Sold Out of Your Book? How Reprints Work for Self-Published Authors

You’ve sold all of the books from your first printing (congratulations!), but you’ve still got a lot of customers, friends, and relatives asking to buy a copy of your book. You need more books printed and you need them fast. What now? Below we’ll discuss how reprints work for self-published authors.

Exact Reprints

With 48 Hour Books, once you approve the final proof of your book and the order begins printing, that book is now available to be re-ordered as an exact reprint. Exact reprints are the quickest way to get copies of your book printed and shipped to you, and as an added bonus, you receive a $20 discount on your order! Below is a list of instructions for placing exact reprints:

1.     Log into your account https://www.48hrbooks.com/account/login

2.     Go to Order History

3.     Click on the “Re-order” button next to the title you wish to reprint

4.     On the next screen, click the “Exact Reprint” button on the left

5.     Complete the order form

6.     Pay the order amount in full

7.     Submit the order

Since exact reprints will print exactly like the first order, there is no need for you to approve a proof of your book. Once your exact reprint order is placed, your book will be moved immediately to print. However, for the order to count for that day, the order must be placed between 8:30am and 5pm EST, Monday through Friday. If the order is placed after 5pm EST or over the weekend, the order won’t begin production until the next business day. We’ll go over timing more, but if you ever have questions about the timing of your order, contact us!

Need to reprint your book, but have some changes to make?

It’s common for authors to spot a few typos they’d like corrected after receiving the first printing. You may even have an entirely new inside file or cover you’d like to swap out. For situations like these, we recommend placing a “Reprint with Changes.” A Reprint with Changes ensures our archived files are replaced with new, corrected ones.

A “Reprint with Changes” will also allow you to add upgrades and new services if you’d like. Since the first printing was such a success, you may want to upgrade the second edition’s cover to include our Diamond 3D Service. Perhaps the first run was just for family and friends, but now you intend to sell the books and need some help securing an ISBN/Barcode and adding it to the cover.

The following steps will walk you through placing your reprint with changes:

8.     Log into your account https://www.48hrbooks.com/account/login

9.     Go to Order History

10.  Click on the “Re-order” button on the right side of the title you wish to reprint

11.  Click on “Reprint Witch Changes” button on the right

12.  Review the Specifications already filled in from the previous order. Change any if necessary.

13.  Leave an order comment with any potential instructions you’d like to send us

14.  Make the payment (either $100 deposit or full amount)

15.  Upload any new files you may need to send

Once you either upload new files or send a list of corrections, the prepress technicians will begin preparing an updated proof for your review.

Pre-Press and Production Timelines for Reprint Orders:

A reprint with changes, like new orders, require your approval of at least a PDF Proof before we begin printing (printed proofs can be ordered if needed). PDF Proofs can take as little as four to five hours or one to two business days, depending on the amount of work the files require and our current order volume.

After proof approval, standard perfect bound and saddle stitched (stapled booklet) orders require two business days for production before they ship. Case bound books (hardcover) and spiral coil bound books require five business days for production and ship by the end of the fifth day. Our premium cover material options such as Diamond 3D or Foil Stamping add 2-3 business days to production time. You can read more about our prepress and production schedules, here.

If you have a specific date that you need your books by, please let us know of your need-by date when you place the order. By adding a need-by date to the order, we can be better prepared to help you meet your deadline or offer potential shipping or production upgrades, to ensure the books arrive on the day you need them!

Whether you’re printing your book for the first time with 48 Hour Books or need reprints fast, we are always here to help answer any of your questions. Ready to self-publish? Place an order today!