Getting Your Book in Stores and Libraries?

 

When I published my first novel in 2016, KDP was all there was. Right? That has to be right. Well, no, but had I even heard about IngramSpark, I would have rejected the idea. Who's heard of that outfit? Everyone knows Amazon.

As it turns out, authors who publish physical books exclusively through KDP are stupidly narrowing their book's reach. I learned that lesson by accident, which is pretty much the way I learn everything.

I was going to sign up for bookshop.org, which is but another avenue for marketing, and it's free. Its primary purpose is to support independent book shops; you know the ones ~ they jack up a book's price, driving shoppers to Amazon or to a physical Barnes & Noble store. While I like the concept of a little corner book shop, it's like me being expected to tip my Lyft driver yesterday, who picked me up in a Lincoln Navigator. Beautiful car, but the guy should be tipping me. He's obviously more flush with cash than I am.

Regardless, I signed up for a bookshop.org account, only to realize that I couldn't list any of my books because only books listed with Ingram are eligible.  

So, I was screwed. Of course, if an author publishes through IngramSpark, they're good to go. Well, I obviously didn't. Subsequently, I deleted my bookshop.org account.

It's all very confusing, but Ingram has different umbrellas. IngramSpark is their publishing arm, which distributes its books widely. Ingram is a listing service/ordering system for stores and libraries. 

Was there a way for me to get my paperback listed with Ingram? I mean, since I already blew it by going through KDP?

There is.

Here is what I learned:

Enroll your paperback

1. Go to your KDP Bookshelf.
2. Find the paperback you want to enroll.
3. Under the Paperback Actions menu, click the ellipsis button ("…").
4. Choose Edit paperback rights & pricing. For published paperbacks, choose Edit print book pricing.
5. In the "Royalty and Pricing" section, check the Expanded Distribution box for each available marketplace.
6. When you finish setting your price, click Publish Your Paperback Book.

 

What expanded distribution will do (the jury is still out on that) is enable a paperback to be listed on Ingram iPage. The caveat is, it can well take up to eight weeks for that to happen. It's not so much that I doubt KDP's word, but that nothing ever seems to work the way someone claims it will. And I now have eight weeks to wait before I find out.

Assuming this goes according to plan, Ingram iPage offers several advantages to indie authors:  

Ingram iPage is an online catalogue and ordering system designed for booksellers, librarians, and other book-industry professionals to browse and order books and related products. (source)

This list of more than 40,000 users with iPage accounts includes:

• Independent bookstores
• Online stores
• Chain stores
• eBook retailers
• Libraries
• Universities

Booksellers with an Ingram iPage account use it for:

• Order Placement: Users can place orders for physical books (print-on-demand or traditional) and digital content directly through the platform.
• Title Information: Detailed information about each title is available on iPage, including metadata, pricing, availability, and format details.
• Account Management: Users can manage their accounts on iPage, including order history, invoices, and other account-related information.
• Availability Information: iPage provides real-time information on the availability of titles, helping users make informed decisions when placing orders.

Of course, a store or library would first need to request the book, and that's a tough sell. How would they find mine to request it? By throwing darts at a board? No one knows about my novel (not even Amazon, it seems). But if I utilize bookshop.org or indiebound.org, there's a minuscule chance that a potential reader may see it and request it.

Now, since I've deleted my bookshop.org account, I don't even know if they'd let me re-subscribe. There's probably a workaround for that, primarily begging. I'm not above begging.

Eight weeks is a long time to wait to get the wheels turning (August 4, if we're counting). I'm still breathlessly awaiting my review from the book blogger with thousands of views (the blogger who solicited me), and her timeline is only three to five weeks. I still have approximately 2 1/2 weeks to go. (I wonder if she'll ghost my book because she doesn't like it. She does offer a money-back guarantee, though, which I'll readily enforce.)

My goal with The Failed Author, aside from whining about my botched writing career, is to pass along information as I learn it. Then, unlike me, other indie writers can be The Successful Author. (And start their own damn blog.)

My lesson learned: Go with IngramSpark at the outset, and you won't have to sit tight waiting to have your book listed. 

Another lesson learned: If you've already published with KDP, there just might be a workaround. 

Ask me in eight weeks if that's true.