In a useful followup to jim giammatteos invaluable watchdog piece recommending that indie authors use both createspace and lightning source simultaneously for effective distribution of print books. Lightning source lsi is the leading printondemand company in the world, offering oneoff book manufacturing and access to the most comprehensive distribution solutions in the publishing industry. Your ebook and print book titles and distribution can be managed from one place to help you make more, by spending less time. Lightning source print on demand books for publishers. Enjoy the advantages of fully integrated print and digital, wholesale and distribution services for the book industry through a single source at ingram content group. If youre an independent author or publisher looking to publish quality print books and ebooks with global book distribution and free resources to help you selfpublish successfully, youve come to the right place.
Lightning source, createspace, and ingram spark jera. Sometimes its better to focus on one channel like amazon so. Or, you can simply get books printed for your own distribution. If you dont want your book available for sale through ingrams global distribution network, lightning source can assign a free inventory code to your book for printing and manufacturing purposes. However, if you are wishing to set up the isbns with lightning source in your own account directly through them, we would need to reach out to lightning source. Lsi is the principle provider of printondemand distr how to make pdfs for lightning source printondemanda free report the book designer to help selfpublishers get through the process of creating reproduction quality pdf files for lightning source. The trade discount at ingramspark lightning source. Check out some of these helpful articles to help you on your way. Ingramspark pricing what does it cost to selfpublish a. I will be using lightning source for book stores and for distribution in asia australia where amazon doesnt have a presence.
Author copy prices and distribution royalty through lightning source this is for all brick and mortar bookstores, libraries, plus many online stores besides amazon. Use createspace only for amazon distribution and list under your own isbn and use lightning source for expanded distribution. Lightning source publishers also have access to ingrams global distribution partners. Ingramspark faqs learn how to selfpublish a book with. Lightning source is a selfpublishing house that offers services like, on demand book printing, distribution, digital printing, and more. Today, in the third part of our which distributor series where alliance members share the experiences theyve enjoyed with distributors, author ben galley gives us his take on print on demand pod company lightning source. Lightning source sends the data out to their distribution partners including leading distributors. In ingramspark, not only can you set up your hardcover and paperback versions of your book but you can also set up your ebook at the same time and gain book distribution. And because of this, technologies are evolving weekly, and advertising is flowing. Available to major online retailers, including amazon, kobo, nook, and ibooks. From order to production to fulfillment, we have you covered with directtopublisher options, wholesale solutions, global distribution, custom publishing, and custom print direct mail. Selfpublishing services are on the rise a dramatic one.
We recognize that no two publishers printing and distribution systems are alikereach out to us to see how we can best work with you. Ingram book company is a major distributor in the united states, distributing to almost 40,000 retailers, libraries, schools and universities. Ingramspark vs amazon kdp how to self publish a book. There are plenty of ways for readers to order your book. Ingram book company, the parent company of lightning source, recently launched their new authorcentric platform for print on demand publishing and print and ebook distribution. Things work relatively well the odd glitch here and there. Led by a passion to see more books, in all formats, reach more markets across the globe with speed and ease, ingram publisher services offers an extensive selection of tools and. Amazon out of stock issues and the pros and cons of. In this method, lightning source prints the book and ships on behalf of amazon.
Biblio publishing offers distribution of print books through lightning source, which is a subsidiary of ingram, the largest book distributor in world. Lightning source faq for publishers ingram content group. Many retailers and libraries currently work directly with publishers. It combines a highquality book printing service with a large distribution. Ingramspark and lightning source are owned by ingram, the largest book wholesaler in the united states. Why selfpublishers should consider using lightning source. The big new decision with ingram, of course, was whether to move my four earlier books from their lightning source world over to the newer ingramspark realm. My paperback book, love demystified was published by booklocker and placed on the amazon website during the second week of december lightning source ls was the printer. Book distribution step 4 dorrance publishing company. To remove or delist a title or a previous version of that title on a retailer or distribution website is a difficult task to accomplish. Ingramspark print book options customize your self. Understanding the publishing trade discount for pod books. Use this tool to determine how much you will pay to print and ship orders directly to yourself or to your customers. Both of these divisions provide pod printing and distribution.
Our book distribution, merchandising, and fulfillment team gets to work making sure your book is available at leading book retailers. If you need to transfer the files and information for a book from one lightning source or ingramspark account to another or from a publisher account to your ingramspark account, please. Distributors purchase and retain copies of a title, and will continue to. Ingrams shawn morin, left, and sharjah book authoritys ahmed al ameri sign the new agreement for lightning source. Distributors purchase and retain copies of a title, and will continue to show availability as long as they carry inventory for that title. The combination of lightning source pod technology and one stop, direct distribution make it possible for us to keep titles in print that we couldnt normally justify warehousing. Whatever your objectives, lightning has a print and distribution model to fit your needs. The distribution and remoteprinting powerhouse ingram lightning source becomes the anchor tenant at sharjah publishing city, the worlds first free trade zone for publishing.
Lightning source, createspace, and ingram spark are all print on demand pod printers that also offer distribution services to selfpublishing authors. That means that in addition to being able to print your book, they can also distribute your book to a book wholesaler, such as ingram, who will then make your book. I anticipate continuing to publish 15 books year low sales of each. Use this tool to determine the weight and spine width of your print titles. Publishing your book is changing on ingramspark the book. Once you write and format your book, we make it possible to share it with the world. The major online retailers and barnes and noble will sell the printed version of your book, and the major distributor, lightning source, will make your book available to virtually every bookstore in the us, uk, canada, and australia, both online and brick and mortar. Our second method is where amazon buys books from lightning source and stocks these books. This allows your customer the option of ordering directly from you, the publisher. If you want to distribute via createspace for amazon and lightning source for bookstores, academic institutions and libraries, the only way around this issue is to use one isbn for both. How to transfer a book from one account to another account.
Lightning source, an ingram content group company, is the leader in providing a comprehensive suite of inventoryfree ondemand print and distribution services for books. With a facility in melbourne, lightning source can print and distribute your latest books entirely within australia. The ingram content group was formed, in 2009, when ingram lightning. Through lightning source, ingram content group provides a broad range of physical and digital services to the book. Lightning source independent book publishers association. How is ingramspark different than other printondemand vendors. I take advantage of the alli discount, so setup and changes are free. With lightning source print on demand pod print and manufacturing technology, there are some formats or bindings that are not available, due to the fast turn around time needed for printing the books sold through the global distribution network ingram offers. The combination of lightning source pod technology and one stop, direct distribution make it. Excerpted and adapted from the book pod for profit. Affordable conversion service from print to epub ereader compatibility. This allows your titles distributed around the world.
Title setup instructions and information for print books. I see that ingram promotes ingramspark for publishers with lightning source. The cost to print a book, or many, depends on the page count of your book and the print specifications you choose. Lightning source has an ebook supply system that can serve up protected pdf copies of books from their library through a vendors site, if a publisher chooses to participate. Lightning source is very competitive in price, and their distribution system is the most efficient available. From order to production to fulfillment, we have you covered with directtopublisher options, wholesale solutions, global distribution. This method allows amazon to meet in stock ships immediately service levels without actually storing the books in their distribution centers.
Publishers can opt to use lightning sources direct distribution service in addition to distribution through ingram, bertrams, or other distributors and wholesalers lsi channel partners. Your lightning source publisher account gives you access to our suite of services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Lightning source 101 a primer on lightning source inc. Lightning source book printing services for publishers. Our team has confirmed that when you deselect the expanded distribution channels they system will automatically be removed from lightning source within a few days.