FAQs

A unique number assigned to books and other print, electronic, or multimedia publications. A number is issued for each format of a publication (eg. paperback, hardback, cd-rom, or online pdf). Journals, serials, and newspapers use International Standard Serial numbers (ISSNs) instead. The National Library of New Zealand is responsible for allocating International Standard Numbers to publishers who are publishing in New Zealand. We are happy to apply to them for an ISBN for you.

This is created from your ISBN and placed on the back cover of your book. It is used by bookshops when selling your book. The barcode we produce includes the ISBN only and does not usually show a retail price.

Indie publishing is another word for self-publishing. It means that you publish your book under your own name, rather than under the name of an existing publisher like Penguin or HarperCollins. Being indie means that you are in control of your creative work, and are able to reap the benefits of its success to the fullest extent. It also means that you have to do more of the work yourself, or pay professionals to help you. Click here to find out more.

That depends on a variety of factors, including how much work you have already put into the book. Factors such as how much editing, design, and formatting are required will all influence the price. Contact us for a quote – it may not be as expensive as you think!

Generally, payment consists of a deposit at the start of the project, and completion of payment when your books are ready for dispatch.

You get paid in royalties for any of your books that The CopyPress sells and distributes. You are paid monthly for books sold in that period. The royalty payment applies to all books sold to bookshops, other retail outlets, and through our online shop.

Our aim is to return you a royalty amount to 20% of the price of each book sold to a bookshop – that’s 20% of the price we sell to them, rather than the price they sell on to their customer. Bear in mind that you don’t have to pay for the printing or storage costs for any books that we distribute. You still have the option of buying a print run at our author discount and selling the books yourself. This means that you get to keep all of the money after deducting the cost of printing. We do find that with our travelling book representatives we tend to sell more copies than an author can, as they cover the whole of New Zealand.

We can list your book on our website, include it in an email newsletter to our bookshops, and put it in our catalogue that goes with our reps. If you are interested in a more intensive and tailored marketing plan, we can arrange that too. Click here to learn more about our marketing services.

No. Some of our authors decide not to have their books available through our channels. You can still sell your books directly, even if you are listed on our website. Just buy a stack of your book (with author discount), and sell them on when and where you like.

We are a digital printer, and use a print-on-demand model, so we don’t have a minimum order number. In general, the price per unit decreases with the more you order, but we could print you a single copy if necessary.

Typesetting is the art of arranging words and images on a page so that they are easy to read and understand, and attractively presented. It is a complicated and detailed art that often goes unnoticed. It’s really an invisible art form: when it’s done properly it can’t be seen. A badly typeset page is awkward and difficult to read. Often the reader won’t be able to tell what’s wrong and will blame the difficulty they’re having on the text itself, which is unfair when you have put so much time, effort and money into writing and editing your book.

This depends on the purpose of your book. If it’s just for friends and family, it might not be so important to have the typesetting done professionally. However, if you want to make money with your book and get it into bookshops, we suggest that you let us do it. Our designers are incredibly skilled, and can do an amazing job with your manuscript.

A proof copy allows you to see what your book looks like in print. It will give you a sense of the weight of the paper, how it feels to hold and read, and how the typesetting looks. A proof also allows you to review your book for errors and make any changes before going to print. It’s never a good feeling to get 100 copies printed, only to realise that there’s an error on the cover.

This depends on a number of factors, including where you are with editing, if you need a cover design, and how long the book is. The months coming up to Christmas are always very busy, so if you’re aiming to have your book in the shops by then, or are giving it as a gift, it is best to plan far ahead. Each project is very individual, have a chat to us about a timeframe, particularly before committing to any launch dates.

We do almost everything that a traditional publisher does. So if you need help with anything from editing, to marketing and event management, let us know.

All of our design work and the vast majority of our print and finishing work is done in at our Nelson site, by a team who are happy to work with you one-to-one. Our editors are all based in NZ, as are our consultants.

Yes. Our main focus is on New Zealand distribution, but we can also help you to get physical and digital copies of your book to the rest of the world. We have an agreement with an overseas distributor for physical books that allows us to get your book onto sites like Book Depository. We can also arrange for your book to be converted to eBook and listed in New Zealand and internationally.

Send us an email at info@copypress.co.nz, and let us know what your specifications are. We can set up a meeting or call with one of our team to discuss your project.