Glossary
Pre-order
Also called preorder
A pre-order lets a reader buy a book before release day, so the copy arrives, or the download opens, the day the book comes out.
Checked by Dario Griffo, founder of Lanternbee, on .
What it means
A pre-order is a sale before the book exists for readers. For ebooks, retailers usually take the order and deliver on release day. For print, a pre-order can also mean a special edition that is only printed once enough readers have ordered it.
A fantasy author might open pre-orders three months out, so newsletter readers can commit early. A memoir author might take pre-orders for signed hardbacks to judge how many to order from the printer. A cookbook writer might pre-sell a special edition with a ribbon marker and a print run limited to what readers ordered.
Some pre-orders charge the reader at once. Others charge only when the book is ready or the campaign closes.
Why it matters when you sell direct
Pre-orders bring money and certainty before release day. When they are on your own store, the readers who pre-order are on your list, and you can email them on launch day and when the next book comes.
With special editions, pre-orders mean you only print what has already sold.
How Lanternbee handles it
Any title with a future release date sells as a pre-order: readers pay now, the book lands in their library on release day, and each buyer gets an email that it is out. For a special edition you can also run a campaign with tiers and stretch goals, and charge readers either when they back it or when the campaign closes.