE are as follows:

1. Your book gets published on your timetable, not the timetable of a traditional publisher who may or may not have your best interests as a writer at heart.

2. You retain 100% of the rights to your book. You own the copyright, not the traditional publisher. You do what you like with your book, including publishing it with more than one POD publisher if you’d like and it doesn’t violate the rules of one the PODs you choose.

3. You choose what you want to make for royalties rather than having to negotiate this with a traditional publisher.

4. You choose what you want for the cover art of your book, you don’t have to rely on someone else’s idea of what artwork best describes the contents of your book.

5. Your book gets printed only if someone orders it, you don’t have boxes of your book sitting in your basement or attic getting eaten by moths or mice or destroyed by mold or mildew.

6. You don’t have to put out a large amount of money printing copies of your book.

7. You can sell your book from the web pages of your POD publisher(s) as well as your own website, this can give you more exposure.

The disadvantages or cons, some of which almost made me decide to continue trying to find a traditional publisher are listed below:

1. You are 100% responsible for marketing your book, no one else will do it for you, including your POD publisher. So, you must be willing to educate yourself on the finer points of marketing a book both on and off line.