Our Marketplace acts like a directory. Instead of customers purchasing books, stationery, and other paper products on our website, they click "Learn More" and go to YOUR preferred site. Here is an example of a product in our Marketplace. The great part is that your product will have a beautiful sales page that looks like it is part of a shop, except the customer gets referred to you!

No. We list your products with a link back to YOUR preferred site, such as Amazon, Etsy, or your own website. You must have a way of fulfilling orders and processing the sale off of our site.

When you are accepted into our Marketplace, you also get basic access to our community! This is a private group held on a platform called Heartbeat. It consists of independent authors as well as vendors accepted into our Marketplace. You'll get access to a few channels like Introductions, Monthly Wins, Promote Yourself, and Collaboration.

Upon acceptance, you'll be given a digital badge (jpg / png) you can use on your website and in online marketing to highlight your acceptance into our highly selective and curated Marketplace. Using it is optional. But we do ask that each vendor share about the Marketplace on social media and in their email newsletter (or another way if you don't use those marketing strategies) at least once per year. This benefits everyone! As we grow the Marketplace, we continue to grow and amplify our reach.

After joining, there is an option to purchase another 5 product listings for $84/year, giving you 10 listings total. That is currently our listing max. We may open up more options in the future, but we want to start with your top products and best sellers.

We accept books of all genres and for all ages, so long as they were self-published. This includes ebooks, digital pdfs, and printed books.

The following are examples, but certainly not an exhaustive list, of the types of books we accept:

• Fiction

• Nonfiction

• Prayer resources

• Journals, notebooks, workbooks, etc. 

• Handmade books

• Coloring books

• Faith formation resources

• Planners & organizers

• Children's books

• Poetry

Yes! We include stationery items (greeting cards, prayer cards, calendars, blank journals, etc.); other paper products (like tissue paper and wrapping paper); and even things like pencil pouches and washi tape. You can view our full list at the top of this webpage. If you think we missed an item, feel free to apply anyways. You just might convince us!

Self-Published: You are the author and/or illustrator of the book and you have not licensed the rights to a traditional publisher. You have not worked with a publisher (traditional, hybrid, large or small press) to get your book to market. Print-on-demand platforms, like Amazon, are perfectly fine. It's also fine to have hired designers, editors, proofreaders, etc. to help you publish your book. The key is you. It's YOUR book you've seen through from start to finish!

Artisan: You are the artist or creator of the product. It does not need to be handmade, but it does need to have been designed or invented in some way by you. For example, reselling Holy Cards you purchased online is not allowed. But if you create your own cards and send them out to be printed, that would be allowed. 

We do not accept products:

- By vendors under 18 years old
- By traditional publishers, hybrid, or small presses
- That have been created with AI (artificial intelligence). Minor AI assistance is okay
- That have copyright or permissions issues
- That don't have enough supporting evidence of a product's Catholic marketability / alignment with Church teaching
- That have apparent design or editing flaws based on photos submitted
- That don't have a functioning checkout link to capture sales
- That are outside our scope of defined books, stationery, and paper products
- That don't meet our curated design aesthetic

1. First and foremost, products must be in line with Catholic Church teaching. This doesn't mean they have to be outwardly Catholic, just nothing against Church teaching. For books especially, we look at endorsements and reviews. Anything dealing strongly with faith, morals, and theology will need to have more sources, likely including an Imprimatur or formal review process like the Catholic Writers' Guild Seal of Approval.

2. We believe beauty elevates the faith and that strong design can make or break even the best-written book or coolest product idea.  For this reason, we especially look at product design. For books in particular, thoughtful typography, striking covers, and beautiful interior layouts and illustrations appeal most to us.

3. Product photography is very important! We look for high quality photos with good lighting and composition. For books, often a jpg of your book's cover alone works nicely. Here is an example.

4. We also look for innovation and uniqueness. We love discovering products that don't exist elsewhere.

The rate is the same, whether you have 1 or 5 products accepted. The onboarding process is about the same amount of time for us, which is why the rate stays the same. We've kept it very affordable and --remember -- you can include all sorts of products, like bookmarks, prayer cards, and more!

Absolutely not. This is a non-exclusive agreement, and we are not the publisher of your book. You maintain the rights to your product(s) and are free to sell wherever you choose. This is simply a directory where you can list your products for others to see.

Everyone is welcome to apply, but we need to make sure your product would be marketable to a Catholic audience and not include anything that is not in alignment with Catholic teaching. For books especially, this likely requires obtaining credible Catholic reviews and endorsements.

Yes! We can include vendors from all around the world.

Our Terms and Conditions outline everything about our Marketplace! This is way more than just legal jargon. It goes in depth into how the Marketplace works.

If you have further questions after reviewing our FAQs and Terms and Conditions, please send us an email at marketplace@thyolivetree.com.

We are unable to accept products unless they are submitted properly through our online form. We cannot provide feedback on specific reasons a product was not accepted.