Trade books

More about trade books

Trade books are one of the largest book categories encompassing a wide spectrum of genres and categories. They offer high quality at a lower price point, making them attractive to creative professionals and self-publishers looking to sell at scale with or without worldwide distribution.

Trade books can literally be about anything. They can be text based (like a workbook or novel), visually driven (like a portfolio or travel album), or both (like a children’s book or cookbook).

Popular trade book genres worth exploring

• Novels: Trade books often include fiction novels, which can be further categorized into different genres such as romance, mystery, science fiction, and more.
• Cookbooks: Cookbooks are another popular genre for trade books, providing recipes, food photos, and cooking tips for readers.
• Biographies and memoirs: Trade books also frequently include biographies and memoirs, which tell the stories of real people.
• Self-help and personal development: Such trade writing topics offer advice and guidance on subjects like relationships, career, and mental health.
• History and current events: Books like these cover historical or current events, providing readers with a deeper understanding of the world around them.
• Children's books: Trade books can also include children's books, often illustrated and targeted toward specific age groups.
• Business and finance: Trade writing can focus on business and finance, providing readers with insights on entrepreneurship, investing, and more.
• Science and nature: Exploring topics such as biology, astronomy, and environmentalism are unique trade writing topics.

Overall, trade books can cover many topics and genres, making them an accessible format for both broad and targeted audiences.

Why self-publish a trade book with Blurb?

When self-publishing a trade book, authors are empowered by various features to create and distribute their work.

• Customizable design: Blurb provides a user-friendly platform with customizable design options, allowing self-publishers to personalize their trade book's layout, cover design>, and overall appearance to reflect their artistic vision.
• Affordable pricing: Blurb offers competitive pricing for self-publishers, ensuring authors can produce their trade books without breaking the bank. This affordability enables writers to focus on content and reach a wider audience.
• Free tools and templates: Blurb provides an array of free tools and templates to assist authors in the book creation process. These resources simplify the design and layout stages, helping authors save time and effort.
• Print-on-demand (POD): Blurb's print-on-demand service eliminates the need for upfront printing costs and inventory management. Authors can have their trade books printed and shipped to customers as orders come in, reducing financial risks.
• Large order services: Blurb offers large order services for authors seeking to print larger quantities of their trade book. This option caters to bulk printing needs for events, signings, or promotional purposes.
• Pricing control: Authors have control over pricing their trade book. This flexibility empowers writers to strategize their marketing and pricing strategies to maximize profitability and reach their target audience.
• Worldwide distribution: With Blurb's global distribution services, self-publishers can make their trade book available to readers worldwide. This extensive distribution network enhances exposure and increases the potential for book sales.

Unlike traditional publishers that typically require a book proposal and a compelling pitch, self-publishing allows authors to take full ownership of their trade book. This includes the design, pricing, distribution, and marketing strategy. And where publishing houses invest in large print runs and heavy inventory, print-on-demand provides a cost-effective alternative that minimizes overhead costs and the pressure to sell your trade book.

Trade book design considerations

There are a lot of decisions that go into self-publishing a trade book. While the genre and content come naturally, the design and formatting leave a lot to consider. Blurb offers several options for sizes, paper types, and cover options. For trade books, these design considerations can be narrowed down into the following options:

• strong>Book sizes: 5x8 inches (13x20 cm), 6x9 inches (15x23 cm), and 8x10 inches (20x25 cm).
• Paper types: Standard Black and White: White uncoated, 50# (75 GSM); Economy Color: White uncoated, 70# (105 GSM); Standard Color: White uncoated, 70# (105 GSM)
• Cover options: Softcover (glossy), Hardcover with dust jacket (matte), and Hardcover ImageWrap (matte).

While these factors shape the reader experience, they also shape the final printing costs. Carefully consider the size, paper type, and book cover that makes the most sense for your trade book, content, budget, and pricing strategy.

Assemble your trade book using your preferred software

Blurb offers several software options for trade book authors. BookWright, Blurb's free and easy-to-use software platform, allows authors to design and publish trade books easily with little bookmaking experience. BookWright offers features such as reflowable text containers, unique and free ISBNs for every version of the book, and the ability to import existing Blurb book files.

Blurb also offers plugins for Adobe InDesign, Photoshop, and Lightroom, allowing authors to create and publish trade books directly from these programs. If you have a PDF of your trade book's content, you can also use Blurb's PDF Uploader tool to prepare your trade book for publishing.

Earn more with trade books

Trade books are priced for sellers, meaning they are designed to be sold and generate income for the author. By writing a trade book, authors can earn royalties from book sales. Of course, this depends on several variables. But compared to other niche book formats, trade books offer the greatest profit potential and ability to scale. Knowing how to price your trade book involves considering your book’s genre, length, and quality, as well as your target audience. And don’t forget to consider book promotions and seasonal sales as a way to increase your book’s visibility and boost your bottom line.

Even when self-published with platforms like Blurb, trade books are typically produced with high-quality materials and printing standards, making them comparable to books found in bookstores. Authors can customize the design and layout of their books to create a visually appealing and professional product. This further supports the marketability and sales potential of trade books.