In this post I want to share about book printing quality!
I’ve had a lot of creators write to me and ask me a lot of questions about book quality! I’ve compiled a list of common questions and answers for you! I’ve found that many creators don’t know how to determine the difference between the quality of paper and ink in their books and thus buy books that are not as good as they could be, and often experience poor print quality as well!
I’d like to share with you what I know about books in this article, so that you can get the print quality you want when choosing a book! And what to do if you get a bad print quality!
I know exactly what it’s like to buy a book and not get what you want! And I’m really sorry about that! But maybe if you take the time to read this post, you can minimize the chances of a misunderstanding!
Currently my main platform is A. Amazon Store! In the future, I will also test adding different channels such as B. IngramSpark C. Bookvault
Both platforms have their own printing factories, and both have their own book printing facilities!
Amazon is primarily an online e-commerce platform, while IngramSpark and Bookvault distribute to bookstores and libraries.
Part 1
First of all, let me explain the part about Amazon printing.
Amazon’s book printing conditions can be divided into A). Paper and B). Ink types
A). Book paper is divided into: 1). Standard paper (matte, thin paper) and 2). Premium paper (glossy, thicker paper).
B). Ink types are: 1). Standard Ink and 2). Premium Ink
Currently, Amazon offers authors only two printing options.
Option A. Standard Paper (matte, thin paper) + Standard Inks
Option B. Premium Paper (glossy, thicker paper) + Premium Ink (vibrant color)
Frankly speaking, the cost difference between these two printing methods is huge, so most of the books in the market are made with Option A. Standard Paper + Standard Ink! This is because the end price of books produced in this way is cheaper! If you use Option B to produce books, the end price will increase by at least 50%! In addition, inflation is very serious this year! This price is probably unacceptable to most creators!
Maybe you still can’t tell the difference between the two! Don’t worry! Poortoast Designs and Kate Curry’s stores are clearly labeled! (see pictures!).
You can also make a decision by checking the number of pages in the book!
1). If the book has only 54 pages or even less than 42 pages, then the book is made with Option B!
2). If the number of pages is more than 72, including 74, 84, 92, 204, etc., then the book is made with Option A!
I hope that this simple method will help you understand the differences in the printing of books!
Part 2
I realize that some creators are located in areas where there is no Amazon platform to purchase from! So I did a lot of research and used IngramSpark as an alternative print channel!
IngramSpark is the largest print distribution company besides Amazon, and instead of selling directly to authors, it distributes books to local bookstores, so if you’re interested!
IngramSpark has its own printing plant, offering similar printing conditions to Amazon!
IngramSpark offers me the choice of higher quality inks (color, premium color, ultra premium color, etc.), and the paper part is similar to Amazon. (color, premium color, ultra premium color, etc.), and the paper part is not much different from Amazon printing!
Currently I only use IngramSpark to print a few of my books, and if I were to print the same book with Ingramspark, I would use a higher level of print quality than Amazon! I will also indicate the type of printing (e.g. Premium Color or Ultra Premium Color Version, etc.) on the book cover!
I have to be honest because IngramSpark costs a lot more to print than Amazon! I’ve done my best to offer reasonable prices to give creators more options!
2023.11.30. Update.
Due to IngramSpark’s printing policy, there are only a few books available at the moment, but I’ve tried an alternative using a different printing company: Bookvault!
Bookvault is a UK based printing company with many years of experience! I am very happy to have found them! I personally think the quality of their book printing is even better than Amazon! The inks have bright and vivid colors, and the paper quality is even better!
I currently only use Bookvault’s premium printing conditions for my books! The point is that if you buy from The Great British Book Shop you get better quality!
Currently Bookvault distributes books to 1. Amazon 2. Gardners 3. The Great British Book Shop and other sites, so if you are interested, please go and buy them yourself!
Kate Curry Ephemera Book: https://bit.ly/3sUmr19
Poortoast Designs Ephemera Book: https://bit.ly/3Thc3LR
Lastly, I highly recommend that when you receive a poorly printed book from Amazon, you return it!
I’ve received many images of books sent to me by creators, and it’s obvious from the images that there are printing errors! Most of the time, the paper is not cut neatly or crooked, or the nozzle of the listing machine does not remove the air bubbles during the printing process, resulting in white lines on the pattern, etc. There are many kinds of problems! (Personally, I used to work for a company that developed printer inks, so I’m very familiar with this kind of printing error problem!)
I realize that Amazon.com prints a lot of books every day, so a certain percentage of errors are unavoidable! So please, creators, if you happen to get a poor quality book, just return it! That’s my only advice! Thank you!
