Self-Publishing Your Book?

When you say self-publishing, the author is responsible for all the aspects of publishing his or her book.  The author takes over the editing, printing, publicity and distribution of his or her book, not any publishing company.  Because of this system, the author gets to claim all the sales of the book.  

If you think that self-publishing your book is something that you are capable of doing and suits you, then there are some things that you would have to consider.  For example, you would have to think about the competition.  How many people have written the same topic?  Aside from that, you would also have to consider the number of copies you intend to publish.  

If you are planning to have your book self-published, the first thing that you should do is ensure that you are prepared for the task ahead of you.  You need to be mentally prepared to tackle all aspects of publishing.  

There are many things that you should pay attention to, like the type of cover that your book will have.  You would also have to think about the design of the book cover, the flow of pages, every aspect that would result into the creation of a top quality significant.  The first thing that a book buyer would notice when looking for books, will be the cover and of course the title.  A good title will serve as a magnet for book buyers.

If you are aiming to have your book published through a website, you would have to make sure that the word processing program you will be using is something reliable.  The book builder programs and services you would also be using should also be reliable.  

What are the other things that need to be done to make sure that the self-publishing of your book makes a smooth transition?

• The number of copies would direct you to what kind of publishers you would need.  For example,  if you are want to have about 25 to 500 copies, then print-on demand publishers would be suitable.  

• When looking for publishers that would run your book, look for those publishers that could handle your layout, printing and production demands.  You can start shopping and asking for samples of the books that they have published before.  Ask them questions about printing.  There are some printers or publishers that cannot handle a specific lay-out or have limitations.  So make sure that the publisher you choose could handle your design and layout.

• Design and book format can help your book stand-out.  If it will be your fist time to self-publish a book, you can look for a mentor that could help you with it.  Some self-published authors would get a professional book designer to make the design and assist in layout.

• As a self-published author, you will be shouldering the expenses.  Make sure that you are familiar with the different costs and expenses.  You would have to be familiar with printing costs which depends on the copies and services.  So when shopping around for publishers, do not forget to ask about the printing cost.  Aside from printing costs, you would also have to consider the photography, copy editing, requesting for the International Standard Book Number which would make your book identifiable.  

• Distribution is another thing that you should be prepared for.  If you go for traditional publishing, the publishers would cover the cost, marketing and distribution of the book.  But since this is self-publishing, you would need to identify how to distribute and who will receive your books.  Some bookstores would only take some copies and see if they would sell, if not then you would have to get the books back.  You can also explore online sales.

• Marketing is important in any kind of book selling.  Aside from publishing, you would also have to carry the marketing and promotion of your book.  You can hire a publicist to do it for you or you can do it yourself.

With all these troubles, what can self-publishing give you?  On traditional publishing, an author would get about 8% of royalties, while on self-publishing you can get about 50 % of the returns.  Aside from that, you get to control the different aspects of publishing and distribution.