This is post #6 in my blog series looking at self-publishing from a South African perspective. Check out the full list of posts on the Self-Publishing in South Africa page 🙂
The digital revolution has made it easy for self-publishers to get ebooks into the hands of readers. Where we’re still struggling, though, is with print copies. Large publishing houses have the money to print thousands of copies up front, and they have deals with distributors that make it easy to get copies into bookstores.
So what are your options as a self-publisher? If you can afford to print 50 to 100 ish copies of your book (I use MegaDigital, but there are other printing options in South Africa if you just Google them), here are some ways you can reach your readers.
Independent Bookstores
Independent bookstores don’t have to work exclusively with distributors, and the managers of these stores are often open to negotiating with independent authors. All you need to do is contact them and ask. They may pay you up front for several copies, or they make take your books on consignment, meaning they’ll pay you after the books (or some of the books) have been sold. Examples of independent bookstores in South Africa are The Book Lounge in Cape Town, Books & Books in Durban, and Skoobs Theatre of Books in Johannesburg.
Libraries
You could approach your local library and ask if they are interested in purchasing a copy of your book. What would be better though, is if you gave a free copy to the library. Or perhaps, if you have a series of books, you could give the first book to the library and contact them sometime later to find out if they might be interested in purchasing the remaining books in the series. The point with this option is not to make a huge amount of money, but to reach a potentially large number of readers. Readers who could go on to become fans of yours and buy future books directly from you.
Schools
If you haven’t written a child- or teen-appropriate book, ignore this one! Otherwise, read on …
There are several options here. You could send out an information pack to schools all over the country telling the librarians about your book(s) and asking if they would be interested in purchasing any from you. Or, if you have several books, you could send one for free along with information detailing the rest of your books. If you have a larger marketing budget, you could send a pack of several of your books to various schools. I’ve done this in the past and I’ve ended up with new fans who engage regularly with me on social media, parents contacting me to buy future books in the series for their children who are now fans, as well as school librarians who are ready to purchase each new release in a series for all the young readers at their schools who are anxious to know what happens next.
Another option is to contact schools and offer to do talks. You could tie this in with career days (a local author is probably a unique and interesting option not often seen!), or World Book Day, or book clubs if the school happens to have one, or it could be a talk specifically related to the content of your book. Let the librarian or contact person know that you’ll bring copies of your books along with you so that if any students are interested in getting a signed copy (and their parents are the awesome type who are happy to buy books for their kids 😉 ) they can bring money with them.
Sell on Your Website
In the digital age with so many people becoming more accustomed to buying online, it might be a great idea to make your books available to purchase through your website. The very simplest option would be to have a form that customers fill in detailing the books they would like to order and their contact details so you can reply to them with by email EFT details (this is the system I currently have set up on my website). If you want to take this a step further and set up an actual online store so customers can use their credit cards, thereby making the process more streamlined, there are great e-commerce platforms such as Shopify, PayU, BigCommerce, Woocommerce (WordPress plugin) and others (Wix and Weebly, if you use those for your website, have e-commerce options).
Remember that this is a more time-consuming method of getting books to readers because it requires you (or your assistant or bribed family member) to package parcels and take them to the post office, or organise for a courier to pick them up.
Other Local Online Retailers
Try contacting Takealot, Readers Warehouse, Loot and other local online stores to see if any are interested in stocking and listing your books. Takealot told me they weren’t looking for sellers of books back when I contacted them last year, but you may have better luck! I haven’t approached anyone else yet, since I’ve been happy so far selling through my own website.
Get a Distributor
Just like the big publishers, you have the option to work with certain distribution companies such as Blue Weaver, On The Dot, and Porcupine Press. This has the advantage of getting your books into major bookstores like Exclusive Books and CNA, and if you only have one book, it might be worth checking this out. However, if you have a catalogue of several books (I now have eight novels), and you factor in the fees you’re required to pay for warehousing and listing each book in the distributor’s catalogue, the cut the distributor will take, as well as the 40 – 50% markup* the bookstores will add to the price of your book, this could very well work out being more expensive than it’s worth for both you and your customers at the other end of the line (who will probably be paying at least double for your book from a bookstore than if they bought it directly from you).
*I’m not certain of the exact percentages, as it’s been at least two years since I looked into distribution options. You’d need to contact these distributors and find out exactly how it all works.
MegaBooks (Unfortunately MegaBooks has closed since this blog post was published)
I now use Digital Action to print books locally for me. They don’t have an online store for customers, but I have books delivered to me, and readers can then purchase copies through my online Shopify bookstore.
And finally, if you don’t want to print and store copies of your books, you can always go the local print-on-demand route. MegaBooks (mentioned previously in Which Platforms to Publish Your Books On) allows you to set up your title on their website and provide them with the interior and cover files so that if a customer orders a copy through the MegaBooks website, that single copy will be printed and delivered. No hassle for you (but obviously a lower royalty).
If you have other ideas, feel free to share them in the comments!
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Excellent list! Do you teach workshops on this in South Africa?
I don’t, actually! I’ve given the occasional talk here and there to other authors, and it’s been suggested to me that I should set up workshops for aspiring self-publishers, but so far I’ve made writing my priority and haven’t had time for much else!
I haven’t by since you switched sites! Great site! Good info above. You are really all over it. I agree with Alex, you should teach workshops.
Realy helpful as ive just selfpublished my first childrens book. Truly its not an easy road
Hi Nelisa
Try contacting the Provincial Libraries or Provincial Library Services. Only Gauteng has decentralized book procurement – so you have to approach individual municipal libraries. This function is centralized in all other provinces.The best will be to contact the Director or Senior Manager – Technical and Archives Department in each province. If they like your book they’ll order a minimum of 120 copies. You do not have anything to lose in contacting them.
My book is a poetry book, which has had some excellent reviews, excepts of which are printed on the back cover. It is currently on Amazon but slow going.
Wow! This was a wealth of information. It has really helped me a lot and I will be trying some of the things you mentioned above. Thank you! 🙂
You’re welcome!
Your workshop, given to the SCBWI, perhaps three years ago has been my go to beacon for this self publishing journey. I have since spent months investigating the detail that was too much for me to absorb at the time (I know that you will have covered it), and searching for answers has sent me down numerous blind alleys.
Only after my email yesterday, and you re-directing me to this blog do I discover that it is ALL here. Detailed, erudite, concise and comprehensive.
You are a diamond, and I can’t thank you enough.
You’re welcome, Rob! I wish I could have spared you those numerous blind alleys! If you have any questions, let me know. These blog posts are a few years old, so there’s some information that might be outdated now.
I am a children’s book author and illustrator. I have sold about 1000 books myself, but am looking to get into book stores…bit I find most places don’t really even reply.
Has anyone got their books in somewhere national? I’m keen to hear how it happened.
Rachel, thank you so much for your wealth of information on this site, and for taking the time out to answer my questions a few months back. I’m pleased to report that I went the same route as you, with Digital Action, and now have a box of books awaiting the launch date at the end of next month. One question if I may. What postage options do you find best for inter-city deliveries?
Congrats, Shirley! That’s exciting 🙂
I have three delivery options for anywhere within South Africa: Fastway door-to-door courier to main centers, Post Office delivery (ordinary parcel with a tracking number) anywhere, or Post Office counter-to-counter Speed Services to anyone outside of a main center who would like their parcel to arrive quickly.
Hi, thanks for the information! It’s very helpful! Is there a reason you don’t use Amazon?
Hi Siobhan,
I do use Amazon. This blog post is specifically about selling print books in South Africa, and Amazon does not have a print-on-demand facility based in South Africa, and so Amazon is not mentioned in this blog post. (An author could, of course, have books printed by Amazon, shipped to South Africa, and then sell those to readers. But it’s FAR more cost-effective to have books printed here in SA instead.)
Am I allowed to publish my book on Amazon for Ebook only and then sell it print on demand in South Africa direct from my blog/website?
Yes 🙂
I would like to get a book distributor for my published book in South Africa.
Hi Patricia 🙂 You should probably do a Google search for book distributors in South Africa and contact them to find out which one would be best for you. This blog post is several years old, and there may be new options available now.
Is it a requirement to get a book classified by the film and publications board or can you just sell?
I am so glad I came across this series. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Up until now, I have been scratching around, trying to find resources that are actually helpful and feeling like I’ve been looking through a keyhole onto the world of self-publishing in SA. This has been such an enormous help. Now I can sleep at night knowing that I can and will get both local and international distribution.
You’re welcome, Donna! I’m so happy you found these blog posts useful 🙂 If you’re on Facebook and you’d like to connect with a group of (mostly South African) writers, some traditionally published and others self-published (in case you’re looking for more immediate or more up-to-date information) check out the Dragon Writers: https://www.facebook.com/groups/TheWritingDragonsDen/
Thank you so much. Being a novice in the world of self-publishing, I felt a little isolated, but you were most helpful in steering me in the right direction.
You’re welcome, Loredana!
Hi Rachel, thanks for the useful information. Have you done a beginner’s guide on how to publish on Kindle or can you offer assistance in that regard.
Hi Joseph 🙂 I haven’t done a beginner’s guide. There are plenty of great resources already available online. Here’s a free video course you can check out: https://azofselfpublishing.teachable.com/p/self-publishing-mastery
Hi Rachel. Yes, you are quite right about the fees. I approached Porcupine Press and Gail and Hope were most helpful. However, when they sent me the breakdown of the costs to distribute to bookstores nationally, I was horrified. If I decided to sell my book at R100, I would actually only make around R17 out of it. And I dont think that would even include the cost of printing the book. The book stores do take 45%, and then there are shipping charges and 15 % also goes to PP. Gail did advise me to maybe go the self distribution route, however I don’t think that is an option as I would not even know where to start. Took 5 years to write the book and I think I will just shelve it for now. Thanks for the valuable information.
Hi Bruce 🙂
Yes, it’s definitely costly to get print books distributed locally in bookstores. But don’t despair! Loads of people read ebooks these days, so perhaps don’t shelve the book. If you’ve spent so much time on it and you think it has an audience, then you may as well put it out there, even just as an ebook.
Hi Rachel. Thanks for all the useful information. Do you know of any children’s book editors? Thanks.
Hi Nicky 🙂 No, I’m sorry, not for children’s books. Perhaps get in contact with Katherine Graham. She’s a South African author who has written and published children’s books. https://www.wordcount.co.za/contact/
Hi Rachel,
I am a self published writer living in Australia and have been selling my books in South Africa, but recently, and quite suddenly, the POD printers I use in South Africa have more than doubled their prices.
Would you be able to recommend a POD print company I could use in SA? Although I don’t want to leave the company I have been using – they are great – I just can’t justify the increase in price.
Thanks,
Hi Alan
I’m sorry you’ve had that experience. I don’t actually know any Print On Demand printing companies in South Africa. I currently do small print runs through a printer called Digital Action. This unfortunately means that I have to keep stock of all my books, take orders, package orders, and send them out. But it’s the most cost-effective way for readers in South Africa to get my print books 🙂
I am going to be speaking in South Africa later this year. From how I read this, you are taking orders when in South Africa, and sending them out via post. What is the cost of mailing a 230 page soft cover book to South Africa?
Hi Penelope 🙂 From where to South Africa? I only know the postage costs from one point to another point within South Africa.
Hello Rachel
What happens if you get a distributor who manages to get your books into a book shop, but none of the books sell and so they are returned. Could you end up having to pay distribution and/or warehousing costs on top of the printing costs and then be really out of pocket?
Hi Camilla 🙂
I can’t say for sure, as I haven’t used a distributor, but I assume that would be the case. If a distributor has a set fee for warehousing a certain number of books, regardless of whether you sell any, then it’s possible you could make a loss if you end up selling nothing.
I am residing out of South Africa but managed to independantly compile and publish 3 educational study guides. I got a letter from department of education permitting me to sell my books to all provinces in south africa. I have a facebook page with about 5000 followers since 2014 who keep on requesting my books but i dont know how i can do it since i am not resident in south africa. I receive orders daily since 2014 but i dont know platforms that can help me. Please help.
Loot used to sell books on consignment from independent authors, but I just got an e-mail from them today saying they’ve stopped this option. They now only buy stock from major distributors.