Where can a new book be sold? Your own website, marketplaces and shops
Each place you can sell a book comes with its own trade-offs. A comparison so you can pick a mix that suits you.
The QuillBees team
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·3 min read
Once the books exist, the next question is where readers can buy them. There is no single right answer. Most authors end up using more than one.
Your own website
You control the page, the story you tell, the way the order is handled and the relationship with the reader. You also have their contact details, with permission, so you can tell them about the next book.
The downside is that nobody finds you by accident. You have to bring readers to the site yourself. You also take on the work of payments, packing, shipping and answering questions.
Online marketplaces
Big online shops already have millions of visitors who are ready to buy. A listing puts your book where people shop, and handling orders may be taken care of.
The trade-offs are less control over how the book is displayed, a crowded page where your book sits among thousands, and rules that you must follow. You also have limited access to the buyer.
Bookshops
A physical shop gives readers a chance to pick up the book, which online cannot. Staff recommendations can matter a great deal.
Getting a shop to stock a first book by an unknown author is hard. Shops have limited space and a lot of books to choose from. Many shops will take a few copies on consignment, meaning you are paid only when copies sell. Others may not take unknown titles at all. Go in with a finished book in hand and a short, polite pitch.
Events and book fairs
Selling directly to readers at a stall teaches you more about your book in a day than a month online. You hear what people ask, which cover catches their eye, and which line from the blurb makes them smile.
It takes effort and time, and not every event suits every book.
Libraries and schools
Libraries can be a quiet, steady buyer, and a reader who finds you there may later buy the next book. Look at how your local library takes suggestions.
Starting out
A reasonable mix for a first book:
- Your own website, so there is one proper home for the book.
- One online marketplace, for readers who already shop there.
- A few local shops you can visit personally.
- One or two events, mainly to learn.
Keep it simple
Every extra place you sell adds work. Updating prices, tracking stock and handling orders in five places can swallow your time. Add a new channel only when the previous one is running smoothly.
And whichever you pick, make sure the title, cover image and description are the same everywhere. A reader who sees three different versions of your book will wonder which is the real one.
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