Breathing New Life into an Out-of-Print Book

So you’re zipping along – doing your thing – and below the radar one, or more, of your traditionally published books goes silently out of print. Often, you’re not told this by the publisher – you just stumble upon the fact when a teacher or school reports that they can’t get books.

When a book goes out of print. it always hurts – it’s a death in the family. You’ve spent a significant portion of your life living with it, writing it, and cheering it on. Now, it’s no longer available. For many traditionally published books that’s the end of the line, though used copies may be around for quite some time.

I did not want that to happen to my first novel, Spitting Image (Clarion, 2003). It is a book close to my heart. It got glowing reviews, including a starred review in School Library Journal, made several state short lists, was recorded by Recorded Books, and sold reasonably well for a hardcover debut novel. Yet, somehow, it never made it to paperback – a format more affordable by its intended audience, young teens.

I wanted it to have a longer life. However, I didn’t have an editor willing to jump on the paper-only bandwagon, so I decided I’d take matters into my own hands. First I had to get my rights back. That took a bit of time. Then I had it reprinted at a reputable printer with a new cover design by a newly created publisher (me, as Rascal Road Publishing). Below are a few things I learned along the way.

Check your contract

Read your contract carefully for your publisher’s definition of out of print. If you’re not sure, call and talk to them about how they define it. Usually a book has to hit a designated number of sales for it to be considered in print. Below that, and you can ask for it to be reprinted. If they decline, then normally, you can ask for the rights back.

Of course, make sure this is spelled out in all future contracts. And do check your electronic rights. I could not get Spitting Image back until we hit a reporting period with less than 50 copies of the eBook sold.

Be persistent

It will take a looooooooong time to get rights back with some sort of written communication saying the same from the publisher. The thing is, in many contracts it is stated that after a certain number of months from the date of an author’s request for rights the rights simply revert.

Now, while the author may legally have those rights, getting that in writing is the hard part. A publisher may tell you that you have them. But I think it’s best to actually have a letter stating that, as many printers will want to see proof that you have the rights before printing the book for you. So watch your deadlines,and keep communicating until you get it in writing. If you have an agent she/he may be able to help you with this.

Set a goal

You need a goal for the book. Mine was to simply get it into the hands of more kids when I do school visits or speak at festivals. So I had it reprinted in paperback with a sales price of $7.99. (More on this later.)

Create a company

You’ll need to put in new CIP info. So I created my own publishing company, Rascal Road Publishing. I made sure there was not another company with this name. I bought domain names for the most common forms of it. That is, I bought rascalroadpublishing.com, .net, and .org. I did the same for rascalroadpress and rascalroadbooks. This costs me about $14-$15 a year per domain. It’s worth it to keep anyone else from buying those domains and perhaps using them in a manner I would not want.

I also designed my own logo. Then I designed a website that all those URLs point to using PayPal to handle the money transactions.

Work with the printer

The printer had an in-house editor and a cover designer who worked with me to design a new cover, new CIP, new title page, a praise page with quotes from good reviews, etc. This had to be done to remove the logos of the original publisher.

Also, if I’d wanted to use the original cover, I would have had to purchase the rights to the art. I did adore the original cover. But it would have cost me $1,800 for 5,000 copies over 5 years – the lowest price they (Getty Images) could give me.

As I only wanted to print 500 copies and keep the price low for teens, I opted for a new photo on the cover. This we found on iStock for $35.00. Now, I adore the new cover design! Designing the cover, these extra pages, and placing a bar code cost me about $750 at the time. It may be more now. I also bought a small packet of ISBN numbers.

Know how selling works

I wanted to keep the price low so that kids could afford the book. What I hadn’t taken into consideration is that retailers like Ingram, B & T, and Amazon, even bookstores, take anywhere from 35 to 45% of the list price to sell for you. So that means if I place my title with these companies those copies will not make back the cost of the printing. (I obviously hadn’t done all my homework!)

In the long run, I am fine with that as my purpose was not necessarily to make any money on the venture. However, I do think I could have upped the price by about a dollar or two so that I might get closer to breaking even. I will say that the bookstores love the low price. It is easier for them to sell it. And, of course, you do not need to print a price on the book – thus giving you more flexibility.

You have to market it

Most of my copies I simply plan to make available at school visits and to take with me to festivals and conferences. I have donated several copies to local libraries, and my local bookstores are carrying them for me on commission. This is a new venture for me and I have, as yet, to place it with Ingram, amazon, or some other wholesaler. I may do so with the knowledge that those placements will come at a cost. The good thing will be the exposure to buyers.

The take away

I might do this for another novel, and my publishing company is all set up. I doubt that I would do this for one of my picture books. Printing full color picture books on quality paper is still an expensive undertaking. The price on the book would be high, and I don’t feel that buyers (parents/schools/etc.) would invest $18 to $24 for a thin paperback picture book. In addition, there is the compensation to the illustrator to be considered.

I have not, as yet, made it available in an e-format. At the time, I simply wanted to be able to take several boxes at a time with me to gigs. An electronic or POD version may come in the future.

All in all, it was an interesting endeavor. I’ve learned a few things, and discovered some of the joys of doing it. As, I am sure, many of you have when you do a lot of this work yourself. Having been traditionally published for almost twenty years I never thought I’d turn to a self-publishing activity. But I’m proud of the way the book turned out, and the fact that teens can afford to buy it at the price listed.

I won’t make back the cost of printing it, but that is fine by me on this occasion. I’ll have to wait and see what my final analysis may be. Still, I think if you have a traditionally published book that made some waves in its first foray out into the world, do consider bringing it back into print. It makes me happy just to see it sitting on my bookshelf.