source: http://www.streetdirectory.com/travel_guide/103363/publishing/useful_web_sites_for_self_published_writers.html

Written by: Kev Woodward

It is amazing what you can find on the internet nowadays; instructions on how to download music to an ipod, on-line cookery lessons and mouth-watering recipes, broad-sheet newspapers and the history of European art, everything you have ever wanted to know about Elvis Presley , Cat Stevens or S Club 7 – the list is endless – literally. So when you are thinking about self-publishing and are looking for advice, resource or guidance, the Internet should really be your first port of call. But where do you start looking for information? And how can it help you?

There are four principle ways that the Internet can help ease the self publishing process;

1-Getting your text right in the first place and generating ideas
2-Providing you with a forum to learn from and talk to other writers
3-Listing literary agents, editors and designers who can help you improve your manuscript prior to publication
4-Walking you through the entire self publishing process

Let’s look at each of these in turn.

Getting your text right in the first place and generating ideas

Nowadays there really is no need to purchase a multitude of text books on “How to use Words”, “Grammar”, “Generating creative ideas” or “Using Language”. Whilst one or two reference guides are always handy to keep on the bookshelf, the Internet can now supply you with all the information and practical guidance you should need on these subject matters. For help and assistance with spelling, word meanings and pronunciation, take a look at Dictionary.com (http://dictionary.reference.com) or Your Dictionary (www.yourdictionary.com http://www.yourdictionary.com). If its language usage or grammar that you are interested in, try www.usingenglish.com http://www.usingenglish.com and www.englishforums.com http://www.englishforums.com, where you can find answers to almost all of your word usage and grammar queries. You will also find a wide variety of grammar and spell checker software programmes and packages that you can purchase and load onto your computer – ‘White Smoke’ is one of the more popular software packages recommended.

Both fiction and non-fiction writers find that they need to research their subject matter and look up various dates, facts, places and names when writing their manuscript. The internet is fantastic in its ability to support this “fact-finding” process! Google’s answer to scholarly research is a search engine called Google Scholar (http://scholar.google.co.uk) which searches through a wide range of scholarly literature to answer the question or subject matter you pose in its search tool bar. If it’s an easier, straight forward encyclopaedia search you need, navigate your way to Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org), which is the most comprehensive on-line encyclopaedia I’ve ever come across. And most importantly, it is very easy to use.

Two websites that are particularly handy for generating poetry or story ideas are ‘Instant Muse: Poetry Generator and Story Starter’ (www.thestorystarter.com http://www.thestorystarter.com) and ‘Story A Day Writer’s Kit’ (http://westwood.fortunecity.com/smith/406/StoryaDay), both of which help you get your creative juices flowing with free, fun exercises or writing prompts.

Providing you with a forum to learn from and talk to other writers

Learning from other writers, self publishing or commercial publishing, is an invaluable tool. Other writers can empathise with your experiences and frustrations, they can offer advice and enable you to learn from their successes and mistakes, and they can provide you with a safe haven to bounce ideas around and request constructive feedback from those within the industry. The internet has revolutionised the way that we interact with others, and has significantly broadened our capacity to communicate with other likeminded individuals across the world. Through the introduction of user forums, online communities and networks, self publishing writers can now talk to other writers, editors and publishers across the world. A fantastic resource of knowledge and information can now be accessed, and accessed for free, from the comfort of your own home.

Good examples of forums and networking communities to take a look at are www.writing.com, www.publicityhound.com http://www.publicityhound.com, http://wordsworthreading.blogspot.com, www.writewords.org.uk http://www.writewords.org.uk, www.absolutewrite.com http://www.absolutewrite.com and www.writerswrite.com http://www.writerswrite.com. The last two sites mentioned have specific forums dedicated to Self Publishing authors.

When it comes to on-line forums and networking communities, it is important to remember that each forum is generally created with a specific purpose or discussion topic in mind – be that self publishing, marketing your book, or generating ideas. So you may find that you need to try out a few different forums before you find the one that best suits your needs.

Listing literary agencies and editors who can help you improve your manuscript prior to publication

As a self publishing writer, you can sometimes feel that you’d like a second, informed opinion on the manuscript you have produced or the poetry that you have written. You may want an editorial critique of your use of characterisation, language, structure, style and storyline. Or you may simply require a second pair of eyes to check your use of spelling, punctuation or grammar. There are several editorial agencies that provide these services for self publishing authors. Words Worth Reading (www.wordsworthreading.co.uk http://www.wordsworthreading.co.uk) provides comprehensive editorial packages for manuscripts of all genres and sizes – providing tailor-made services where necessary to cater for all our clients’ needs. As with most contemporary literary agencies or editors, Words Worth Reading can be found on the Internet, via online search engine tools or by typing in the website index into your tool bar.

The internet is also a very useful tool for researching and locating self publishing companies, printers, illustrators and designers – all of which are crucial contacts for a Self Publishing author. Most self publishing companies and printers offer a design service, giving you the opportunity to work with professionals when choosing your book cover design, typesetting style and paper type. However, you may want to work with an independent illustrator or designer, or at least investigate a range of designers and illustrators to compare cost and quality. www.contactacreative.com http://www.contactacreative.com can put you in touch with various illustrators and designers and provide examples of their work through on-line portfolios. Similarly, www.ukchildrensbooks.co.uk http://www.ukchildrensbooks.co.uk lists a vast number of children’s books’ illustrators, and www.writersservices.com http://www.writersservices.com has a particularly strong book cover service.

Website search engines such as Google and Yahoo have made the searching process for literary agencies, editors or designers extremely easy. All you need to do is type in your requirements, and a list of suitable companies or websites will appear!

Walking you through the entire self publishing process

So, you’ve got the idea, you’ve spoken to others in the writing community to glean their advice, you’ve written the manuscript and you’ve submitted it to an editorial agency to ensure its squeaky clean. You’re now ready for publication, which for many self publishers is perhaps the scariest stage! Where do you start? Who do you approach? How much should it cost? What about printing? Distribution? Marketing and selling? It can be a minefield. Fortunately there are some excellent websites that can provide you with the advice and guidance you need to make the self publishing process as pain-free as possible.

Take a look at Parapublishing (www.parapublishing.com), a website which contains numerous articles, resources and signposts to books and links that will get you started. The website is built up of comprehensive, informative articles that really dive into the detail. For example, in the ‘Book Design’ section of this website, everything from book covers, printers, audio publication and the benefits of Hard Copies are discussed. Furthermore, each information page includes additional downloadable resources that can be saved onto your computer, or printed.

Another great website to browse through is www.bookmarket.com which covers everything you’d ever want to know about marketing your own, self published book. Whilst it is an American website, it is still very relevant to the English reader, providing downloadable seminar sessions on marketing that you can watch or listen to. This website also contains free marketing reports on both bookstore and internet marketing, and a free online magazine (an “Ezine”) that you can subscribe to.

Don’t forget to take a look at the broadsheet paper’s online book supplements too, as they can help you understand bookseller trends. Most popular are The Guardian (www.guardian.co.uk/books http://www.guardian.co.uk/books), The Times (http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk) and The Mail (www.dailymail.co.uk).

Two further important websites to look at as a Self Publishing writer are www.isbn.nielsenbookdata.co.uk http://www.isbn.nielsenbookdata.co.uk and www.booksellers.org.uk http://www.booksellers.org.uk. The ISBN website explains how to use ISBN numbers, and their importance if you want to sell your book through book stores. It also provides the pricing list for purchasing ISBN numbers, allowing you to purchase your required numbers directly through the website. The Booksellers Association is a wonderful website for anyone interested or involved in the book publishing and sales process. As well as being a great forum for obtaining an insight into the book trade, this website also allows you to search for local book stores in a given town or postcode area, which is very useful when it comes to drawing up your marketing contact list! The website also provides the names and contact details of all the librarians in your area, so that you can address them personally when writing to encourage stocks of your latest book in their library environments.

There is a wealth of online information, support and guidance available to self publishing writers, so don’t forget to tap into the internet when you need some help or advice. You’ll be amazed at what you can find.

About The Author, Kev Woodward

Need your work appraising or proofreading? Words Worth Reading, an editorialservice for writers. Words Worth Reading provides comprehensive editorial services to writers, as well as running informativewriter’s workshops. It is predominately run by expert volunteers and donates part of all submission fees to Oxfam.

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source of article: http://www.streetdirectory.com/travel_guide/140975/publishing/self_publishing_the_hard_way_the_art_of_giving_birth.html

By: Dodie Cross

You know? When you publish a book and send it out into the world, it’s like giving birth to a baby. Everyone checks out your baby. Is it breath-taking? Does it have ten toes and ten fingers? Is it pink and sweet or does it look like an extra from “Alien?” We writers are baring our souls, our deepest thoughts, and our feelings lay open like a cavernous wound. We can’t hide anymore. They know us inside and out. Now they see our baby, and they get to pick it to pieces, bit by bit, until the only thing left is a fuzzy blanket.

Oh, hell, we know that and go right on writing, don’t we? It’s in our DNA. We can’t help ourselves, we’re masochists.

When I started this whole book-writing process, I had full intentions of finding an agent and/or a traditional publisher; they’d do all the work while I sat back and listened to “Ca-ching, Ca-ching.” However my journey to that end has been long and stress-filled and I ended up doing just the opposite…I’d kept a daily journal while living in Thailand in the 90s. When I returned to the States, I copied my journal onto a floppy and had it printed, spiral-bound, and mailed it out to friends and family so they could read about all my trials and tribs while abroad. One of the friends who read it insisted that I make a book out of it.

“You know,” she said, “like the book ‘A Year in Provence.’” I immediately ran out and bought the book and was amazed at the problems that the author had endured in a short year. I just knew that if his book sold, then mine would also, however, life got in the way of living and I put it aside.

I joined some creative writing classes a few years later, and with encouragement from my peers I began the long road of putting the journal into book form. In 2003, when I finally thought I’d finished it, I entered it into the Southern California Writers Conference in San Diego. While there, I read chapters from my story in the Read and Critique groups and the attendees laughed in all the right places and even clapped, (I’d hoped it wasn’t because they were happy I’d finished). At the end of the conference I was notified that I’d won the Best Nonfiction award for my story and an agent asked for my manuscript. Wow! That just doesn’t happen unless they love it! I knew I was ready for the Pulitzer.

Then I began to panic. What if it isn’t perfect? I had talked to a “book doctor” at the conference who advised me that my story “…needed some conflict. Who really cares about a housewife who’s having a good time in Thailand? Give them a reason to turn the page.” Okay, that’s what I’ll do. There certainly was plenty of conflict in my life in Thailand, but I’d left it out; it was painful to relive and I wanted it to be a humorous book. I emailed the agent and told her I wasn’t ready. Take your time, she’d said. It’s not time sensitive.

So began the journey of “weaving” the conflict into my story. It was the hardest thing I’d ever done. It was three years before I felt it was good enough to be a real book. But, those three years were not only spent rewriting. I took online writing classes and signed up at the local college for creative writing classes, I attended a critique group every week, putting my chapters up to their scrutiny as they tore it apart and helped put it back together. The rest of the time I was editing my life away. But as Stephen King says in his book On Writing: edit, edit and edit. And when you think it’s perfect, edit some more. My husband had a name for my constant editing: “Paralysis by analysis.”

When I felt I had everything in place, I looked for professional editing. I first paid the book doctor $500 to tell me that it needed help. He didn’t give me any, just told me it needed it. I found a line-editor in Canada, who did a great job, and then I hired a freelance editor; total for both $600; quite inexpensive in today’s editing market.

During those three years, I also did a lot of reading on the publishing world; agents, print-on-demand (PODs) and off-set printing companies. I attended conferences specifically on “How to get published.” The more I heard and read, the more I thought: From all the conferences I’d attended, the agent panels were the most disillusioning. I learned that agents don’t want you if you’ve not been published, and publishers don’t want you if you’ve not been published, or don’t have an agent, who doesn’t want you either. Who needs ‘em?

Publishers don’t want you if you don’t have a “platform!” A what? To my dismay I learned that I needed to have my own buying public. There was no publisher that was going to run out and sell my book for me, pay for my cross-country book signings and hotel rooms, unless of course I was a King or a Grisham or a Joyce Carol Oates. Then of course, there’s the eighteen month wait for the book to appear on the shelves after the publisher accepts it (if the publisher doesn’t decide to pull the plug at the last minute), and don’t forget the two years that it takes the agent to shop around for a publisher who might decide to pull the plug at the last minute. Who has that long? I don’t even buy green bananas anymore.

Wow! I remember my table mates and I frowning as we listened to the dire answers of this panel of agents and publishers. So how do we get published? Well, we have two options so it seemed: 1) have an agent living next door who loves your home cooked brownies or has a crush on your husband, or 2) know a publisher whose kid mows your lawn or has a crush on you. Not living in New York was going to be a definite drawback. Should I move? Okay, how about a POD? I was fortunate to have a friend who is a small press publisher of railroad books. He offered to put my manuscript into a Quark Express PDF file (which is the format printers prefer). He did an incredible job putting it together for me. He felt that if I had the print setup taken care of, I could approach a POD and save some money.

I signed up for the POD classes at the conferences I attended, where they explained everything I needed to know about their business ─ except how they kept most of the author’s money while they got big and rich and the author got $3.09 per book. Okay, well, $3.09 a book is not that bad. Maybe I could make it. But, wait, I had to pay them to print my book, and then pay them to buy my book back from them; too many “thems” going on here. Something didn’t compute. Maybe I should chuck the book and go into the POD business.

Well, I succumbed. I bought a book called The Fine Print of Self Publishing by Mark Levine, an attorney, then sat down to do some homework. After going over all the PODs he listed with a fine-tooth calculator, I realized that I could pay as much as $30,000 to one such POD group, but hey, my books would be free. How generous of them. Or, I could choose a POD group charging as low as $299, but I’d still have to buy my own books back at about $8.00 each.

I finally settled on a firm I’ll call “Dewey Cheatem & Howe” (name changed to protect the guilty), and thought I’d finally get on with this damn book printing. They sent me a sample of their work that was done beautifully. I signed on the dotted line, waited three more weeks and then my author’s copy was delivered. And there it sat. On my desk. Opened to the first page, which I couldn’t read. I started bawling. Where is my baby? The font was so garbled that it was illegible. There was a space after every capital letter and the other letters were so piled on each other you couldn’t make out the words.

When I’d used all the Kleenex in my desk drawer, I called them. Of course, no one was on the other end, save for the automated voice of their mailboxes. But at least I got rid of my postpartum anger. I cried and said very imperiously, “HOLD THE PRESSES! I will not accept this book. I will call Visa (of course they already had my money) and stop payment and …” I felt like an inner tube impaled on a sharp rock. Then I called my friend, the publisher. “Of course you can do this on your own. You have the file, just find a good printing company.”

I inquired around and found out that I could get my book printed overseas at half the cost of stateside. I began to get phone numbers and surfed websites. There were some good deals to be made overseas; however, the problem was I needed a broker. So after the broker took his cut, and the shipping charges were added, a stateside printer looked better. Plus, the thought of having a problem and not being able to connect at once with your printer was worrisome.

I searched the Internet and found many websites where you could input the details of your book, number of pages, size of book, print run, etc., and within a week I got a bid from ten printing companies. After picking one printer (not the cheapest), I felt we had a fit. I spoke to the owner, who offered to throw in a hundred free books, which might have had something to do with my decision. He checked out my website while we were speaking, loved the site and the look of my book and of course, he had me. He also offered storage and order fulfillment. Now, all I had to do was put our house on the market and clear out our 401K.

I know what you’re thinking. Sure, maybe she has it, but not everyone can come up with that much money. Yes, you can if you want to. We took an equity line on our home and as the money comes rolling in, I’ll be making payments on the equity line. We authors must be optimists. Really! If you don’t believe in your book, who will?

I ran off my own bookmarks and saved a few hundred dollars. I used the cover of the book, wrote a short synopsis on the back, and had 500 printed. I have handed out those bookmarks on airplanes and in airports; Seattle, Palm Desert, San Diego, Portugal, New York, Australia, New England… well maybe not personally, but I’ve given them to people who live in those places and they were happy to have them and said they’d pass them on. I’ve handed them out in restaurants to women sitting around me; two of them bought my book right on the spot. My friends call me “A self-promoting slut.”

I have to leave you now, as that’s where I am in this wonderful world of the written word, where the writing was easy… now comes the hard part ─ marketing!

About The Author, Dodie Cross
Dodie Cross is a freelance writer who has received numerous awards for her writing and poetry. Dodie has traveled the world, writing about her life in foreign countries. Learn more at: A Broad in Thailand.

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A contribution by: Liberal Arts Colleges

Source: http://www.liberalartscolleges.org/blog/2010/10-things-to-consider-before-self-publishing/

Self-publishing enables the writer to control every aspect of the creation and promotion of their book. It’s an appealing option for creative people who have the confidence and time to undertake such a large task. But most writers enter the process not knowing what to expect, relying on their well-honed research skills to learn the ins and outs of the publishing biz. Before you dig too deep, read through the list of 10 things to consider before self-publishing and determine if you’re up for the challenge.

1. The success rate is tiny
Very few self-publishers experience success because they simply don’t know what they’re doing. In many cases, they lack the foresight and perseverance required of a self-proprietor. Some of the common problems encountered by first-time self-publishers include the refusal to seek the help they need, the use of unprofessional covers and weak titles, overprinting and lazy marketing. It takes a lot of time and effort to write, print and market a book, so plan accordingly.

2. Do it for the right reasons
Because of the amount of risk involved, it’s wise to go into the process not expecting to make money. In other words, don’t expect self-publishing to become your primary source of income – if it generates any income. Also, don’t self-publish because you don’t feel that you need any help. If your book has been rejected by multiple publishers, then it could likely use a change or two.

3. It helps to have a niche
Most successful self-publishers are experts in a field with a narrow target audience. If you’ve already made a name for yourself in that niche – perhaps through lectures or previously published articles and papers and you have at least a modest audience, then you could market the book to those same people. Professors often utilize this strategy because they don’t immediately intend to mass market their books.

4. You’ll be running a business
That means a business license is required. You’ll need to know the cost of the operation – as you’ll see below – and you’ll need to devise a marketing strategy if you intend to reach an audience beyond the modest one that may already be established. As a publisher, you’ll need to create a name that include -books, press or publishing- so that people will know what it represents.

5. You’ll need money
Self-publishing is a big investment. In addition to the cost of printing, money must be set aside for marketing and hiring an editor, illustrator and/or graphic designer. A traditional publishing house is normally responsible for those costs, but since you’ll be doing it on your own, they’ll be your responsibility. Be sure to research and establish a budget beforehand so that you won’t encounter any unforeseen financial problems.

6. You’ll still need an editor
Because you won’t be dealing with a publishing house, you’ll need to find an editor to look over your work and offer his or her sage advice. Self-publishers hire freelance developmental editors to perform those tasks – they ensure you have an interesting and readable book. The final say on all matters is still yours, but their expertise will be needed if you have little or no previous publishing experience.

7. Know the details
Before your book hits the shelves, it’ll need an International Standard Book Number (ISBN) and a Library of Congress catalog number. The ISBN enables book retailers to identify the title amid their vast collections of books. You can obtain one from the RR Bowker Company. The Library of Congress catalog number enables you to get your book into libraries.

8. Sales will be your job
As previously mentioned, self-publishers must know how to run a business. In order for a business to be successful, it must have an efficient sales team – in this case, it’s you. You’ll need to convince brick-and-mortar bookstores, online bookstores, distributors and wholesalers that your book will be profitable. It’s important to know that different buyers require a different cut of the sales, so don’t demand for every buyer to take the same amount. And remember, patience is a virtue – your books won’t fly off the shelves all at once.

9. Respect will be hard-earned
If you’re fortunate enough to earn respect, it will be hard-earned. Reviewers tend to ignore self-published books because self-publishers tend to be amateurs who, honestly, produce unappealing work. It’ll be entirely your responsibility to get your work noticed by reviewers, retailers and readers. The process by which you compose your book will help determine how much success you’ll have.

10. It’ll never be too late to sell your book to a commercial publisher
If you successfully reach your intended market and have shown there’s potential to reach an even larger audience, then a commercial publisher will likely express interest in taking over the title. But this doesn’t always mean they’ll push it into the next stratosphere of sales. Make sure the people with whom you work will have as much interest in promoting the books as you have – otherwise, the transaction will be pointless.

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By: Steve Manning

Source: http://www.streetdirectory.com/travel_guide/141466/publishing/zero_cost_self_publishing_and_how_to_get_it.html

Ever heard of product placement in movies? The star walks into the kitchen, opens the refrigerator door and pulls out a can of Coke. The concept had it’s modern beginnings when E.T. was lured from his hiding place with Reece’s Pieces. And it reached its zenith in the movie Castaway (the whole film could have been seen as a subtle infomercial for FedEx). Corporations pay money for that sort of stuff. And you can understand why. It’s the equivalent of an endorsement of the product by the star or the movie itself.

How can you do that with your self-published book? It’s not difficult. I know one author who wrote a book on business etiquette and mentioned several specific business machines. Before she self published the book, she went to the manufacturer, let the director of marketing know about the product placement and asked if they’d like to sponsor the publication of the book. They did.

Another author wrote a romance that took place on a wonderful Caribbean island nation. She sent the manuscript to the director of tourism and asked if they’d like to either sponsor the publication of the book, or buy 3,000 copies for $10,000. They chose the later, but $10,000 underwrote the entire press run of 6,000 copies. The author got 3,000 copies of her book for free!

In each case, the author asked the sponsor or buyer for only one condition. The self-published books the sponsors received for their financial involvement could only be either given away free, or sold for the full cover price. That way, the author was never undercut on price.

Would major companies, government agencies and other large entities really want to be involved with your self-published book? Hey, if you take a look at the cost of advertising, the cost of self-publishing a book is cheap! $20,000 for a single page in a national magazine. And then you come along and give them a promotional tool that has the legitimacy and the integrity of a published book, at a price that’s almost insignificant when compared to their total annual budget.

These steps will make it easy for you.

Make sure your book is complete, but in manuscript form.

Make a list of 20 companies that could benefit from the topic, direction, setting, entertainment value, or information your book has. Make one copy of your manuscript and insert specific product placement throughout the book. By product placement, I mean specific products, or specific strategies that some companies use, or locations, or whatever you think puts the idea of the product before the reader.

About The Author, Steve Manning

Steve Manning is a master writer showing thousands of people how they can write their book faster than they ever thought possible. Here’s your free Special Report, http://www.WriteABookNow.com/main.html

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source: http://www.streetdirectory.com/travel_guide/141467/publishing/how_to_be_a_successful_self_publisher.html
By: John Abate

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As an author, the most important person in your career is you. Self-publishing takes writing into a higher level since it’s you who will spearhead every single detail that makes up your book marketing campaign. However, you should learn to choose a number of allies who will help you all the way to your book’s launching. You don’t know everything. Going solo in doing your marketing campaign will leave you drained and frustrated. You need people who will help you cut through the competitive market.

The future of your writing career basically depends on these elements: (1) you as an author, (2) your book/s, (3) marketing and promotions, (4) and networking.

You as an Author
Just like establishing brands, you need to standout among all the other authors. It is not a question of talent or skill since appreciation in writing is diverse and subjective. This boils down to your creativity; letting readers understand and appreciate what you are writing about. When people can relate to your writing, you become successful in being a part of their lives.

Your Book/s
How can your book possibly compete against bestsellers? It’s equally important to plan out your writing career. State your goal and enumerate your objectives. In that way, you won’t have a difficult time establishing your niche. It takes much consistency for you to be known for something.

Marketing and Promotions
Your books won’t sell unless you do extensive marketing campaigns. Competition is fierce in the market. Doing your best means picking the right marketing tools to help in your book’s marketing campaign. Take time to evaluate on the book marketing product or service and always consider their prices.

Networking
Networking is cost-free. But it takes time and social investment for you to succeed in this aspect. You won’t be able to attract readers if you just talk pure business. Networking also takes a lot of creativity and out of the box ideas to draw in sustainable interest and attention. The more promotions you do, the more opportunities you create.

But above everything else, remember that you are the most powerful marketing weapon. You are your book’s advantage.

Here’s a checklist to help you in your career:

1. Don’t stop learning. Endlessly practice and polish your ability to write.
2. Fuel your passion and promotion by learning from other book marketing campaigns. Success stories will inspire and keep you going.
3. Be resilient at all times. Stay committed to your career.
4. Don’t let creativity run out. Take risks and try out new things.
5. Continuously establish your identity through presenting authentic and new ideas.
6. Keep your communication open. Build and maintain relationships with your growing network of readers, fans, the media, and the rest of your allies.
7. Be willing to go an extra mile in promoting your work. Seize speaking opportunities even if it doesn’t earn you a dime.
8. Take every problem as a challenge.
9. Lastly, use your time and any existing talent as productively as you can.

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source: http://www.go-publish-yourself.com/articles/self-publishing/tuckerw.php

By Wendy Y. Tucker

Do you have a book in you? We all have life experiences worthy of recording in a book. How then will you bring your message to its appropriate audience? Really, there are only two choices—either find a publisher or publish your book yourself.

Here are 5 reasons you shouldn’t self-publish.
1. You only want to make 5-10% of the proceeds the book generates in the form of an author royalty.
2. You enjoy editors telling you to basically rewrite your entire manuscript in their preferred style, ultimately changing the intended meaning of everything you want to say.
3. You enjoy waiting 1-½ to 2 years for your book to be in print. You’re in no hurry.
4. You’ve spent months or even years writing and researching your book and now want to relinquish your rights to it (such as copyrights, serial rights, foreign rights).
5. You are sadistic and enjoy rejection from literary agents and publishers.

Joking aside, by self-publishing:
1. You may make more money.
2. You will retain control over your work.
3. You can deliver your book to the public faster.
4. You’ll retain all legal ownership rights to your book.
5. You maintain the ultimate decision determining whether or not your book is published.

1. Make More Money
Publishing industry profit margins are quite narrow. Industry statistics indicate that a profitable book will create a 10% profit for the publisher. Add that to your 10% author royalty and you’ve doubled your profit. Also, because you will have control over costs, as a self-publisher you may be able to reduce them to a level that creates an even higher profit margin.

2. Retain Control Over Your Work
Editing and proofreading are crucial to producing a quality book. It is highly recommended that an author have professional, outside help perform editing and proofreading services. It is all too easy for an author to overlook the errors within his or her own work. However, by maintaining control over the editing and proofreading process, you have the ultimate say over what stays in and what goes out, ensuring that what you wish to convey to your audience is what’s actually published.

3. Get Your Book to the Public Faster
The publishing industry typically works on an 18-month or longer cycle from the time of accepting a manuscript to the release of a new book. By self-publishing, you can bring your work to the public within 2 to 9 months after completing your manuscript, significantly reducing the time from pen to print.

4. Retain All Legal Ownership Rights
If your work is published by a traditional publishing company, there is a great chance that the publisher will require the ownership of most, if not all, of the legal rights to it. These rights include electronic, serial, foreign, and copyrights. By self-publishing you retain all rights to your work unless, of course, you choose to sell them.
Suppose your novel can be converted to a screenplay for the next multi-billion dollar movie? When the production companies are ready to buy, if you own the film rights to your work, you get the money. If you don’t, your publishing company does.

5. Maintain the Ultimate Decision Determining Whether or Not Your Book is Published
Perhaps you are a humanitarian of sorts, desiring to disseminate your message to save the world and not necessarily to make a profit? However, the 35 publishing companies you’ve approached are uninterested in your work because they DO want to make a profit. Then, self-publishing may be the only avenue available to bring your work to the world. Also, many traditional publishers won’t work with writers not represented by a literary agent; and many agents won’t work with authors who haven’t been published before. It’s a catch-22.

So, where do you start?
First, do your homework! Read as many books on the subject of self-publishing as you need to feel comfortable with the steps involved in starting such a major project.

Several great books on self-publishing and related subjects are:
The Complete Guide to Self-Publishing by Tom and Marian Ross
A Simple Guide to Self-Publishing by Mark Ortman
1001 Ways to Market Your Books by John Kremer
Publishing Basics: A Guide for the Small Press and Independent Self-Publisher by Robert Bowie Johnson, Jr.
Book Printing and Self-Publishing by Gorham Printing

Two great web sites are:
http://publishing.about.com, part of the About.com web portal
http://www.bookmarket.com, maintained by John Kremer, author of 1001 Ways to Market Your Books and considered to be one of the nation’s foremost authorities on book marketing.

Secondly, decide who will print your book early in the process. By determining who will print your books, you ensure that you will create files or a physical document that the printer can turn into a great looking book by meeting the printer’s technical specifications. Different printers use different software and hardware for printing. Suppose you type your manuscript in WordPerfect with 1″ margins all around with a document size of 8-½ x 11″. Then, while shopping around for a printer, you find that most want ¾” margins all around, will only accept PDF or Postscript files, and that it’s much cheaper to print on 5-½ x 8-½” paper. You are then stuck with the task of reformatting your entire document.
Finally, decide what you can and will do, and what you can’t or won’t do. If you are able and willing to do your own typesetting, then by all means save the money and do it yourself. However, if you dislike computers and dread the thought of learning yet another complex software application, contract the task out for someone else to do it.
Self-publishing is not for everyone. It requires a significant investment in both time and money. Yet it brings a sense of great accomplishment and is highly rewarding.

Best wishes on your self-publishing journey!
Wendy Y. Tucker may be contacted at http://www.777press.com wendy@777press.com.
Wendy Y. Tucker is a Las Vegas native and is the self-published author of 777 Cheap Eats in Las Vegas (ISBN 0-9710486-0-6, Triple Seven Press, January 2002). The book is available at Barnes & Noble, Borders, http://www.amazon.com , http://www.bookch.com or 1–800-431-1579.

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source: http://publishingandprinting.pricesstop.com/2010/05/20/self-publishing-voice-of-the-future/

By: Martin Alan

Once upon a time, “vanity publishing” was the only option suggested – along with pitying glances – to the novice writer who found it difficult to break into print. However, as technology and the demand for electronic print advance, self-publishing is quickly losing its former stigma. From the corporate halls to the artistic world, more people are writing as part of their jobs, and part of their lives. In general, texting and e-mail have replaced a significant amount of verbal conversation and personal interaction, highlighting an increasing need for the written word. Self-publishing currently fills some of that need, and has the potential to satisfy much, much more.

When first conceived, print-on-demand or other self-publishing expressions were snubbed by the elite of the publishing industry. Traditionally, a comparative handful of authors, certainly talented but by no means exclusive, were chosen from among the vast clamour of would-be writers. Lucky enough to be discovered by a publishing house, they left the rest of the crowd hungry for a glimpse of the inner sanctum. With the introduction of self-publishing, however, members of the crowd who are willing to take a small financial risk may today not only catch that glimpse, but enter through a side door to find their own chance of success.

And traditional publishing has been forced to keep up with the times, as well. With competition from non-traditional and new media-published sources, even conventional writers no longer sit back and idly wait for the royalty check to appear in the mailbox. Once a book has been accepted by a publisher, its author is expected to do a great deal of the marketing himself. Book signings, personal website maintenance, and endorsement-hunting are only a few of the promotions that the writer must employ, regardless of where the book is published. Because of this, the concept of self-publishing has become more appealing to the business-savvy writer: as long as he is required to promote his own book anyway, he may as well front some of the production costs in order to take home a lot more pieces of the pie when his potential bestseller takes off.

Non-conventional printing, officially recognized by the industry or not, is growing. This is due in part to its ease and availability. In thirty minutes or less, a free blog or personal website can be created and ready for perusal by friends, family, co-workers, or anyone else with an internet connection. If more formal acknowledgment with payment is desired, the number of publishers offering non-traditional services to both new writers and seasoned authors continues to increase while self-publishing costs decrease, another attractive combination.

Not everyone who publishes his or her own writing does it solely for the bank account, either. Writing has long been recognized as a significant expression of creativity, a source of intrinsic satisfaction. In business venues, employers continue to seek staff that is skilled in technical communication, internally commissioning well-written training resources geared toward specific company needs.

No matter the reason, written communication demands are increasing in our high-tech world. For the many voices waiting to be heard, self-publishing may well be the answer.

Martin Alan enjoys writing on subjects such as literature, online publishing, digital magazine, publishing software and writes guides on how to self publish. He also enjoys keeping up-to-date with the latest developments and innovations in technology and online marketing.

For more information on online publishing click here; http://www.yudu.com.

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Every self-published author will go through the roughs and bumps of publishing their book before reaching the pedestal of success. When working your head and heart out on your manuscript, not everything is beyond your control despite you can never accurately predicting if majority of the market will love or take a spike at your book.

Face it. The intense competition within the market from established authors, famous books, and whatnots will most likely intimidate you. But unless you learn how to face it, you will find it difficult to move forward. Face it. That’s the way to make it through.

Make the most of what you have. If you are confident with your skills then lessen outsourcing the labor for your book’s marketing. For example, in generating publicity, it is advisable that you write your own press release. If you have experience in journalism, why would you hire a publicist? As an author, it is your responsibility to bring out the best of your book.

Embrace resilience. There will be times when things won’t go your way. So, learn to constantly love change and make the best out of it.

Leave little room for cynicism. Being optimistic fuels your drive to achieve bigger dreams. However, looking at both the positive and negative outcomes will help in making decisions. Thinking of the worst result of every situation will prepare you for whatever may happen and allow you to create the necessary contingencies.

Dreams don’t just happen unless you work hard for it. Working hard means having initiative and persistence and doing what makes a lot of sense.

It’s easier to react than to create. Expect having your share of critics and tormentors. No matter how you do things right and work hard, not everybody will love what you write. Keep in mind though that negative reviews and impressions are opinions; it does not necessarily make them facts.

Do not give up if things go wrong. Failure is a necessary step in your growth process. It’s a sign that you are doing something to reach your goal.

Readers, more often than not, are complicated. Writing is an art. Not everyone will have the eye to appreciate what you have written. Failing to successfully penetrate the preference of readers does not necessarily diminish you and your work. Diversity is the beginning of art.

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source: http://www.go-publish-yourself.com/articles/book-marketing/pramschuferm.php

By Matt Pramschufer

Theodore Roosevelt once said, “Do what you can with what you have right where you are.” There is no better way to implement your resources than with your own website. A website provides three invaluable tools for self-publishers: worldwide advertising at the click of a mouse, lightning fast responses to customers, agents and publicists, and a website ultimately gives writers a virtual book tour without ever leaving the comfort of home. Best of all – this is an affordable option for self-publishers.

Who needs a website? Don’t the classifieds or banner exchanges on the internet do the trick?
The bottom line is that banners and classifieds turn people off. A website is a great method of advertising that targets not only local interests but reaches a market worldwide. And it can say as much as you want, and you leave it up to the viewer to decide what they want to read. Think of your website as a virtual brochure. It provides readers with invaluable information, at a reasonable cost, about the book and the author. The more information made available, the more buzz that can be generated about your writing.

How would my own website facilitate communication to customers, agents, and publicists?
The internet is now the place where journalists, and agents seek out new writers, so you can reach them without actually going to them. Journalists are looking to find the newest story about upcoming authors, and agents do the same. Either can contact you via your website and this way they are the ones doing the “knocking on the door” so to speak. And of course, customers can research invaluable information about you and your book and hopefully place orders too.

How can my website create a virtual book tour?
It is daunting to realize the average shelf life of a book is only three to six months and this only applies to 15% of the books that make it into stores. So how are the other 85% of books sold? Through self-promotion! Websites aid in self-promotion in that they create a virtual worldwide book tour open 24 hours a day. The website can include book discussions, purchasing information, information about the author, and so much more! This virtual book tour travels the world faster than you could ever hope to.

Is a website really that hard to make? Can’t I do this myself?
There are many aspects involved in developing a website that people take for granted. For instance easily understood navigation, effective color schemes, overall look and feel of the site, and proper maintenance and upkeep, not to mention proper programming for effective results in search engines. The entire process is not that hard if you know what you are doing but for the amateur it can be quite daunting. If you feel that you would like to take on the proposed project yourself by all means go for it, but just remember that a poorly designed website can hurt your advertising campaign more than not having a website at all.

It sounds like worldwide advertising is effective, but is it cost effective for a self-publisher?
Absolutely! Whereas other forms of advertising can be quite costly – potentially ranging into the hundreds of thousands of dollars – a website is wholly cost effective. In fact, companies like Go Publish Yourself and E-Moxie Data Solutions, Inc. offer self-publisher website design packages from $375.00.

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