don’t care how many books you sell once you’ve paid to be a part of their promo. This mistake cost me $300.
Sure, anyone can put a book on Amazon. You can even save costs by doing the editing, formatting, and cover yourself. What now? Who’s going to buy your book? Most likely no one.
Some writers try some unethical practices to get their Amazon ranking higher. However, I’m not focusing on that, because my advice is for writers who are genuinely interested in selling a quality book/s.
To be a successful self-published writer, you have to do more than write. Even a well-written book will get buried in all the other books on Amazon, iTunes, Kobo, and B&N, unless you treat it as a business.
Look at my fun romance, Falling for Mr. Wrong. It had been professionally edited, formatted, and had a beautiful cover. Why weren’t readers snapping it up? It’s a good read, a quality romance. The great reviews I’ve received confirm that.
It’s not being snapped up because there are way too many great books on Amazon. It’s a massive site, and like the other online retailers, it’s not easy for readers to find and buy your book unless they are specifically searching for you.
There is no one place to find information on how to self-publish. You may get snippets of information, but it’s not easy, as each country has different procedures.
My advice for writers interested in self-publishing is:
1. Accept you need to outlay money if you want a quality book.
2. Your friends and family may not buy your book, nor leave a review for you.
3. There’s no quick rich scheme to self-publishing.
4. Successful self-published authors treat it as a business.
5. Self-publishing is hard.
6. Self-publishing is hard (yes, I did repeat it, because it is).
It’s not all doom and gloom—you can do well, but it takes time, money, and a lot of work. You need to be realistic about the effort required.
The keys to being a successfully self-published writer are:
1. You have a quality book.
2. Your book is professionally edited, formatted, and with a decent cover.
3. You have a good-sized subscriber list and email them one to two times a month.
4. You’re writing the next book.
5. You promote your books through paid and unpaid promotions.
6. You work collaboratively with other writers.
7. You are active on social media.
By December 2016, I will have seven books available in both print and e-book format. My sales rankings are good, I have excellent reviews on all my books, and I have a subscriber list in the thousands. All of this was achieved in less than eighteen months.
How did I do this? There is no simple answer, but the big thing I did was to seek advice and learn from experts.
Yes, there are very successful authors out there who generously share their advice… for a cost. As they should. They give hours of assistance in understanding the online retailers, advising how to promote your book, appreciating the complexities of the self-publishing landscape, and tips on promotions.
If you’re interested, check out Joanna Penn, Marie Force, Nick Stephenson, and Mark Dawson. There are plenty of others, but these are the writers who have not only helped, but also inspired my “overnight success” (which took ten years).
-Joanne Dannon
Now, that you’ve heard all of the terrible things that could happen when you don’t have the proper guidance, I want to guide you through the self-publishing process for under $100. I have some great suggestions, tips, and tricks that will have you feeling like you’ve left the library. I want to give you information you can use right away. I get overwhelmed when I read how-to books; when you’re just an average person trying to become an author, complicated tools and resources aren’t helpful to beginners.
I want you to have this book be your bookmark, Google, Bible, your ultimate workbook. So, now that you know a little bit more about my mission and why I wrote this book, let’s begin on your path to becoming a pretty darn good self-published author.
/ Legal Notes
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior consent of the author, and only brief quotes used in reviews. Please contact [email protected]
Although the author and publisher have made every effort to ensure that the information in this book was correct at present time, the author and publisher do not assume and hereby disclaim any liability to any party for any loss, damage, or disruption caused by errors or omissions, whether such errors or omissions result from negligence, accident, or any other cause.
It should be noted that there is no magic trick that will make you a New York Times best-seller.
Following the advice in this book could help you through the writing process. On the other hand, it may not, and you could find yourself back at square one. So, regardless of the claim I just made—and the claims I made on the cover, back cover, and throughout this book—I make no claims. Use my advice and methods at your own risk. Don’t blame me or the publisher for anything that does not get fixed trying to implement the advice in this book. If things work out well for you, please write a long 5-star review on Amazon about how much my advice and methods helped you. Now that we’ve cleared that up, let’s get on with How to Self-Publish for Under $100.
⁄/ Chapter 1: Find Your Purpose
Purpose:
The reason you are creating or completing something to exist.
By now, if you have picked up this book, you have an interest in writing. You either have something written already, or you’re still researching your genre. There are so many things you can write about, and there are so many books out in the world today. Self-publishing has become a very big and lucrative business.
When I first started writing it was my sixth grade teacher, Mrs. Delaney, who made writing an exciting part of school for me. I remember every day I looked forward to her English class. She made learning about haikus, similes, assonance, metaphors, and onomatopoeias a great experience. I had never been that ecstatic to learn and embrace them like I was when we started to learn about poetry.
I started small with poems, and by high school, it took on a life of its own. I had a binder with plastic sleeves full of poems I had written. Some were poems about being happy, and others were about love. I had kind of experienced my first heartbreak in middle school. I had over one hundred poems in this binder, and I wouldn’t let anyone read it. I was protective about my work. Maybe I was just shy to have someone criticize something I wrote.
By college, I would get rave reviews on my essay papers and how I was able to tell stories. I could take a simple topic and create a vivid picture for my reader. I really loved this thing called writing.
It wasn’t until my late twenties that I realized I was struggling with my purpose. I was trying all sorts of different entrepreneurial fields. I’m creative, but things weren’t sticking. I started with t-shirts, hair, jewelry, cell phone cases, clutch purses, and lastly, skirts. There was no denying that I was very talented, but the substance was missing. These things didn’t fulfill me. They would last for about six months at the most.
I started talking to my best friend, and I told her we should write a book,