Self publishing is a golden opportunity. For the first time in history authors can reach readers without going through the traditional publishing system.
But many self published authors are making horrible, beginner-type-mistakes, which will cripple their book sales. Here’s my take on these mistakes:
1. Not getting outside help. Writers can’t generally be editors, cover designers and marketing experts, as well as being writers. Not if they want to do these jobs well. And asking a relative or close friend to do these jobs for you is probably worse than doing it yourself. Your judgement typically goes out the window when someone close to you does something for you. If you won’t spend money on getting experts your sales will be poor. I know there are occasional exceptions to this, but they only prove the rule.
2. Having unrealistic expectations. Most books, up to ten years ago, sold hundreds of copies. Only 1 in 300 traditionally published books, which got good editing, covers and marketing support, became bestsellers in the past. Publishing became a giant game of throw-it-up and see-what-sticks. With printed books it became ever growing and almost criminally wasteful, when you consider the dirty secret that most of the books you see in book stores are destined to be pulped. Now that game is in decline. If you do get editing, covers and marketing right, you might expect reasonable sales, but publishing is always a gamble, so never risk more than you can afford to lose. Great books don’t always sell well. And Print on Demand is way better than ordering books to store in a front room and then a back room – forever.
3. Not building an email list of people who might be willing to read and review your book on Amazon. This is one of the main reasons traditional publishers take so long to publish a book. They often send review copies out to a large group of their reviewers three months in advance of publication. This policy ensures that positive reviews will be posted day one after the book goes up on Amazon. Self published authors should consider the day a book goes live on Amazon as a soft launch. The day you have five reviews is the day your book gets launched. The day you have ten is when it can hold its head up. The day it has fifty is the day you can expect Amazon’s algorithms to start presenting it to readers near the top of a list of books someone searched for. Congratulations!
4. Not focusing on what makes your book different. Whatever you write, you need to find something unique about your book. That you’ve written a good me-too book, like many others in its genre, is simply not good enough, unless you are happy with poor sales. Sensational writing, words that jump from a page, a heart stopping plot and real recipes from your grandmother in a village in Sardinia, where many people live to be 100, are all potentially unique aspects of a book, which will help you find readers.
5. Not believing in yourself. Self belief is critical to long term success as a writer, as in many walks of life. Writing is a profession where those who believe they can and who don’t give up, succeed. Perseverance and a willingness to learn, to edit the whole book again, for the twenty-seventh time, are necessary characteristics for a writer who is determined to become a success. Adopt these characteristics and your path will open up. In the past it took most writers about ten years to find a publisher, from starting to write. Each year was spent improving, honing, learning. Be prepared for a long journey. If you love being creative with words, don’t give up because the road is hard. Use the journey to prepare for what lies ahead.
Finally, when you have done all of the above, you will know that you can move on. To the next book. And then the one after. Most books lead to another. One of the joys of writing is discovering what else lies inside us, waiting to be born.
Simple, yet essential advice to all writers. I love that #1 was the mandate to get professional help in putting all the elements of your book together. So important, I believe, and a step too many relegate to the “only if I can afford it” file. From the standpoint of true excellence, that step is, instead, non-negotiable.
And #5 is just a good old spirit-builder! Always need those.
Good piece, Laurence!
Getting professional help is so true! I skimped on this for my first book and now I see all the errors even though I used software to find mistakes, I still didn’t catch all the mistakes. Even the formatting was off. I used Kirkland review and was told that they were turned off by the extra spaces and errors, even though they liked the story. With my second book, I used a line editor and a marketing team to write my author blurb on the back. My second book now looks professional. I also used a designer for the cover which is essential.
Excellent article Laurence.
i appreciate your insight!
Good sound advice Laurence! Thank you.
Great advice! I have read too many self-published books that were obviously not professionally edited, or the cover design was of poor quality. This gives the author and the self-publishing world a bad reputation. Please, please, please take more pride in your work. It should be the very best it can be before you publish it.
@barbaragareis
Yes, having a good editor is essential.
As an independent, I know how hard it is to do everything. I loved the writing but the publishing and now the marketing require very different talents. Perseverance really is crucial. Thanks for the tips.
Thank you Laurence or the warnings ! I have re-edited my book several times and will do so again after reading your article -to get it right! Particularly like advice no.4
Typo error in my earlier comment …(Thank you Laurence for…..).Haha! the importance of checking after typing … Proves your point about editing. Thanks.
After publishing 15 books with publishers, I went Indie. I’ve self-pubbed 5 of my own now. I can attest the importance of having a newsletter mailing list. I’m kicking myself for not doing it sooner.
Regarding writing something “different,” that’s the conventional advice. But I see scads of wolf-shifter-stepbrother-alien-loves-BBW-BDSM books selling like hotcakes.
I’m about to publish my first two books, and your article provided some useful guidance. Thanks!
This is a great article with useful tools to keep in mind when starting a career as a author. The most important factor is to believe in yourself. Your words must inspire you first.
“Your words will carry you to your destiny ” visit carrierpigeon.org to test your samples and receive great feedback. Happy Writing Everyone!
All of the 5 messages were great to read. I like this reply, because this is what I believe in. I would love to get some feedback and will try the things I have not yet got to do from your list.
Kind Regards
Juliana Mullan
Great post – thanks for sharing your insights Laurence. There are so many things to think about as we go on the self-publishing journey, and your top 5 are crucial and well articulated. Cheers
Thanks for the tips! Nice to know I’m doing some things right. 🙂
Cara is correct. You can’t just write something “different” and expect sales. Yes, werewolf/shifter books, for example, are selling like hotcakes. Period. Anyone who says they aren’t hasn’t studied the market. But how can you make your werewolf/shifter book different from the rest while still giving readers what they want? ~~~ You write what the readers want, but include your own twist. That’s my goal as an author.
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I haven’t written a short story, novella or book in past. I was a blogger/social media and marketing person. I also write articles on several different topics. I accepted a job for writing ebook, a travel guide. I then I start believing in myself for having skills in writing/thinking. I have no knowledge about writing english novels but it keep coming to me writing an adventure book “The Lives of Other: An Adventurous Journey”. I haven’t got any customers and I think I am not yet deserved it. But I believe in myself being a writer. I will keep doing it. A child learn by mistake so do I. What people say about me I didn’t give it a second thought. Your advice and tips are great. I will kept those in ming. Thanks for reading my crap.
Great advice, thank you. Having a good editor is essential! Give readers the respect they deserve; give quality to them.
Thank you for these very important rules of thought.
But what if you don’t have the money to hire all of these professionals
Carolyn, I had no money for a long time. I took a second job and worked at night. I taught myself things. It’s not an easy road, but I’d rather be on this road than any other.
The bootstrap effect works when you’re young and vigorous enough to get a side job…or any side job. But when you’re laid off your job at 64…believe me, you’ll be lucky to get ONE part-time job (net pay for a Ph.D. with 25 years higher-ed teaching and administrative experience, prorated over 12 months: a grandiose $1,120/month).
The book marketer I spoke with yesterday, who says she can command $210/hour, wanted to charge me her rock-bottom fee of $100 a month, for which I would get ten tweets…and I had to provide the content and the image. I should pay $10/Tweet for someone to paste the time-consuming stuff (which I have to do myself) into a box on Twitter and click “Tweet”? Seriously?
True: you should get an editor or at least a proofreader to comb through your copy — that’s worth paying for. Some of the other stuff, though…not so much.
This is a very good article. Thank you for posting. Also, selection of the proper BISAC Code for the printed book and e-book categories will optimize readership and ranking.
Good, sensible information on all five points. I enjoyed reading. Thank you.
This is a great article. Thank you for posting this.
Thanks for the advice. I will keep them in mind as I get closer to my goal of publishing. 🙂
Nailed it.
Great thoughts! Thanks!
Hi Lawrence, these are five very helpful tips. Thanks. I’ll share them with my students. Being realistic is close to the top for me … and believing in yourself and being it for the long haul. Cheers 🙂
Excellent advice. Editing is not an option!
Very interesting. Could I translate it in Italian and put this great article in my Italian blog?
Thanks
Yes! Simply credit my blog link at the bottom, please. Thanks!
Many thanks for the new info and for the reminders. Good luck to all of us!
The first mistake you point out here is crucial. Don’t be afraid to ask for help! Don’t be afraid to network and utilize the connections that you’ve made. Writing a book is a big deal, and I’m sure that if you know an editor or a graphic designer that they’d love to be part of a project like that. Speak up!
I’m not a self-publisher, all my work is contracted with mainstream publishers, but today even with ‘traditional’ routes so much reliance is placed on the creators to promote their own titles that many of us feel like self-publishers! These tips are useful to anyone involved in books, whether mainstream or self publishers.