How My Books Got Distribution, And Yours Can, Too!

You Don’t Need a Distributor!

I know, I know, you want one. But you don’t likely need one – at least, not right now.

Here’s a tough truth: most distributors are not interested in an independently published author with only one book. Here’s an even tougher truth: most distributors are not interested in an independently published author with even a half-dozen books.

When I published my first book, I had a Pinocchio-like thought: “If only I had distribution, maybe my book would become… a real boy – I mean, a real book!” Long before my books got distribution, I had to realize on my own that my books were real, regardless of their readership or reach. Every day that I see readers interact with my stories reinforces how special it is that my books exist. If you’re like me, maybe that’s what inspired you to independently publish in the first place; you didn’t want to wait for a gatekeeper to grant you permission to share your stories.

When it comes to distribution, it can be frustrating when – lo and behold – there’s yet another gatekeeper. So, how do you get that gatekeeper to open the door? And do you need them to?

Initially, I waited until I had two books, with three more in the works, before I reached out to distributors. For one distributor that accepted physical submissions, I even put together a care package that included my first two books and advance copies of my upcoming titles. I sent that care package by snail mail, unsure if anyone would look at it.

As onerous as the slush pile can be, someone did read my submission. They even sent a kind message thanking me for the thoughtful presentation. Their rejection letter encouraged me to circle back in a couple of years, as their company only worked with publishers with “ten active titles” and an ongoing publishing program of “five to ten new books per year.”

I thought, “Five to ten?! That’s so many books!” And yet, that’s fairly standard for distributors. Here’s my understanding as to why: publishing is primarily a frontlist business. This means that books sell best when they’re new to the national marketplace. More often than not, distributors choose not to work with self-published authors because even the most prolific authors cannot sustain an ongoing publishing program that will be profitable from season to season, year in and year out.

To return to my story: when I signed with Lakeside Book Company, I only had five books. I had written all five and published them through my own independent publishing company. If you’re keeping score, I essentially had two strikes against me. Strike #1: even though I published my books through Oak Tree Comics, for all intents and purposes, I was self-published. Strike #2: even though I had five books, I didn’t have a proven track record of publishing five to ten titles per year.

So, instead of saying “Strike three!”, why did my distributor take interest? For suspense and chronology, I’ll save the not-so-epic story of how Oak Tree Comics got its distributor for later in this article.

For now, let’s return to lesson #1. To get a distributor, you will likely need to continue building your brand and list on your own, whether that’s as a self-published author or as a budding publisher. And here’s the good news: while you’re building that brand, you don’t have to wait for anyone.

That’s what I did. Before I had distribution, for five years I self-distributed my books, first through print-on-demand (POD) services and then through offset print runs, with my home as my primary storage facility. (I cover POD services in my first article with PrintNinja.)

To recap quickly: when someone orders your book through a POD service, only that individual copy is printed, packaged, and shipped, all by that service. In my experience, POD services can be a convenient introduction to publishing, but the quality of POD production pales in comparison to offset printing. Plus, POD services don’t make for nearly as profitable a business model, especially if you’re printing full-color books.

If you feel like you have enough of an audience, more often than not I would recommend offset print runs over POD services. When you order a print run, you will select to print anywhere between a couple hundred to a few thousand books. You’ll need to assess your current readership versus your storage capabilities and your ability to sell through your inventory.

When self-distributing, I found printing 750 units per title was the sweet spot where the pricing lined up with my storage and selling capabilities. At peak storage, I can comfortably house 2,500 books, in two separate at-home closets. Of course, even if you had space for thousands of books, you wouldn’t want your inventory to take over that space forever (or your partner may begrudge you for it!). You’ll want to factor in how quickly you can sell through your inventory before landing on your print quantity.

If you entered Oak Tree Comics’ storage facilities today, what would it look like? Thankfully, each at-home closet is looking emptier by the day. Our picture books Do You Speak Tree? and Do You Speak Bear? are currently SOLD OUT, while our remaining titles only have a couple hundred units remaining. Why is this good news? Over the next year, the team and I are relaunching each of our books as special second editions with new educational bonus content. That’s also why we offer discounts when you preorder. A successful preorder campaign is HUGE in helping us build buzz, grow our audience, and plan how many books to print.

That brings us to our second lesson…

Your Books Don’t Have an Expiration Date

Your book journey likely won’t be linear. As a self-published author, you’ll only be able to reach a small corner of the larger marketplace. That can be a good thing.

As you build your market presence, your books will continually be introduced to new readers. In other words, the book you self-publish today, or even the book you published years ago, could end up as a frontlist title tomorrow when you acquire wider distribution.

As an example, I initially published Do You Speak Tree? as a print-on-demand book in April of 2021. It was the only book I ever printed through a POD service. Over the next five years, we graduated to an offset printing model and published its sequels, Do You Speak Bear? and Do You Speak Bee?

As successful as the team and I were in self-distributing our books, the books are still new to the wider marketplace. Now that we have distribution through Lakeside Book Company, we’re relaunching each of our titles nationally as special second editions, with Do You Speak Tree? debuting this October and its sequels following in the new year.

Just as you might write drafts of a story, each new edition of your book provides you with an opportunity to reinvent it, so you can reach more readers. As you sell your books, you’ll want to continually be asking yourself: who are your readers? And how can you reach them?

Community! Community! Community!

I’m sure you know the retail motto, “Location! Location! Location!” In modern times, the saying could be “Algorithm! Algorithm! Algorithm!” But I’m more old school. I prefer “Community! Community! Community!” as it makes my heart feel full.

As an independently published author, you’ll want to take advantage of both digital and in-person sales. The “how” and strategy of it all is up to you. In building sales, at Oak Tree Comics we focus on opportunities that build community. Why? I believe in the philosophy, “You get what you give.” By serving community, you create opportunities to connect with readers in ways that are long-lasting, authentic, and meaningful. And that experience gives back to you. In attending events, you’ll better understand the value that your stories bring to readers, and that will inform the books you create next.

We chose to focus on in-person events also because I founded Oak Tree Comics during the pandemic. Initially, in-person events simply didn’t exist! When the world finally reopened, the team and I took advantage. Over five years, we attended close to one hundred events: comics conventions, book fairs, store readings, school visits – you name it – often travelling the country, with Southern California as Oak Tree Comics’ hub and home.

With experience, I learned what events worked best for our books. As we make imaginative, environmentally-minded comics for kids, our books feel equally at home at a Comic Con as they do at a family-friendly Earth Day event. Depending on the pricing structure of the event, some events are more profitable than others. While a large event may have larger upfront fees, it makes up for them with increased foot traffic. Conversely, an event that offers a free or low-cost table may lower the barrier of entry, while coming with lesser foot traffic and fewer sales. Both can be profitable!

To figure out which events work best for you, I again recommend focusing on “Community!” If you ask yourself who your audience is, you are more likely to choose the right venues to connect with your readers.

Even if selling comes naturally to you, you’ll only get better with experience. I suggest investing in your setup incrementally. At first, I didn’t even have a table; instead, I rented one. Over a couple of years, I bought two tables, a range of signage, a custom 10×10′ tent, plenty of merchandise, and more. But you don’t need all that. To get started, all you need is a borrowed or rented table, some creativity in making your setup attractive, and a dozen copies of each of your books. (At any event, if you sell anywhere between fifteen to twenty copies of any title, no matter the venue, you’ve likely had a good day!)

Every interaction is an opportunity to build community. In selling, you’ll want to make it easy for your readers to stay in touch, whether that’s highlighting your social media accounts (Instagram, Facebook, TikTok) or directing them to your newsletter. Finding ways to stay in touch with readers will only help you grow digital sales, too.

I founded Oak Tree Comics in June of 2020. Five years later, I tabled at the American Library Association conference in Philadelphia. Although I had tabled at several big events, this was my first time at a venue solely focused on the industry of publishing. Naively, connecting with distributors wasn’t on my mind, which might have been a blessing. I attended ALA because I grew up in the Philadelphia area, and it was the best excuse to visit family while introducing Oak Tree Comics’ books to libraries.

In all the decisions that you make as an author, I would advise that you…

Start With Your Heart

As an independently published author, you may find yourself overwhelmed by everything you could be doing. Depending on what help you bring on, you may find yourself juggling a half-dozen jobs.

You got into publishing because you’re a storyteller, but you may also be your own social media manager, an accountant, your head of marketing and public relations, a graphic designer, a video editor, and the list goes on. If your heart’s not in it, in my opinion, it’s simply not worth doing, whether it’s a story you’re considering writing or any other facet of your job as an author.

While attending ALA, I was beyond fortunate to have my mom for company as a co-worker and friend. She and I enjoy work, so it was our version of just hanging out for fun. Once I realized that ALA was an industry event quite different from my usual local markets, I left the table in my mom’s care while I introduced myself to distributors and told them what Oak Tree Comics was all about. As I didn’t prep a pitch, I simply spoke from the heart.

Over the course of the weekend, I spoke to representatives from four distribution companies. The interactions ranged from being pleasant enough to outright enthusiastic. When pitching yourself at any industry event, you may initially be met by a beat of confusion or skepticism while your audience processes who you are and what you’re selling. Even if your books don’t align with the distributor’s interests, everyone at these events is there because they love books. So, there’s usually a point of connection or, at least, something to learn.

Learning is key! I not only spoke to distributors, but I also introduced myself to fellow indie publishers and authors whose work interested me. As these folks were my peers, when it made sense, I asked about their experience with distributors and learned from them.

One of the distributors was Baker & Taylor Publisher Services (BTPS), now Lakeside Book Company. From reading up on distributors as well as speaking with authors, I already knew that they were the largest distributor to libraries. Our books, with their environmental focus, were ideally suited for educational use. As an independently published author looking to grow Oak Tree Comics into a full-fledged publisher, my instinct was that there could be a beautiful alignment with BTPS.

Why did they take interest? I believe our books largely spoke for themselves. At the time, we had two series with five books. One was a young reader series and the other was for middle-grade readers, respectively illustrated by Josiane Vlitos and A. D’Amico, both of whom are immensely talented. As you’re on the PrintNinja website, I’ll also highlight that all five of our books were printed by PrintNinja. In showing off the books, I could point to their professionality. Each one had a specialty spot UV cover, soy-based ink instead of petroleum, and FSC-certified paper. Not only did the books look amazing, but they stood up for Oak Tree Comics’ environmental values in their design.

As impressive as the books were, my vision for Oak Tree Comics’ future helped a lot, too. I showcased how Oak Tree Comics would grow from a self-publishing entity into a full-fledged publisher, all built around the brand identity of “imagination that speaks up for the environment.” One project I shared with them was We Are Los Angeles. I live in LA, and the fires the city experienced that year were devastating. Inspired by how the community supported each other, I began organizing an anthology of comics in support of wildfire relief. Featuring 34 writers and artists who call Los Angeles home, the anthology highlighted a near future where Oak Tree Comics would publish a wider range of storytellers, and how magical that would be.

After attending close to one hundred events, it only took one fifteen-minute conversation at one conference to open the door – or, at least, to start the conversation that would lead to Oak Tree Comics getting distribution. And it only went as well as it did because the team and I had been following our hearts. For the past five years, we created projects that mattered to us and, to the best of our abilities, we shared our stories with the world.

Your Books Matter

Of all the advice that I can give, I hope you know that “your books and voice matter.”

In a world where creative ingenuity is too often taken for granted, where endless content can be generated at the thoughtless click of a button, you have dreamed up, labored on, and produced a book. (Or plan to!) From nothingness, you have, or will, create something that will be valued by readers, no matter how many. The time and energy you put into creating your books matter.

Whenever sales are slow, or when the gatekeepers say “not right now,” I hope you will remember snippets from this article. In whatever ways that you can, I hope that you will continue to share your stories with the world. Speaking from experience, you never know where the story you write today will take you tomorrow.