Have you written a book and are ready to publish it? Are you ready to put your work out to the public in the most professional way? Are you also a little overwhelmed with the details of how exactly to do that? If you answered yes to any of these questions you are not alone.
As a writer it can feel as though the hardest part of writing a book is writing the book, but that’s not necessarily true. While writing the book is a feat in and of itself, the publishing part can be even more work.
First and foremost, as a writer, you want a publisher who is on your side. One who will walk you through the process and explain each detail. You want to own your property outright and get 100% of your royalties. As a writer publishing in the indie publishing market, you are entitled to all the above.
When you publisher shop, have these questions at the ready:
- Where do I buy my author copies after the book is published?
This is a big one. Most publishers will offer you the ability to purchase the book from them. They will either offer a tiered discount based on the number of books you purchase or just offer you a flat rate.
Sounds fair until you recall that the publisher who just charged you some $14K to publish your book is now making an additional profit on each author copy you buy. It’s important to note here that this will be your only option for purchasing author copies if you do not own your digital file. (The digital file is the version of your book you are able to upload to places like Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and so on for digital on-demand purchasing.)
To remedy this, when interviewing publishers, ask if you get to own your digital file after your book is complete.
When you own your file, you can go anywhere to sell or purchase your book and get the best price or maximum royalties available. And shouldn’t you own and have access to the file? Since you just paid to publish your written work?
- Is it really important to have my book professionally edited?
If the publisher responds in a “tomato tamato” way or does not express the importance of professional editing, this is a sign the publisher is the “rack and crack them” sort. Meaning they are in it for the volume and no real interest in the art of creating a quality book for the writer.
Editing will make or break your book so yes, it is not only important to professionally edit, it will make all the difference in the end.
- What’s the marketing plan?
After your book is published is not the time to develop your audience. They should be found and cultivated prior so they can’t wait to get their hands on your book!
This is a very specialized effort and unless you are a marketing person or have experience with marketing you will need some help and not a standard plug-in of what everyone else is doing.
- You need someone who has done this before, understands your genre or is willing to do the research to understand your genre.
- You need someone who will take the time to understand your story and the intention behind why you published in the first place.
- You need someone who will get as excited about your “why” as you are.
Personalized publishing should leave the author empowered. When you pick a publisher make sure they are working with and for you.
Welcome down the rabbit hole of Personalized Publishing…