All About Self-Publishing
Self-publishing is the publication of media by its authors without the presence of a traditional publisher. The term self-publishing generally refers to written media, such as books and magazines — either as an eBook or as physical copies employing POD (print on demand) technology.
Over the past 20 years, the market for self-publishing has changed, and new self-publishing technologies are providing increased alternatives to traditional publishing or the “professionally published book.” Most self-published books only sell very limited copies, but those selling large volumes are newsworthy because they are rare. The quality of self-published books varies considerably because there are no barriers to self-publishing and no quality controls except what the author self imposes. Self-publishing a book is becoming the first choice for indie authors who want to take control of the entire process of their book. Many are looking for information on the self-publishing process so they can become self-publishers.
Authors are choosing to go the self-publishing route because many traditional publishing houses are refusing to open a manuscript unless they are first contacted by an agent. Even when the traditional publisher opens the manuscript, it’s very unlikely that it ever gets released or sold in bookshops. What is the best way to get around this? Self-publishing.
What exactly is self-publishing?
Self-publishing is a simple act of independently publishing your book on a self-publishing platform, such as Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing, without an institution or traditional publishing house’s involvement. If you’re trying to publish your book and have no luck landing a traditional publisher, self-publishing could be the perfect solution. By researching self-publishing companies, you are making the decision to learn the skill of self-publishing the right way. This is an important decision to make in order to save endless wasted hours in the self-publishing process. If you would like to self-publish your own book yourself or choose an online self-publishing company to help you, we can provide you with information to get your book self-published.
A quick history of self-publishing
Self-publishing: The DIY approach we recommend
Anyone can access the same type of online retail self-publishing services that are similar to those used by traditional publishers. Those services include Kindle Direct P
ublishing (KDP) from Amazon or Draft2 Digital. When you self-publish, you are not obligated to pay before the sales of the books begin. By self-publishing, you retain control over the artistic and business decisions you make. Self-publishing means making decisions regarding a book’s layout and production value. You have total creative control over the writing process, your book cover, eBook cover, whether you have a print edition or an audiobook. These are just some of the benefits of becoming self-published writers.
A step-by-step guide to self-publish a book
Steps to self-publishing:
1. Write your manuscript.
Make sure that you don’t forget important plot points and characters! If this is your first time writing a book or novel, read through some of your favorite books for inspiration when it comes to creating well-developed plots and fleshed-out characters with unique personalities. Once finished, make sure to double-check everything in order to avoid any spelling errors or plot holes.
2. Find an editor who can review your content before publishing it.
2. Find an editor who can review your content before publishing it.An editor will not only look at grammar mistakes but also ensure that there are no plot inconsistencies throughout the story as well as provide feedback on character development so you know how readers might feel about each person represented in the book. Once that’s done you will either need to format your book or get a book formatting service. There are many freelance professionals who can help you with things ranging from cover design, editing, and book formatting. There are even freelancers, called ghostwriters, who can help you write your book. There are many things you can do to produce a quality book.
3. Find a self-publishing service.
There are many self-publishing services that will help you turn your manuscript into an actual book! You can choose to have paperback books, hardcover books, or eBooks made for readers who prefer digital copies of their novels. You can even choose to distribute your book as an audiobook. You have total control of your book’s retail price, and which online retailer or book retailers you use.
Once the final draft is complete, submit it to the self-publishing company and begin marketing and advertising your new novel! By promoting online as well as in-person (if possible), you will be able to spread the word about your brand-spankin’ new self-published book which should drive more interest from potential fans! Self-publishers can even get their own ISBN number and list themselves as the publisher!
4. Ways to Sell Your Book
When self-publishing you can sell a print book, such as paperback or hardback. Or you can choose to sell an eBook through self-publishing services like Amazon KDP, IngramSpark, and Smashwords.
As a self-published author, it will be your responsibility to market and sell your book. This is a huge step because even if you have written the best book in the world, no one will know unless it’s put in front of them. Here at Indie Author Resources, we will create a series of blog posts and tutorial videos to help you become a self-publishing marketing machine! We will cover creating an author website, getting your book in the Kindle Store, producing printed books, using a hybrid publisher, which online retailers to use, creating a business model, the book formatting process, which marketing services to use, getting your books in brick-and-mortar stores, and much more! We will also help you with brainstorming ideas, coming up with a book title, and writing descriptions and book blurbs that sell!
In closing, self-publishing a book is definitely not easy; there are many steps involved in self-publishing and it will be a lot of hard work. You have to have the perseverance to complete the necessary steps from writing, editing, formatting, self-publishing, and marketing your book before finally seeing physical copies (or eBooks) on store shelves. However, we hope that this blog post on self-publishing was able to help you understand some of what goes into self-publishing as well as how you could become a self-published author.
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