Self-Published Book Printing

There are a number of ways to publish your book. At DocuCopies.com, we handle the printing and binding. Check out our slideshow and list in the content above to learn about the other steps you'll need to take.

Self printing usually means you're literally printing it yourself at home, at a copy store or at a public library, for example. Self printers may use staples to bind pages together or may have access to another DIY binding process. A classic example of a self printed product is a "zine." The culture and ethos of [maga]zines centers around a do-it-yourself approach to publishing.

Self publishing is a broader term, which would include self printing. But this also covers basically any print project intended for some degree of specialized public readership or mass consumption which is not being printed, promoted and distributed by a publishing company. In other words, you are your own publishing company — no one's going to help you unless you hire them. We're here to help guarantee you get quality books printed fast and affordably. View the slideshow and checklist above to see what else you may need to do.

We can print and bind your self published book. But we cannot work with loose sheets that you've already printed yourself. We recommend against self-printing your book at home, as our professional digital printers can do it faster, cheaper and at a more consistent quality than you can achieve from a desktop printer.

For most binding types, we recommend 0.5" margins on the binding edge. With stapled booklets, you don't actually need a margin on the binding edge, which can be useful if you have a photo that spreads across two pages. But for most stapled booklets, leaving a consistent 0.25" margin around each page will leave sufficient room for the binding and gutter.

Hundreds of pages! The exact number will depend on the book binding you select and your paper type, but our automated price calculator will let you know if your page count is getting too thick.

In most cases, we do not automatically send a digital proof, so please request this in the notes if desired. We will send a link to your proof on our website, which displays it as it will layout -- with the pages on the left and right and binding in the middle -- so you can make sure everything looks correct with the sequencing and left-to-right orientation.

But there are some cases in which we must send a proof and receive approval before we can print:

• Files which are not JPG, PNG or PDF
• Any time you request file edits
• If we happen to notice something that doesn't look right

Yes! Simply click Bulk Mailing on the order form and choose "Mail in Padded Envelopes." Upload your mailing list with your print files at checkout. We will print and spiral bind each book, insert them individually in protective envelopes and mail them typically in 3-5 business days. The exact USPS service used will depend on each book's weight. Please note that this service may not include tracking information.