Interesting Facts
The publishing industry has changed drastically in the past 20 years. The only option to publish a book used to be via a Traditional Publisher. Then Amazon changed the game forever by launching their book publishing service, Create Space in 2005 which was their new Print On Demand service for Self Publishing Authors. Create Space has now become Kindle Direct Publishing and is the biggest self publishing platform for print and ebooks in the world.
Amazon started the Self Publishing Revolution and it saw a huge influx of new writers publishing their work onto the platform as Traditional Publishing methods had become increasingly difficult to acquire. The self publishing landscape has also changed dramatically since it became first popular and has weathered its initial bad reputation of self-published books being low quality, to now being a well respected and lucrative publishing option.
What is Self Publishing?
It is now even easier to publish a book and the best way to do this (for many reasons) is to SELF PUBLISH. Self Publishing is the act of independently publishing your book on a platform like Amazon without the need of a Traditional Publisher.
Having worked for all the BIG 5 Publishers I can honestly say that unless you already have a HUGE, STRONG and GROWING following and are already at Authority or Celebrity Status, your best chance of success is to Self Publish. What’s even better is that Celebrities and Known Authors are choosing to Self Publish too as not only is it the simplest and fastest way to market but it is also the most lucrative and accessible and the only option that sees you keeping full creative AND FINANCIAL control over your work.
Self Publishing
HOW IS IT DONE?
- Write a book
- Decide what platform you will use
- Get you book edited, designed and formatted
- Upload your manuscript, jacket and book data
- Hit Publish
These really are the simplest steps to get your book published. And the FASTEST.
How to Self Publish a Book
There is a lot of information out there on the best practices for self publishing and how to do it. The information can be very conflicting and confusing and cause any writer wanting to write and publish a book to feel overwhelmed and stressed out. But it doesn’t need to be that way. With the correct advice and a clear step by step plan to success every writer can achieve their Publishing Goals.
I have created a Step by Step Blueprint on how to Self Publish your book so you can get started right away and know what you need to do and how to get your book published. Below is the overview and brief detail of the process which you can follow, but if you want the complete step by step blueprint then be sure to grab a copy of the 3P's GUIDE to Publishing
Enjoy!
The Steps
​
​
Summary
Follow these steps in order and you will have a professionally produced book, published for success. Below I have laid out the details of each step.
The Steps in Detail
Decide WHY you want to publish a book.
​There are many reason for publishing a book but you need to be clear on what yours are. If you know your WHY you will be able to effortlessly write and promote your book with success.
Decide the end GOAL for your book.
If you know the end goal or milestones for your book you will be able to market your book more efficiently. There are lots of ways to promote and market your book so if you know what you want to get out of publishing your book you will be laser focused in all your marketing efforts.
Write your book.
Start with your idea for a book and then break it down into chapters or scenes. It is always best practice to write a synopsis and an outline for your book before you start to write. But the main thing you need to do is WRITE. Don't try to make it perfect on the first draft. The first draft is meant to be messy. Don't get hung up on making everything perfect as you go. Just get the words onto paper and then you can refine later.
Decide on your book TITLE.
The title of your book is very important. There are a few things to consider when creating a title for your book but the main ones are - Does it clearly say what the book is about and can the title be read from 10 feet away.
Edit your book.
The Editing stage of your book is the most time consuming part of your book journey. It can also be the most expensive part of publishing your book. It is important to get this stage right as you don't want to spend all that time writing your book and getting people to buy only for them to put it down after the first few pages because the readability is poor. Spend your time wisely here as it will pay off in the end.
Write your book DESCRIPTION.
Your book description will serve you well if written properly as you will use this to inform the basis of your marketing message. Your book description will be used for your Amazon book sales page and it will be an integral part of your books media pack. It also plays a huge part in your SEARCHABILITY by the use of Keywords.
LAYOUT your book.
When laying out and formatting your book you need to consider a few things - 1. What is the recommend trim size for your book. 2. Does your book have front and back matter pages. 3. Is your chosen font and page layout clear and professional and 4. Do all your chapters start on a new page and so on. You will also need to ensure your margins and page numbers are correct for printing.
DESIGN your book jacket.
PEOPLE DO JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER. The book cover is the most vital part of your book. Get this wrong and you will not have a succesful book. Get this right and you could have a best seller.
Open up a KDP Account.
This is easy to do and is free. KDP is where you will upload and publish your book onto Amazon. You can create an account with an existing Amazon account but to get paid you will need to fill in your tax information and bank details.
UPLOAD your book.
You now need to turn your fully edited and formated manuscript into a PRINT PDF to upload onto Amazon to publish. You will also need a PRINT PDF of you jacket (Front, back and spine design).
PRICE your book.
Do you know how much you should charge for your book? Take a look at other books in your genre and see what they are charging. Amazon will also give you a pricing guide once your manuscript is uploaded.
PROOF your book.
Once you have uploaded your book onto KDP it is time to order a physical proof copy. I always advice to get a physical proof copy of your book before you hit publish. It is a very different experience seeing your book for the first time in print form rather than seeing it on a screen. You will notice more errors and things you want to change once it is in print form. Allow at least 4 weeks to go through the proofing process.
Get early REVIEWS.
When you are happy with the look of your book send early reading copies out to reviewers and key influencers. Early reviews are a good way to maximise your marketing when you do publish.
Plan out your book MARKETING strategy.
A Book Sell In cycle is usually around 12 months and most retailers decide what books they are going to sell 6 months in advance of it being published so it is a good idea to do some forward planning. Also there are key selling periods of the year so you want to make sure you are prepared to hit all the key selling times.
PUBLISH & LAUNCH your book.
You now have a professionally produce and designed book, with some early reviews to post about and a fully formed marketing plan for the next 12 months. It is now time to HIT PUBLISH. Congratulations!!