When it comes to finding new coloring books, most of us start looking in our local craft shop. We choose favorites like Johanna Basford or Millie Marotta, or find a compilation book of stock photos from a large coloring book publisher. But when it comes to supporting independent artists, it gets a little trickier to find good coloring books.
Many independent artists use self-publishing tools (like Createspace – owned by Amazon) to produce their books. Tools like this are a great way for independent artists to make beautiful coloring books for you – meaning the variety of coloring books available on Amazon is huge!
But this comes with a downside.
- books are sold for higher amounts than big competitors, but the artist only receives a small payment per book.
- customers purchase through Amazon, meaning the artist doesn’t have an opportunity to connect with them on a personal level.
- they can’t cater to customers who want better quality books (like spiral-bound coloring books or better paper quality).
- if the artist isn’t based in the U.S.A. (🙋), it’s expensive to even get a copy of their own book!
So what’s the alternative?
Buying printables! Let’s take a look at some of the benefits of buying your next coloring book as a printable – direct from the artist – instead of shopping on Amazon or in your local shop.
Here are 10 Reasons to buy Printable Coloring Books (instead of Printed Coloring Books):
1. Printable coloring books take up less space!
You’ll need all that desk space for your mega pencil collection, so why not keep your coloring books on your computer?
2. You can print them as many times as you like.
You no longer have to buy multiple copies of a book to experiment with different color choices, and you don’t have to stress if you accidentally spill your coffee on your coloring page – just print another one!
3. You can print them on any kind of paper.
You can take control of your paper quality and print on the PERFECT card stock. Or get creative and print them on watercolor paper!
4. You can create a beautiful, organized coloring catalog.
Love to stay organised? You can sort your digital coloring books into beautifully color-coded categories, add tags to make them searchable, set them up in your phone photo gallery or Pinterest board for a quick catalog reference.
(Quick note: Keep your Pinterest boards secret – otherwise other people can print the pages for free, and that’s a big no-no!)
5. You can build your own coloring book with your favorite pages.
Skip the pages that make you cringe and just print your favorites, then get them bound or put them in a folder – you could even get a custom coloring page made as a cover!
6. No more waiting for new books to arrive.
Printable coloring books can be downloaded instantly when you purchase them. No more waiting weeks for postage!
7. No paying for postage.
While we are on the topic of postage… you won’t have to pay for that either! You can spend that extra money on MORE coloring pages!
8. More money for the artist, and more money in your pocket.
Once you take out all the printing and postage costs, printable coloring books almost always work out cheaper than their printed versions. Not only that, but the artist doesn’t have to pay for manufacturing and distribution, so instead of getting a measly $2 royalty from your purchase, they’ll benefit from most of what you’ve spent. Win-win! And the artist will love you 🙂
9. No double-sided coloring books.
Aren’t they frustrating? You finally finish your beautiful artwork and decide to frame it… but you don’t want to lose the picture on the other side. So you either forfeit half the book or buy two copies… Not a problem when you are printing them yourself!
10. You can print them big or small!
Do you want to color a massive page to frame on your wall? No problems – just print it bigger or take the file into a print shop. Do you want to make a pretty birthday card for a friend using your artwork? Just print it smaller. You have so much more flexibility when you have the digital file. Here’s a look at one of my giant coloring posters I made! (Read the tutorial to see how to make your own coloring poster)
So let me put out the challenge… if you’ve never tried a printable coloring book or coloring page, start by grabbing some of the free coloring pages in my store, and see if you like them… a good place to start without spending a cent!
And if you’re converted, make sure to check out my full range of printables – from coloring books and single coloring pages to fun holiday crafts and coloring planners.
There’s a lot to love about printables. But if you’re still someone who loves to wait for the mail and hold a book in your hands, please stop by my Amazon store where you can get a printed book mailed to your door 🙂
What do you think? Which side are you on? Please tell me in the comments!
I like having the option of both, but most of the time all I have are amazon gift cards, which I can’t use on the artists digital downloads.
I love the concept of digital books, there’s just so much more flexibility with them!
I love digital books. More options!
Ok, I’ll give you #8. However, it takes only two days to get the book, I have Prime (no postage), I always scan the page from the book to the file, so I have everything else you mentioned. Actually, I haven’t bought a book since last year, so… Problem with either, is I only want a couple of pages and rest goes to waste. Plus a lot of books are going black, so if I want to color those, I will get one…no ink waste.
Good points Randy! Postage depends heavily on where you are. I know for those in Australia, books from Amazon can take a few weeks and cost $10-15 for postage (even if it’s only a $4 book) so it’s a much bigger factor for international buyers. I agree on the black books – they probably wouldn’t be ideal to print at home!
I try to go digital as much as I can since most of the time I can’t get myself to color in the book because they are too pretty to color in…If that makes sense? I’ve bought over 100 books now. And yes I still scan and print some of the pages I want to color just because I dont want to ruin my book…Haha And of course when I scan a page it dont look as pretty as a digital copy and some really dont come out nice. I sometimes buy both because the books look pretty laying in my drawers…lol and buy digital to print myself (love that you get it right away…no waiting)
Hi Julie! I completely agree. I have a published version of all my books and I don’t want to color in them either! I always use my printable versions for coloring and keep my published books intact.
As for me, I MUCH prefer digital coloring books/pages! I love how I can print out just the pages I want to color, on whatever paper/cardstock I like, in the size I want, as many times as I want. I also love the fact that I can have hundreds of books (and do!), but they take up no space in my house at all. My coloring tools take up quite enough space as it is! Thank you SO much for selling digital books, as well as physical books!
Hi Cindy! Thanks for your comment. I agree on the space they save – and I find it easier to locate a picture I want without having to flip through all my books! I often print off a page twice so I can color it with my 2 year old – obviously his coloring is more like scribbling, but he enjoys coloring with mommy!
I like both. Sometimes I want to hold the physical book in my hands, sometimes it’s nice to color from a digital page, like yours. Printed pages are easier to store in a file. And if it doesn’t turn out how you wanted, you can just print another one and try again! Which you can’t do with a physical book.
Very true! I think I like both a bit too- I agree that it’s nice to hold a book in your hands, especially if you are giving it to someone else as a gift.
I like to have both but digital is good sometimes I don’t like all the pictures in the coloring book so it’s cheaper if I can just pay for a couple pages instead of buying the whole book and not color all the pages
I can’t stand digital colouring books. I like how neat and pretty printed books are. And everything is together. Digital books inevitably end up as either a stack of loose papers or spiral (or worse!) ring-bound. Making them look like a report one would print out on the office printer for some boring meeting. My favourite colouring books are hardcover, like those by Hanna Karlzon and Maria Trolle, not because they have the prettiest pictures in them, but because they are excellent quality in terms of paper and binding. And they look like something I want on my bookshelf or on my coffee table. I buy soft cover (paperback) colouring books as well (as long as the printing and paper quality is good enough), because so few books are published in hardcover, but I would be willing to pay more for that hardcover. The only benefits I can see to digital colouring books is that they are usually cheaper and one can print out more than one copy if one mess up a picture, but I will never like the idea of a stack of ugly ring-bound colouring books cluttering up my shelf space, and therefore I do not buy them.
Good point – Hardcover books would make great coffee table books… I can just imagine visitors flipping through them and looking at your beautiful artwork!
I don’t think I’d be displaying my printed coloring books on a shelf or coffee table either – I’d store them online and just print the pages I wanted when I was ready to color them. It’s more of a practical thing rather than a pretty thing 🙂
I love, mean love, the digital books. I agree much easier to store, much easier to run off favorites and so easy to keep on the computer. I have printed several of your free pages and I also have a few of your books. Just love the digital books. For me, it makes it easier because I sit in my recliner in front of the television and having digital books makes it easy to relax.
Yes I have tried both and like both for different reasons. I dont mind printing out my own but I also enjoy them being a book.
I buy colouring books newsagents or from book shops and don’t download cause I forget or get busy – with a printed book its there with me everywhere I go. a single piece would get crumpled and end up in the bin. I share my book with my granddaughter .I guess I am old school I don’t buy much on line at all still a physical girl in a digital world
I like digital. But with no printer ink and no cash for library(paycheck goes in debit card) its hard to get them printed.
I have a ton if pages I’ve saved and not printed.
Just too much trouble.
I prefer printable. Less space and I don’t have to go hunting for pages that I want to reprint. The ability to print up as many as I like (my clients use them in my office to help with anxiety), NO bleed through with pens or markers. And I don’t have to have “office space” just for the coloring books! (plus…and this is the BIGGEST plus…I don’t have to worry about photocopying pages and having to hold my left foot in the air while my tongue sticks out to the right while holding the page “JUST RIGHT” in order to print it off in the size I need. And I only purchase from artists who do not mind photocopying pages for clients. A: the credit for the artwork should appear on EVERY single page so the artist always gets credit for it. And B: I work with Mental Health and Addictions clients, I can’t afford to buy new books all the time–Which is my reasoning for buying digital. Plus I only like to purchase from those willing to share what they do, how they do it and willing to help others do this. To me, that’s definitely worth purchasing from artists like YOU who share and go above and beyond.
Thanks for your input on this! So many good points here. Printables are definitely the way to go if you’re using coloring with clients.
I love this discussion! It always gets me thinking because as a book artist and binder, physical books will always have a place in my heart and my home! However when it comes to coloring its a different story for me anyway. I’ve been downloading and printing free mandala and even kid’s coloring pages for many years so that I can color them. In fact I was doing it for years before the Adult Coloring Craze hit and of course I’ve loved every single moment of the craze.
I prefer to color with Sharpie and Le Plume and even Sakura Koi markers which all of course will bleed through any “average” coloring book page. So I’ve always scanned and printed even my coloring book pages onto card stock for a better coloring experience. As with other patterns and artsy craftsy stuff, I now own enough coloring pages that I would need to live to 150 years old and color a new page every day to come near to completing them all. I love the huge variety of subjects to color and enjoy being able to chat and “play” with the artists as well. Being able to respond and be heard by the artist helps take the coloring hobby to a whole new level.
Thank you Sarah for being one of the approachable and genuine artists that make this hobby so fun. It really adds to the whole experience for many of us.Thanks again!
Thanks Michelle for the kind words!
I think it’s hard to give up the feel of having a physical book in your hands… yet I’ve never actually colored in my books! I always end up coloring printables.
And the feelings are mutual! The positive experience of connecting with colorists is just as good for artists. It brings another level to your art when you see how others transform it with color. And it’s wonderful to see it having such a positive impact for so many people – it’s why I love what I do!
I love the ability to make these any size i want.
I scale the drawing to 4.25×5.5 and print two to a page for cards or print four to a page for some quick coloring projects.
Only drawback I have found is that I cannot useOMS on inkjet printed pictures and I cannot afford a laser printer. Being mostly housebound as well I have yet to find a printshop in the uk that I can send a book or page digital file to by email and revive a printed page/book in the post.
That said I rarely colour in any of my books and colour a lot in Pigment on my iPadPro with my Apple Pencil. I do sometimes wish I could use some of my Polychromos set though, having bought them…
I like the idea iof both, sometimes artists will male a picture and it will only be available as a printable… I love books more, but enjoy the printable too..
I like having the digital option so i can print on the paper i want to use, otherwise i take my books to Office Depot and have the spine cut off so i can then copy or scan them as needed for all the reasons mentioned already. Obviously, I do not do that with hardback books.
What websites sell these digital books?
Usually artists will sell e-books on their own websites. You can also find some on Etsy or Gumroad. And don’t forget to check out my range right here 😉
I love digital coloring books best. That being said I will buy a print book and then scan it for later so I can make more than one copy. I also have a lot of single printable pages that I have downloaded the past several years. When I have completed a picture I will scan it into my computer and then either save it to hang on the wall or pitch it if I am not going to hang it.
At first I drew my own designs for coloring, then I discovered adult coloring books and used artist markers plus other different markers. I’ve tried digital and if my printer is working ok but I used the wrong paper. It sounds like your digital would work for me as I will be sure to use good paper.
I don’t have much time to color but I do when I’m able. I have Parkinson’s and this is wonderful therapy.