Product Code Database
A small press is a publisher with annual sales below a certain level or below a certain number of titles published. The terms " indie publisher" and " independent press" and others are sometimes used interchangeably. However, when a distinction is drawn, there are about 100,000 small presses and about one million independent presses.
Independent press is generally defined as publishers that are not part of large conglomerates or multinational corporations. Even when owned by a larger business, an independent press is allowed to choose which books to publish, and the business will survive or fail as a result of how well those books sell. Many small presses rely on specialization in genre fiction, poetry, or limited-edition or , but there are also thousands that focus on niche non-fiction markets.
Other terms for small press, sometimes distinguished from each other and sometimes used interchangeably, are small publishers, independent publishers, or indie presses.
Independent publishers (as defined above) made up about half of the market share of the book publishing industry in the United States in 2007.Herman, Jeff Herman's Guide To Book Publishers, Editors & Literary Agents, 2007, p. 131. The majority of small presses are independent or indie publishers, meaning that they are separate from the handful of major publishing house conglomerates, such as Random House or Hachette.
Small presses tend to fill the niches that larger publishers neglect. They can focus on regional titles, narrow specializations and niche genres. They can also make up for commercial clout by creating a reputation for Academy knowledge, vigorously pursuing prestigious literature prizes and spending more effort nurturing the careers of new authors.Herman, Jeff Herman's Guide To Book Publishers, Editors & Literary Agents, 2007, pp. 131–132, 367–372. At its most minimal, small press production consists of . This role can now be taken on by desktop publishing and . This still leaves a continuum of small press publishing: from specialist periodicals, short runs or print-to-order of low-demand books, to fine art books and limited editions of collector's items printed to high standards.
Unlike a vanity press or self-publishing service, a small press rarely publishes books written by the owner or publisher. Instead, these are small businesses, often with only a few employees, who select books written by other authors.
In Canada, these are considered small press publishers, but the standard small press book run is accepted at 300 copies of a chapbook and 500 or more copies of a spine-bound book. In doing this, small press publishers are eligible for grants from the Ontario Arts Council and the Canada Council.
Small presses should not be confused with printers. Small presses are traditional publishers, which means that they engage in a book selection process, along with editing, marketing and distribution. Small presses also enter into a contract with the author, often paying royalties for being allowed to sell the book. Publishers own the copies they have printed, but usually do not own the copyright to the book itself. In contrast, printers merely print a book, and sometimes offer limited distribution if they are a POD printing press. Printers have a very low selectivity. They will accept nearly anyone who can pay the cost of printing. They rarely offer editing or marketing. Printers do not own the copies that are printed, and they do not pay royalties.
Book-packaging combine aspects of small presses and printers, but they are technically neither small presses nor printers.
A recent burgeoning of small presses has been caused by the introduction of digital printing, especially print on demand technology. Combined with Internet based marketing, digital typesetting, design tools with the rise of eBooks, the new printing technologies have lowered the economic barriers to entry, allowing many new niches to be served, and many new publishers to enter the industry. A notable boom of small press publishing has been observed since the 2008 economic crisis. (2025). 9783030487836, Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 9783030487836
In recent years, though, the small publishers have especially made gains as big publishers have backed away from publishing literary works. Small press publications have won some of the greatest literary prizes, including the Stella Prize, the Prime Minister's Literary Award for Fiction and the Miles Franklin Literary Award. There was a strong upward trend in the number of titles published by small press and shortlisted for the Miles Franklin and the PM's Fiction Awards in the two years preceding 2017.
The Small Press Network (SPN), located at the Wheeler Centre in Melbourne, represents small and independent publishers in Australia, which promotes independent publishing and supports diversity within the industry "as a vital component of Australian literary culture". Founded in 2006, it has grown to represent more than 140 members in Australia and New Zealand. Its members include such publishers as the Griffith Review, National Library of Australia Publishing, Scribe and Wakefield Press, as well as many smaller publishers.
Universities, notably the University of Nairobi, played a pivotal role in shaping this literary culture, with student publications serving as platforms for early experimentation in creative writing for latterly well-known writers. Zuka: A Journal of East African Creative Writing, founded by the East African Literature Bureau in 1967, published authors such as Taban Lo Liyong, Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o, Angus Calder, and Okot p'Bitek.
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