So you’re an indie author who wants to sell their books directly to readers and bookstores.

Here’s my convoluted explainer on how I do it with absolutely no promises that it’s the best or easiest way.

Because it’s definitely not.

Before I go into the most time consuming part of my self-publishing business, let’s get a few things straight:

I have absolutely no idea what I’m doing.

I’ve been at this a year and I’m learning as I go.

This is the system that works best for me, but it isn’t necessarily the best, easiest, or most affordable way to do things.

Everything I learned was via trial and error and from fellow authors who shared their knowledge.

With that, let’s get on with the show.

Inventory

I have about 20 to 25 copies of each book on hand.

Those books are used for events, website sales, and wholesale orders. It’s all I can fit in my house and all I can afford to order at one time.

I store them in stackable bins I got from Staples.

Printing

I use IngramSparks to print author copies (and I’m cranky about it).

Amazon/KDP also prints author copies, but my experience with KDP author copies has been consistently terrible.

In my experience, Ingram is more reliable with print quality and ship times.

I DO NOT get the retail price printed on the book. I’m not about to lock myself into that kind of decision.

There are other print on demand (POD) options and this year I’d like to do more research on them, but for the sake of this post, I’m just giving you what my system is right now on January 1, 2026.

Ingram Tip

If you are buying author copies to RESELL them to readers and bookstores, congrats, you’re a reseller and may qualify for a sales tax waiver (not a tax lawyer).

You can find that here:

Scroll down to Reseller Exemption

https://help.ingramspark.com/hc/en-us/articles/5337748802573-Sales-Tax-Information

Base Cost

This is the number I use when figuring out if my retail price is going to cover my expenses. I base my book cost on an order of 20 copies since that’s generally the amount I’ll order at one time.

Print cost + shipping (ALWAYS with tracking) / 20 = base cost per book

Example with fake but realistic numbers:
$5 print x 20 copies = $100 + $20 shipping (seriously) = $120/20 = $6 cost per book

(I did this shit for two hours today)

To that I add the cost of any merch that comes with the book when I sell it direct. Art prints, stickers, bookmarks, etc. But that’s a post for another day.

Wholesale Price

Your wholesale price is based on a percentage of the retail price. You need to make money and the bookstore needs to make money.

This is where the math gets tricky and where IngramSparks has been pitting authors and booksellers against each other.

IngramSparks tells authors that a 55% discount is standard. But Ingram also takes about 10% of that, leaving the bookseller with a 45% discount.

Whatever discount you choose on IngramSparks, subtract 10% and that’s what booksellers are actually paying.

In trying to balance affordability with financial sustainability, my wholesale discount is 45% direct and through Ingram.

But unlike Ingram, my 45% is a real 45%.

More math

$6 book cost (what I paid to print and ship the book to me)
$16 retail price (what I sell it for)
$8.80 wholesale price (what I charge the bookstore)
$2.80 net (what I make)

Shipping

Shipping is the hardest thing to figure out and where I’ve made the most mistakes. For website sales I use a flat rate that covers the vast majority of postage costs.

For wholesale, I offer free delivery for bookstores within an hour of my shipping location, or if we’re going to be at the same place at the same time.

Ex: The owner of Petals Tea Shop and Bookstore (South Carolina) and I (North Carolina) were going to the same convention (Georgia) so I brought her order with me, saving her a good $15-$20.

I invoice wholesale orders so I charge for shipping exactly what it costs.

Tip: PirateShip rates are much less than USPS rates.

I bought a postage scale like 15 years ago and it gets more use than almost any other appliance.

Most orders can fit in a padded envelope, but for larger orders I reuse Amazon and Chewy boxes because I care more about sustainability than aesthetic.

Returns

I don’t take them.

Quite simply, I don’t have the cash flow.

The Storefront

There are definitely easier and cheaper ways to do this and I recommend chatting with authors who use different systems so you can decide what works best for you.

I have a WordPress website so I use WooCommerce. Everything is under one roof, it integrates easily with other platforms (like Bookfunnel), and I didn’t have to learn a completely new system. It has shipping built in and the rates are similar to, if not better than, PirateShip.

At events I use Square because I already had the card reader, but for online sales and invoicing, I use WooCommerce.

I sell paperbacks and ebooks through my website. Bookfunnel handles the delivery of my ebooks and I handle the delivery of the paperbacks.

My wholesale form needs updating, but booksellers can use that to place their order (or literally just email me).

I create an invoice after getting a shipping estimate. They pay the invoice, I ship out the books.

I’m losing steam here and you probably are too so lets wrap this up.

Keep in mind:

Indie bookstores are going to buy like 1 – 3 copies at a time. They’re not putting in a massive order of 50 books.

Selling wholesale to small indie bookstores is about connection and community so start local first. Go to bookstore events and introduce yourself. Sure it’s awkward, but then it’s fun.

This is a long game. Publishing is a long game. If now’s not the right time, don’t force it. Things are always changing in this business and it’s important to learn how to pivot.

That’s all got for now. I might update this over the next day or so.

Questions? Leave them in the comments and I’ll do a part 2.