Hello writers,
I’ve been self-publishing books since 2020. I’m also a bit of an overthinker, and one thing is certain with self-publishing is that there are many decisions to make at every step of the way.
Self-publishing is a great way to take control of your writing career. You will retain the rights to your own work and there are no gatekeepers. You can write the book that you want to write.
But it can be difficult to find out what to actually do. What is the right way or the best way to self-publish? Many people want to sell you their books or courses, which can be expensive and aren’t always worth it.
Note: There are some affiliate links in the following list.
Resources
The Creative Penn podcast is worth a listen. Joanna Penn talks about self-publishing and the industry as a whole.
Self Pub Boot Camp has heaps of resources for self-publishing.
Download the free Bookbaby guides to publishing and marketing your book.
The Business of being a Writer by Jane Friedman is a no-nonsense look at the realities of turning writing into a money-making exercise. (Not free!)
Publishing
Kindle Unlimited or Wide?
First, you’ll need to decide if you want your work to be in Kindle Unlimited (KU). This is a service whereby readers can pay a subscription fee to read as much as they like. You will get paid a certain amount per pages read (KENP). Some authors do really well in Kindle Unlimited. If your book is in this service, it cannot be offered anywhere else, so it is exclusive to Amazon. Sometimes, authors will put their books in KU for 3 or 6 months, then switch to wide retailers.
Aggregator or Direct?
Wide retailers are all the other ebook retailers, ie Kobo, Apple, Scribd, Nook etc. You can choose to publish direct with a retailer or have an aggregator do it for you.
If you publish your books direct, you need to sign up to each platform and add the books. By doing this, you get access to special promotions with the retailer. One downside is that when you wish to discount your books, you will need to go into each one separately to change the price.
An aggregator, such as Draft2Digital, works to distribute your ebooks to many channels. You can also use their service to convert your manuscript to Ebook formats.
Reviews
Indie publishers and authors who self-publish are always crying out for reviews. I hear something magical happens when your book gets to fifty reviews! But how to get reviews before I launch my book, I hear you ask?
Build your mailing list (the number of people signed up to receive your emails) by offering a reader magnet. I use Mailchimp, which is free for up to 2000 subscribers. Your mailing list already enjoy your work, so ask them to review.
Add a link in the back of your previous book, so that readers can click straight through and get the next one free.
You can add your book to Booksprout or Booksirens (not free!)
Ask in a Facebook group of readers of your genre.
Use a service like Storyorigin or Bookfunnel to create a review copy landing page, then ask for swaps with other authors in a similar genre.