AVAILABILITY - When your book is published through POD, it becomes available on various databases.  Because of outdated publishing systems and conventions, availability depends on the number of books in the warehouses and POD books often "seem" to be unavailable even though they're not. This is because there are usually very few (often only one) book in stock and booksellers would have to backorder.

BACKORDER - Once upon a time, before digital printing, books were only published in long runs (10,000, 20,000, 100,000 etc.) When stock on a book would run out, the bookseller could "backorder" the book. Then, if the publisher perceived that there was enough demand to justify another run, they would print more books.  In POD, backordering is a leftover from another time that gums up the works and makes it difficult for POD books to be sold. (See availability.)

CIP NUMBER - The Library of Congress offers more than one type of number. Generally, POD publishers provide PCNs, but some are also able to provide CIPs (Cataloging in Publication). These numbers are far superior in that the information about books issued CIPS is shared with all libraries in the system.

COPYEDITING - As opposed to substantive editing, copy editing is the same as proofreading. Copyeditors look for small, easily correctible errors in punctuation, capitalization, spelling, and other minor issues.

EXCLUSIVE VS NON-EXCLUSIVE CONTRACTS - Most POD publishers offer a non-exclusive contract that allows you to take your book to another publisher if you want.  So if you want to publish the POD through one company and the ebook somewhere else, you can. If the contract is exclusive, then you can't do that. Exclusive contracts are used by traditional publishers because they're paying the costs of publication.

POD - Print on Demand. This is digital printing in which a copy of two file--the cover and the text--are set up in a POD printer's computer system ready to be pulled up and printed "on demand."

PROOFREADING - As opposed to substantive editing, proofreading is the same as copy editing. Proofreaders look for small, easily correctible errors in punctuation, capitalization, spelling, and other minor issues.

RETURNABILITY - Most books are returnable through Ingram. This means they go back to the publisher if the bookseller cannot sell them. Many POD publishers are now offering a program that makes POD books returnable.  If returnability is through Ingram, books with this feature can be more competitive.

SUBSTANTIVE EDITING - Also called a full edit by some, this type of editing as the name indicates, fixes errors in structure, awkwardness, repetitiveness and other mistakes that require sentences to be changed around or reorganized.