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Print-on-Demand enables a single copy of a book to be printed! Large commercial digital printers are very expensive but now technology has developed to the point that small scale equipment is available.
CLC Kenya has a Print-on-Demand facility which enables us to respond quickly to local demands. This has made it possible for Kenyan authors to have their books published and printed in a way that would have been unthinkable previously.
All that is required is a digital copy of the book and our Print-on-Demand department can produce the book for you.
Technology has revolutionised the way books can now be printed. Large off-set printers meant that thousands of copies of a book had to be printed to be economically viable. Large commercial digital printers are expensive to run but now technology has developed to the point that small scale equipment is available.
Print-on-Demand (POD) enables a single copy of a book to be printed! POD technology is what we commonly call digital printing. It doesn’t use plates the way offset does but instead uses options such as toner (like in laser printers) or larger printers that do use liquid ink.
POD shines when lower quantities are needed. It offers an alternative way to bypass the time, investment, and risk associated with managing inventory, letting you go from creating to selling custom products at a fraction of the cost.
CLC Kenya has a POD facility which enables us to respond quickly to local demands. This has made it possible for Kenyan authors to have their books published and printed in a way that would have been unthinkable previously. All that is required is a digital copy of the book and our POD facility can produce the book for you in a couple of days.
What are the advantages of Print-on-Demand for an author?
Low capital investment in printing quality books
Quick production time
Competitive pricing
Ability to print as many (or few) copies as you need
Re-print as and when required
Warehousing cost savings
Inexpensive especially for black and white text-only books.
Variable data capabilities and file upgrades as and when needed.
With continued improvement in technology, quality is becoming better and acceptable for more uses.
Offset printing technology uses plates, usually made from aluminium, which are used to transfer an image onto a rubber “blanket”, and then rolling that image onto a sheet of paper. It’s called offset because the ink is not transferred directly onto the paper.
Because offset presses run so efficiently once they are set up, offset printing is the best choice when larger quantities are needed, and provides accurate colour reproduction, and crisp, clean professional looking printing.
What are the advantages of offset printing for an author?
Large quantities can be printed cost-effectively.
The more you print, the cheaper the price per piece (i.e better economies of scale).
A large variety of paper types with custom finishes is available.
Special custom inks such as metallic and pantone colours are available.
Highest possible printing quality, with greater detail and colour fidelity.
Offset and digital options are both useful printing methods. Each has particular benefits depending on your project’s requirements.
When you need larger runs of a project, into thousands, or are using a specific, brand-centric pantone colour, offset printing is the best way to go. You can also use a much wider variety of custom papers and specialty inks, such as metallic or fluorescent inks in the offset process.
If a small run of 2-200 or 300 is needed then POD is your solution. The best part is that as an author, your needs can be met with either of these choices, and the high-level of quality means you get a printed product that can be placed in the hands of your waiting readers!
Paper Type – Cover Stock
Paper Thickness – 250gsm (grams per square metre)
Paper Type – Copy paper white
Paper Thickness – 80gsm or 70gsm (grams per square metre)
Self Cover – no lamination (especially for school books where students have to write their names on the cover)
Glossy – produces a shiny, glass-like appearance that enhances the color and vibrancy of the ink on a page.
Matte – produces a very low gloss-coated elegant and sophisticated finish that has a “velvety” texture that softens the contrast of darker colors so that they don’t stand out quite as much.
Perfect Binding – The pages and cover are glued together at the spine with a strong yet flexible hot melt glue.
Saddle Stitch Binding – Folded sheets are gathered together and folded on at the middle and then stapled through the fold line with wire staples.
Wire-O Binding – Wire-O uses a looped metal wire. Bound books are used for formal, organized, and professional presentations of information. Pages can be turned 360 degrees around on themselves without damaging the spine. IThis binding is great for fine art photography, calendars, business reports, documents, cookbooks, and directories.
Spiral Binding – This binding is used for manuals, workbooks, journals, guides, handbooks, and reports that need to be used as daily reference. The plastic coil is durable and allows for the pages to be turned 360 degrees around on themselves without damaging the edges of the paper or strength of the binding. This makes it easy to read or write in the book with just one facing page showing, which conserves space.
We facilitate a go-between with your recipient in Africa.
The inaugural gala had 74 submissions from Kenya and Uganda. We are working for a wider reach in 2022 Award.
Yes, to ensure maximum impact to African communities.
Yes. By empowering pastors and church leaders, we impact the communities.
Making Your Book a Reality
Needing a service to print-ready your book?
When it comes to books, an editor is seen as a gatekeeper between the author and the audience. An editor has to take a dual sided point of view in order to keep both parties happy. Authors know their stories inside and out, and have had a strong personal relationship with their manuscript for months or sometimes years.
Without an editor, you won’t necessarily see those things are there, or you won’t think they need fixing. The editor is there to bring out the best in your work. Writers can’t help but fall in love with their own writing. … An editor will point out areas of text that could be rewritten to improve flow and cohesion.
Professional and catchy book cover and layout design instantly grabs the attention of your target audience and makes them take a second look. A well-designed book cover and layout tells the readers that the author is serious about the work and is a thorough professional.
ISBN helps your readers identify and order the exact book they want to purchase.
Libraries, bookstores, online retailers, distributors, and wholesalers depend on this unique identifier to track purchases and sales, and it will be necessary to apply for an ISBN if you intend to sell to them.
Copyright law has a dual role. It provides exclusive rights to authors in order to protect their work for a limited period of time but it was also established to promote creativity and learning.
It makes easier for authors to make money selling their books, by preventing bookstores and other sellers from buying one copy of a book, making copies of the book, and then selling the copies to their customers.
A writing mentorship class helps a writer by giving honest feedback. This constructive critique can improve your writing process and teach you new ways to approach your stories.
This includes comprehensive editing, proofreading, cover design, inside text layout, acquiring ISBN and facilitating copyrighting.
For self published authors, book marketing and distribution can pose a challenge. Empower yourself with this course.
Turn your book into a program. Get consultation, development of curriculum, hosting and mentorship.
African Christian Authors Book Award program recognizes and promotes quality in Christian authorship in East Africa. Presented annually to Christian authors, the Award program celebrates the “best of the year” in 10 categories. Five finalists are chosen in each category unless there is a tie. The Winner in each category is announced and awarded at African Christian Authors Gala
Print-on-Demand has the potential to revolutionize the availability of overseas books in Africa. Normally, material imported from America, Europe, Asia and other countries can take weeks or months to arrive in Kenya. POD technology makes those same books available in a matter of hours and has been beneficial to publishers abroad to reach African market.
Publishing and printing are developing rapidly. Do you want to be part of this change?
CLC Kenya overseas partnerships include:
1. Partnerships with international publishing firms with content relevant for the East Africa community.
2. Partnership with both local and international missionary / missions organizations to print and distribute materials to the recipients in East Africa.
3. Partnership with international missionary / missions organizations to offer support for book-program conferences and seminars held in East Africa.
4. Partnership with churches overseas to spread the Word of God through channels relevant to the specific church in Kenya.
Do you have books or materials you need used in East AFrica for your conference or seminar? We can print these for you from Kenya. We print Christian books, ministry reports, training manuals, notebooks, journals, events programs and all other materials that are not in conflict with the Christian faith.
Benefits of POD in Kenya versus Shipping:
Do you have content or training manuals that are targeted to the East Africa market? We facilitate self-publishing by offering the following support services including Editing, Cover Design and Layout, ISBN, Copyright, Printing and Delivery to your recipient.
Do you have material you would want to share with a target group in the body of Christ in East Africa? We facilitate the distribution of your resources to your network or offer our networks of defined target groups.
Our reach goes beyond Kenya to Tanzania, Uganda, Sudan, Swaziland, Botswana,
Burundi, Ethiopia, Congo and other African countries.
Here’s the amazing team of missioners, trainers and volunteers who keep our programs going!