Amazon is adding the facility for authors and publishers to order proof copies and author copies of their paperback at ‘wholesale’ prices through the print book section of Kindle Direct Publishing.
Authors are already able to order author copies through Amazon’s CreateSpace operation if they use that side of the business but this is the first time it’s been offered on KDP Print.
There is, of course, a slightly odd situation when it comes to self-publishing print books with Amazon in that the company has two separate divisions which offer print on demand — CreateSpace and KDP Print.
CreateSpace has been pumping out print books for around 10 years now while KDP has only been offering paperbacks since last year.
One of the big differences between the two is that with CreateSpace you can opt for Expanded Distribution which will see your book being made available to bookstores and non-Amazon websites.
KDP Print is strictly Amazon-only but you do get all the sales reporting features for your ebooks and print books in one place. Also, KDP Print offers distribution through Amazon.jp, unlike CreateSpace, but is unable to sell on the Amazon Canada and Mexico websites.
Amazon says it is rolling out the new KDP Print deal ‘over the next few weeks’.
There will be a maximum order of five proof copies which feature a “Not for Resale” watermark on the cover and a unique barcode but no ISBN.
If you order proofs through your KDP Account, you’ll pay the author price for your own books which is the printing cost for your selected marketplace multiplied by the number of copies.
Printing costs are calculated on trim size, interior type and page count. Shipping charges and any taxes will be added.
There is a maximum of 999 books per order for author copies but you can place multiple separate orders. Shipping charges and taxes will be added to each order.
Author copies can take up to three weeks to print and you can ship author copies to multiple shipping addresses by placing separate orders for each destination.
The author price is the printing cost for your selected marketplace multiplied by the number of copies ordered.
You can find out more about ordering proofs here at KDP and about author copies here at KDP.