It is truly a miracle that I finished my Nano goal of writing a 50,000 word book in one month. I actually finished on the last day. Yay!!
Now, I need to name the book and edit it.
I'd love your help in naming it. Vote for your favorite.
1.Self-publishing: the nitty gritty
2.Self-publishing: the real nuts and bolts
3.Indie-publishing how to
4.Indie-publishing: the nitty gritty
5.Indie-publishing: the real nuts and bolts
6. The Definitive Guide to Self-publishing
7. Your suggestion here
Thanks for your help!
Showing posts with label indie publishing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label indie publishing. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Indie Publishing Secret #24 When Do I Get Paid?
Indie Publishing Secret #24- Payment
Last week we talked about how much we earn as authors, now it's time to discuss when we get paid.
Publishers pay quarterly. That means you will get a check every three months when your book sells.
If you indie-publish you will be at the mercy of the places you sell your books. For example, Createspace pays monthly after the books sells. That means that books you sell in February will show up in your bank account at the end of April and only if your total is more than $20.00.
By the way, it is important that you let them pay you electronically. Checks require higher totals sold and take a lot more time.
You will get paid for your ebook with Amazon 60 days following the end of the calendar month when the applicable sale occured. That means that if you sold a book in January, you would get paid in April for that book if your total is more than $10.00.
Barnes and Noble pays the same way Amazon does.
Smashwords pays quarterly and you receive the check 40 days after that period ends. If you sell books in Jan/Feb/and March, you will be paid at the end of April and March may not be included. Confusing, huh! Your total must be more than $10.00.
You may put your book in consignment stores. You will be paid if they sell.
My distributor pays monthly, but there is a lag time of 3 months from when the book was invoiced. That means that at the end of each month a new books go out, they send me an invoice. Three months later I get paid on that invoice.
It's tricky.
That is why you need to have a back-up of money to tide you over. If you print 1000 and all thousand go out that first month, you still have to wait almost 4 months to get paid.
You will need more money to print more books and you can't rely on that income. Be prepared to pay for several printings before you get paid.
You could, of course, put it all out there and print more than 1000 at a time. You will save per book, but they may take time to move or never move. Not to discourage you, but first time authors usually don't move 2,000 books. With that said, my book has already moved 2500 in less than 4 months. It is possible.
You have to determine the amount of risk you are comfortable with. Also, with debut indie authors, the curve tends to go up slowly at first then explodes around the year to two year mark. That's a long time to wait to be paid.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Indie Publishing Secrets revealed #22 Where's the Money?
Indie Publishing Secrets revealed Where's the Money?
Cost of you book in stores-Retail $13.99
What's left for you? $2.50 (30%) or $1.68 (20%)
You pay Uncle Sam about 1/3 of that $1.13/1.67 (13%,20%) profit
If your experience with traditional publishing was different than this, I'd love to hear about it. Please comment.
Indie Publishing
Cost of your book in retail stores $13.99
Bookstores pay 60% of retail for your book that leaves $8.39
Your distributor takes 25% of that 60% They earn $2.10. That leaves $6.29
Subtract the cost to print your book $1.25(15%)-$3.50 (42%) for a 350 page book depending
on how many you print.
What you get $3.04 (36%) to $4.79 (57%) if you do all free advertising
Good luck with that
Uncle Sam takes about 1/3 $2.12 (25%)-3.16 (38%)
POD (Print on Demand) Publisher I will use Createspace as the example
Cost of your book $13.99
You get $6.24 from sales at Createspace
$3.44 from sales on Amazon
$.64 from all other .coms
Your book is not in stores
Ebooks
Smashwords takes about 19%. That is about $.18 per dollar your book sells for
If you let Smashwords distribute to Barnes and Noble, Diesel, Kobe and others, you end up with 60%. That means that if you sell your book for $2.99 you'll get $1.81.
Amazon.com (KDP)
If you price your book between $2 and $9.98, you will earn 65%
If you price your book less than $1.99 or over $9.99, you will earn 35%.
Happy earning
Typical scenario for a published book with a traditional publisher
Cost of you book in stores-Retail $13.99The bookstore pays 60%(typically) for your book. You pay your publisher and agent from that amount. $8.39
Your publisher takes 65% of that for advertising, distributing and printing. $5.45 (65%)
Your agent takes 15% for selling your book to the publisher-I'm not sure if that 15% is taken from the $8.39 or the $2.94. So, I've color coded them.
You pay Uncle Sam about 1/3 of that $1.13/1.67 (13%,20%) profit
If your experience with traditional publishing was different than this, I'd love to hear about it. Please comment.
Indie Publishing
Cost of your book in retail stores $13.99
Bookstores pay 60% of retail for your book that leaves $8.39
Your distributor takes 25% of that 60% They earn $2.10. That leaves $6.29
Subtract the cost to print your book $1.25(15%)-$3.50 (42%) for a 350 page book depending
on how many you print.
What you get $3.04 (36%) to $4.79 (57%) if you do all free advertising
Good luck with that
Uncle Sam takes about 1/3 $2.12 (25%)-3.16 (38%)
POD (Print on Demand) Publisher I will use Createspace as the example
Cost of your book $13.99
You get $6.24 from sales at Createspace
$3.44 from sales on Amazon
$.64 from all other .coms
Your book is not in stores
Ebooks
Smashwords takes about 19%. That is about $.18 per dollar your book sells for
If you let Smashwords distribute to Barnes and Noble, Diesel, Kobe and others, you end up with 60%. That means that if you sell your book for $2.99 you'll get $1.81.
Amazon.com (KDP)
If you price your book between $2 and $9.98, you will earn 65%
If you price your book less than $1.99 or over $9.99, you will earn 35%.
Happy earning
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Indie Publishing Secrets Revealed- #20 Editing
Indie Publishing Secrets Revealed- #20 Editing
Okay, time for confessions on EDITING. Boring right?
After reading my story, you'll think twice.
I don't like to edit. I think it's a drag.
If you are an indie author, you will probably be tempted to skip the professional editing part of publishing. Why? Because it can be expensive and who has $300-$1000 bucks to give out? Right? And besides, every book you've ever read has errors in it. Yes, I know. Even the big six published books have errors. Yep.
You also are probably thinking that so many people have gone over your manuscript, there is no way there could be many errors. You have a critique group, beta readers, friends who edit and all of them have read your book. You've done your due diligence.
That's what I thought.
From the inception of my book to its publication, it took a little over 4 years. That is a long time for someone who doesn't have a very long attention span....
When I started writing Watched, I knew nothing about writing a novel. That being said, I did win a lot of awards for my writing in college. I should've taken the hint back then. Instead, it took me years of teaching awesome teenagers and a dream to kick my butt in gear. I was top of my class in all my English courses, too.
I did all the right things. I went to writer's conferences, joined a few critique groups and edited my manuscript like crazy. I had a lot of beta-readers read it and took a lot of their advice. I edited and edited. So many people had looked at my manuscript and heck, I'd looked at a milllion times. How could there possibly be any errors?
Truth be told. I think something happens to an author's eyes when they look at their work for the millionth time. At least for me, I couldn't see anything wrong with it anymore. Maybe it had something to do with being in the middle of writing the sequel...who knows. My eyes could no longer detect any errors.
It was ready. Finally. I was ecstatic and impatient.
I set my release date with Barnes and Noble and started spreading the word.
On June 6th, 2011, I gave birth to my baby, right there in Barnes and Noble. I was so proud.
At the end of June, a couple of my cute friends pointed out a few silly punctuation errors. I quickly fixed them for the ebook version and made the changes for the print version. The next printing would be perfect, I told myself. I love my friends.
Then, in August, another awesome friend of mine that has an affinity for English, helped me do an in-depth edit of Watched.
Wait, you're saying. I thought it was already released. Yep. It was. 1500 strong..and that's just the print books...
She was amazing. You will not believe how many errors she found in my perfectly critiqued and edited book. Yikes. She found missing quotations, missing commas, missspellings, words that should have been capitalized, incorrect punctuation and other general awkwardness.
Don't let this happen with your book.
After several plot/content edits, when you think your book is perfect, have someone line edit it. Make the changes and have someone else line edit it, just to be safe.(I guess twice is over-kill if you hire a professional...)
What was I thinking? I wasn't.
So, my book has been out now for three months and I finally have a polished book. I can't tell you how good that feels. Don't leave it to chance. Do it right the first time. Then you won't be like me, wishing you could give all 1500 of those people a new polished book.
Maybe when I'm rich and famous. :)
HAPPY EDITING
Okay, time for confessions on EDITING. Boring right?
After reading my story, you'll think twice.
I don't like to edit. I think it's a drag.
If you are an indie author, you will probably be tempted to skip the professional editing part of publishing. Why? Because it can be expensive and who has $300-$1000 bucks to give out? Right? And besides, every book you've ever read has errors in it. Yes, I know. Even the big six published books have errors. Yep.
You also are probably thinking that so many people have gone over your manuscript, there is no way there could be many errors. You have a critique group, beta readers, friends who edit and all of them have read your book. You've done your due diligence.
That's what I thought.
From the inception of my book to its publication, it took a little over 4 years. That is a long time for someone who doesn't have a very long attention span....
When I started writing Watched, I knew nothing about writing a novel. That being said, I did win a lot of awards for my writing in college. I should've taken the hint back then. Instead, it took me years of teaching awesome teenagers and a dream to kick my butt in gear. I was top of my class in all my English courses, too.
I did all the right things. I went to writer's conferences, joined a few critique groups and edited my manuscript like crazy. I had a lot of beta-readers read it and took a lot of their advice. I edited and edited. So many people had looked at my manuscript and heck, I'd looked at a milllion times. How could there possibly be any errors?
Truth be told. I think something happens to an author's eyes when they look at their work for the millionth time. At least for me, I couldn't see anything wrong with it anymore. Maybe it had something to do with being in the middle of writing the sequel...who knows. My eyes could no longer detect any errors.
It was ready. Finally. I was ecstatic and impatient.
I set my release date with Barnes and Noble and started spreading the word.
On June 6th, 2011, I gave birth to my baby, right there in Barnes and Noble. I was so proud.
At the end of June, a couple of my cute friends pointed out a few silly punctuation errors. I quickly fixed them for the ebook version and made the changes for the print version. The next printing would be perfect, I told myself. I love my friends.
Then, in August, another awesome friend of mine that has an affinity for English, helped me do an in-depth edit of Watched.
Wait, you're saying. I thought it was already released. Yep. It was. 1500 strong..and that's just the print books...
She was amazing. You will not believe how many errors she found in my perfectly critiqued and edited book. Yikes. She found missing quotations, missing commas, missspellings, words that should have been capitalized, incorrect punctuation and other general awkwardness.
Don't let this happen with your book.
After several plot/content edits, when you think your book is perfect, have someone line edit it. Make the changes and have someone else line edit it, just to be safe.(I guess twice is over-kill if you hire a professional...)
What was I thinking? I wasn't.
So, my book has been out now for three months and I finally have a polished book. I can't tell you how good that feels. Don't leave it to chance. Do it right the first time. Then you won't be like me, wishing you could give all 1500 of those people a new polished book.
Maybe when I'm rich and famous. :)
HAPPY EDITING
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Secrets to Indie Publishing #17- Getting your Book Distributed
Indie publishing secret #17 Distribution
Now you have a proof copy of your book. Amazing feeling right? I know you did a happy dance...maybe you even kissed the cover.
What's next?
You need to get a distributor and a printer.
What, you say? I already have that with Createspace.
True, and you could leave it at that, but remember-
Now you have a proof copy of your book. Amazing feeling right? I know you did a happy dance...maybe you even kissed the cover.
What's next?
You need to get a distributor and a printer.
What, you say? I already have that with Createspace.
True, and you could leave it at that, but remember-
Your book will NOT be on store shelves
Bookstores will only take your book if it is returnable for 100 years. Createspace is a POD (Print on demand) publisher and does not accept returns.
If you are okay with your print book only selling at online retailers, just use Createspace. If you want to be on bookstore shelves, you need to find a printer and a distributor.
Once your proof comes back perfect, order several more (3-4).
Look up distributors in your area. I used the internet. I also asked my indie-published friends. I read about what they had to offer and if they were accepting submissions. I followed the submission guidelines for the one I liked and sent them a copy of the book. Two weeks later, they told me they wanted my book. Yippee! (Happy dance here, too.)
In the meantime, I got with a cool designer at Speedi-pack in Layton to re-create my cover by looking at the one I created on Createspace. It cost me $20 bucks and was perfect. He put the copies on my jump drive. (That was easy)
I also called a bunch of printers in my area and talked to some indie-published authors about who they used. I asked for approximate costs. Once I found ones I liked, I sent them the cover copy and the interior file to get an exact cost. Two days later I received emails with the cost breakdown.
What? You have to pay for books? I know, it's a hard pill to swallow. You can expect to pay around 3 grand for a first run of a thousand books. If you can ante up more moolah, you can reduce the price per book. Why can't you just buy the books from Createspace and give them to your distributor and save all the hassle? Because you will be paying for distribution twice. You won't make any money.
Once I knew I had a distributor, I gave the printer the go ahead and he created a proof that he mailed out to me. 3 days later the proof was in my hot little hands. I called and approved it and they started the print job.
Five days later, my books were ready for pick-up or delivery and I was invested in my new publishing venture 3 grand...but my books were on the fast track to being in stores as well as being available online. I just found out that I made that money back and it's only been 3 months. Pretty amazing if you ask me. (Freaking awesome dance here)
Next week I'll share the mistakes I made during this process. Pitfalls you will be able to avoid. Go ahead, one more time. Give me a good shake.
Happy printing and distributing
Monday, August 29, 2011
The Secrets of Indie Publishing Revealed #16 Reviews
Indie Publishing Secret #17 The "Oh So Important" Reviews
So, I read an article that said most indie authors need to give away about 100 print/ebooks on their way out of obscurity. Wow! That's a lot. Good thing you can use your print books for giveaways on awesome blogs. You'll also be sending review copies to reviewers, distributors, bookstores, and printers. As for ebooks, it's a breeze with Smashwords. The coupon codes they give you allow you to give away your book at no charge. So nice.
Two things need to happen with those freebies
1. Word needs to spread about your book
2. You need to get people who like it to review it for you
This didn't even cross my mind. I had to learn the hard way.
You don't.
Lots of people had read my book before it showed up on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords and Goodreads and all those other fabulous retailers.These people told me how much they liked it, but I didn't contact them and tell them to review my book. Then, one fine day, I looked at my Goodreads account and discovered I'd gotten a bad review. Why? Why would anyone give me a bad review? :) And, on top of that, it was the first review. The review everyone sees FIRST. It doesn't matter that I have many great reviews after that, the bad review sits front and center for all to read.
You better believe I hunted down some people to review for me after that... and fast.
Something to keep in mind, however, is that people will promise you a review and then will never do it. Remember that it is something extra for them to do. You could choose to pester them like crazy, but I think the easier way would be to email them the link to the pages where your book is being reviewed to make it easy for people to keep their promise. We are all busy and forget.
Let your readers also know that they can "like" and "rate" your book. Some people will never "write" a review, but almost everyone will at least rate it and like it.
So, get your friends/readers lined up to write reviews for you on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Goodreads, and anywhere else you can think of. Ask them to "rate" and "like" you at the very least. Sure you'll do a review tour and people will write reviews on their blogs, but you need them to end up where people both buy and research your book. You NEED good reviews to populate your pages.
In summary, get copies of your book out there before it is officially released. Scatter them far and wide and then ask for the reviews. Once your book pops up on all the sites, send everyone links to review/rate it. You'll be so glad you did.
Now you know!
Happy reviewing!
So, I read an article that said most indie authors need to give away about 100 print/ebooks on their way out of obscurity. Wow! That's a lot. Good thing you can use your print books for giveaways on awesome blogs. You'll also be sending review copies to reviewers, distributors, bookstores, and printers. As for ebooks, it's a breeze with Smashwords. The coupon codes they give you allow you to give away your book at no charge. So nice.
Two things need to happen with those freebies
1. Word needs to spread about your book
2. You need to get people who like it to review it for you
This didn't even cross my mind. I had to learn the hard way.
You don't.
Lots of people had read my book before it showed up on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords and Goodreads and all those other fabulous retailers.These people told me how much they liked it, but I didn't contact them and tell them to review my book. Then, one fine day, I looked at my Goodreads account and discovered I'd gotten a bad review. Why? Why would anyone give me a bad review? :) And, on top of that, it was the first review. The review everyone sees FIRST. It doesn't matter that I have many great reviews after that, the bad review sits front and center for all to read.
You better believe I hunted down some people to review for me after that... and fast.
Something to keep in mind, however, is that people will promise you a review and then will never do it. Remember that it is something extra for them to do. You could choose to pester them like crazy, but I think the easier way would be to email them the link to the pages where your book is being reviewed to make it easy for people to keep their promise. We are all busy and forget.
Let your readers also know that they can "like" and "rate" your book. Some people will never "write" a review, but almost everyone will at least rate it and like it.
So, get your friends/readers lined up to write reviews for you on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Goodreads, and anywhere else you can think of. Ask them to "rate" and "like" you at the very least. Sure you'll do a review tour and people will write reviews on their blogs, but you need them to end up where people both buy and research your book. You NEED good reviews to populate your pages.
In summary, get copies of your book out there before it is officially released. Scatter them far and wide and then ask for the reviews. Once your book pops up on all the sites, send everyone links to review/rate it. You'll be so glad you did.
Now you know!
Happy reviewing!
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Indie Publishing Secret #11 ....and a Contest?
So, remember in Secret #6 I talked about people selling your book? Some amazing bloggers are doing that this week for me. Lucky me and lucky YOU! Several are holding contests (including me) and you could easily win! (Check out the end of the post for details or go to cindymhogan.blogspot.com for the contest, recipes and more)
What's Secret #11? Hold contests the week your book comes out and regularly for a while.
This may seem like a jump forward from what we've been discussing, but you need to be thinking about it now and asking people to be a part of the chaos when you do publish. Start getting things lined up several months before you actually print or publish the ebook. This is a good way to get the word out.
Just change the contests up. Hold a launch blog tour/blast contest. Have your blogger friends have giveaways of your book on their site. Have a review contest. Give books away on Goodreads. Have your friends and others do interviews. Have people feature you on their blogs and talk about you on Twitter and Facebook....Reach out. Ask for help. Be methodical about it and keep track about who offers to do what and when. Be creative. Think of fun ways to get people to know you and be interested in your book.
Give your book to people who help you out. You've got to give the book to your reviewers for sure, and they need the book a couple months in advance. You can feature them on your site, too. Reward them for helping you out.
Make sure that you are still offering good content on your blog while the contests are going on. Don't stop blogging your regular stuff-remember, this is what brought people to you in the first place.
I'll go into more detail later about doing all of this. I just wanted to bring it to your attention and get you thinking about it now so you can start planning.
Happy contest planning- see below for the contest
![]()
YAHOO! I'm so excited! It's review week for Watched!
You could also win a $10 Amazon gift card just for writing your own review of Watched in the comment section of this blog or emailing it to cindymhogan at yahoo dot com before August 12th.
That gives you plenty of time to read it and review it. Buy an ebook (only 2.99 right now)here for Kindle or here for Nook or print books here.
Earn 5 bonus points by posting your review with a link to buy Watched, on your own blog before August 12th. Make sure you comment with a link to your site so I can give you the 5 bonus points.
Check out these fun blogs on these days and you just might win something super fun!
If you visit all the blogs and read all the reviews and interviews just leave me a comment here that you did by Wed. July 27th for the 5 bonus points to win the $10 gift card.
What's Secret #11? Hold contests the week your book comes out and regularly for a while.
This may seem like a jump forward from what we've been discussing, but you need to be thinking about it now and asking people to be a part of the chaos when you do publish. Start getting things lined up several months before you actually print or publish the ebook. This is a good way to get the word out.
Just change the contests up. Hold a launch blog tour/blast contest. Have your blogger friends have giveaways of your book on their site. Have a review contest. Give books away on Goodreads. Have your friends and others do interviews. Have people feature you on their blogs and talk about you on Twitter and Facebook....Reach out. Ask for help. Be methodical about it and keep track about who offers to do what and when. Be creative. Think of fun ways to get people to know you and be interested in your book.
Give your book to people who help you out. You've got to give the book to your reviewers for sure, and they need the book a couple months in advance. You can feature them on your site, too. Reward them for helping you out.
Make sure that you are still offering good content on your blog while the contests are going on. Don't stop blogging your regular stuff-remember, this is what brought people to you in the first place.
I'll go into more detail later about doing all of this. I just wanted to bring it to your attention and get you thinking about it now so you can start planning.
Happy contest planning- see below for the contest
YAHOO! I'm so excited! It's review week for Watched!All week long you'll get to read reviews of Watched on some fun blogs and have chances to win prizes. Some of the blogs are even giving away signed copies of Watched. Go visit the blogs on the list below and find out what the buzz is all about.
You could also win a $10 Amazon gift card just for writing your own review of Watched in the comment section of this blog or emailing it to cindymhogan at yahoo dot com before August 12th.
That gives you plenty of time to read it and review it. Buy an ebook (only 2.99 right now)here for Kindle or here for Nook or print books here.
Earn 5 bonus points by posting your review with a link to buy Watched, on your own blog before August 12th. Make sure you comment with a link to your site so I can give you the 5 bonus points.
Check out these fun blogs on these days and you just might win something super fun!
Tuesday, July 19th Canda's Inkblast
Thursday, July 21st Fire and Ice
Friday, July 22nd Star Crossed Book Reviews
Tuesday, July 26th Why Not Because I Said So
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Secrets to Indie Publishing Revealed #9-Choosing an ISBN
Secret #9
How's it going with your cover? What have you discovered? What about formatting your file? Did that go well?
It's time to choose your ISBN.
Go to Createspace and sign in.
Click on your book title and look for the "set up" tab. Click on ISBN.
You have four choices-each with pros and cons
Go to a barcode generator online and pay a few bucks to have one made that includes the price if you are selling it outside Createspace distribution.
Take some time to decide which route to go. Once you choose an ISBN, you are stuck with it for that book. You can re-publish with a different ISBN, but that means you start all over and it can be a headache. I had to do this and it is no fun.
Happy ISBNing!
How's it going with your cover? What have you discovered? What about formatting your file? Did that go well?
It's time to choose your ISBN.
Go to Createspace and sign in.
Click on your book title and look for the "set up" tab. Click on ISBN.
You have four choices-each with pros and cons
- Free. If you only intend to sell through Createspace channels, you may want to choose this. It will list Createspace as the publisher.YOu can not take this ISBN with you to another printer/distributor. If you want your books in stores, do not choose this option. Createspace says it will be available for stores to purchase because it will be in the Ingram catalogue, but bookstores do not order POD books (Createspace is a POD distributor/printer) Bookstores insist on the ability to return your book at any time up to 99 years from purchase. POD is a final sale-no returns.
- 10 buck option- If you only intend to sell through Createspace channels, you many want to choose this. Why the $10 fee? It give you the ability to "imprint" the book as the publisher. You can use your name or make up a publishing company like "Sunshine Publishing" to be the publisher. This keeps Createspace off your book info. (all the info about taking it with you from option #1 holds true with this option)
- Custom-If you want to take your book and get it onto bookstore shelves as well as Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com and others-you may want to choose this option. Sure, $99 seems like a lot of money for your own ISBN when you can get one for free, but remember, If you choose option 1 or 2, you have no control over where your book goes. You can not take it to another distributor. (Createspace is a printer and distributor) using their ISBN. This option lets you take it where ever you want to have it printed or distributed.
- Custom Universal-this allows you to buy your ISBN somewhere else and put it on your book. If you intend to write several books and self-publish them, this is what you will want to do. You can go to Bowker.com and buy "packs" of ISBN's for less than $99 a pop. If you buy ten, it's around $500. Most authors who self-publish go this route. You can take your book to any printer and/or distributor you choose.
Go to a barcode generator online and pay a few bucks to have one made that includes the price if you are selling it outside Createspace distribution.
Take some time to decide which route to go. Once you choose an ISBN, you are stuck with it for that book. You can re-publish with a different ISBN, but that means you start all over and it can be a headache. I had to do this and it is no fun.
Happy ISBNing!
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Indie Publishing Secrets Revealed-Secret #7-Getting a Cover
Secret #7 Getting A Cover For Your Book
I hope you've had fun researching e-publishing. Now, let's get a cover for your book.
Go to Createspace.com and set up an account if you haven't already.
Now, follow the easy steps to Add a New Title. (Don't get an ISBN at this point. Just skip it) It doesn't need to be real. Just play around with everything. After a bit of snooping, go ahead and check out Cover Creator.
You have three choices:
1. Import a picture or drawing of your own into the creator using a template they provide (Easy and your own) *just remember, if you don't format your own cover, you can only get a high-resolution thumbnail from Createspace of the front cover...perfect for ebooks.
I used my own picture and imported it into the template I had chosen in Cover-Creator.
2. Use the pictures they provide for the templates (easiest, but not your own) Again, you will only get a high-rez. pic. of the front cover.
3. Format your own picture following their directions (difficult, but you have all the control) You'll have the whole cover to use as you please.
Before you decide which of the three to do, go ahead and look at all the templates.
Upload a picture and see how Cover Creator makes it into a book cover. Don't worry, nothing is permanent. You can change it a thousand times if you want.
Try different templates and different pictures/drawings and fill in the back copy. You can even upload your picture to go on the back cover if you want
Play around. Get familiar with how this works.
Just a side note.
If you already know what picture/drawing you want for your cover, you will need to somehow super-impose the price of your book on the back, right above the area where the barcode will go.
I used photoshop to do this. You can use whatever photo-altering program you want to use.
Do this BEFORE you order your proof. Many bookstores will not carry your book without the price printed on it and Createspace does not do that and they don't tell you to do it.
Have fun playing around with Cover-Creator and keep editing.
Happy creating!
I hope you've had fun researching e-publishing. Now, let's get a cover for your book.
Go to Createspace.com and set up an account if you haven't already.
Now, follow the easy steps to Add a New Title. (Don't get an ISBN at this point. Just skip it) It doesn't need to be real. Just play around with everything. After a bit of snooping, go ahead and check out Cover Creator.
You have three choices:
1. Import a picture or drawing of your own into the creator using a template they provide (Easy and your own) *just remember, if you don't format your own cover, you can only get a high-resolution thumbnail from Createspace of the front cover...perfect for ebooks.
I used my own picture and imported it into the template I had chosen in Cover-Creator.
2. Use the pictures they provide for the templates (easiest, but not your own) Again, you will only get a high-rez. pic. of the front cover.
3. Format your own picture following their directions (difficult, but you have all the control) You'll have the whole cover to use as you please.
Before you decide which of the three to do, go ahead and look at all the templates.
Upload a picture and see how Cover Creator makes it into a book cover. Don't worry, nothing is permanent. You can change it a thousand times if you want.
Try different templates and different pictures/drawings and fill in the back copy. You can even upload your picture to go on the back cover if you want
Play around. Get familiar with how this works.
Just a side note.
If you already know what picture/drawing you want for your cover, you will need to somehow super-impose the price of your book on the back, right above the area where the barcode will go.
I used photoshop to do this. You can use whatever photo-altering program you want to use.
Do this BEFORE you order your proof. Many bookstores will not carry your book without the price printed on it and Createspace does not do that and they don't tell you to do it.
Have fun playing around with Cover-Creator and keep editing.
Happy creating!
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Indie Publishing Secrets Revealed Step #6 People sell your books, duh!
Step #6
All right. It's time we had a heart to heart.
Have you thought about how you are going to market your book? Do you realize that marketing is HUGE. If you only remember one thing about marketing, you should remember this,
people sell your books.
What does this really mean? You need to get to know a lot of people before you even consider self-publishing-at least if you want to sell a lot of books. Here are a few things to help you do that.
Your biggest obstacle in indie-publishing is getting the word out about your book.(and honestly, traditionally published authors have the same challenge.)You need to have a lot of people who care about your success in order to accomplish this. These initial people spread the word.
People sell your books through word of mouth. The more mouths you have telling people about your books the better. Get on this right away. You do not have time to delay.
I hope you are already doing a lot of the things I listed and only need to up your participation in those activities. If not, pick one thing on the list and start doing it, today. Add something new each week and create habits that help make author-socializing easy and not burdensome.
For example, I spend 15-30 minutes in the morning going through emails, twitter, goodreads, google reader, etc. At noon, I spend another 10-15 mins catching anything new and before bed I give it another 10-15 min. If I don't, it gets overwhelming.
Some days, depending on what's going on, I could only spend 20 mins on social media, other days I need the full hour. Help yourself by being consistent and don't ever let yourself get sucked in to spending all your time reaching out and making friends and no time writing. Find your balance.
Happy networking!
people sell your books.
- You should have a blog that you post regularly on.
- You should follow lots of blogs- ones that you like and actually read AND comment on because you like them. Use google.com/reader to make this a breeze.
- Join writers' groups and participate regularly.
- Go to other author signings and talk to them about their books.
- Start using twitter.com
- Tell everyone you meet that your book is coming out soon.
- Get in touch with bookstores and talk to them about signings.
- Get on Goodreads.com
- While you're at writers' conferences, talk to a lot of people and get their information. Make yourself known. Talk to the authors that are there. Be genuine with people-be yourself and make friends.
Your biggest obstacle in indie-publishing is getting the word out about your book.(and honestly, traditionally published authors have the same challenge.)You need to have a lot of people who care about your success in order to accomplish this. These initial people spread the word.
Happy networking!
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Secrets to Indie Publishing. Step #5 Choosing an Ebook Service
Step #5
Keep revising and have a few readers give your manuscript a quick read. Again, have them keep a notebook handy to write down their thoughts and feelings. (And any grammar edits you and your editor missed. They are there. I promise you.)
Now, check out e-publishing services.
A good one to look at is Smashwords.com and it's free to set up. It takes your manuscript and cover and creates all the different forms e-readers use, including formats for the Nook and Kindle. (They are having some problems with Amazon right now and that won't be fixed until October, 2011) It also distributes your ebook for you. Smashwords takes a cut, 15%, and the site it goes to takes a cut, and you still end up with at least 60%.
It is pretty easy to publish for the Kindle without Smashwords by going to kdp.amazon.com (And if you price your book for between $2.99-9.99, you keep 70%.)
It's not so easy to publish for the Nook. It's crazy confusing. Use Smashwords for sure. You also want your book available on sites like Kobe and Sony and the others Smashwords distributes to.
Remember, you are only researching now. You still need a cover. That is why Createspace is so important.
Smashwords can't convert your manuscript into all the different formats without you first formatting it in the way they tell you to.
I know that sounds confusing, but they actually have a free e-book with directions that walk you through the process.
I read through the book and started to put a copy of my "print" manuscript into the form they wanted. Then I found out Smashwords keeps a list of people who take your book and format it for you for super cheap.
You just request the list from Smashwords and then pick the person that floats your boat. I picked a fabulous formatter who guaranteed her work and it only cost me 25 bucks. Money well spent. My manuscript got included in the premium catalogue on the first try. (You want to be included in the premium catalogue)
Going too slow for you? Take a breath. There is so much to learn, take your time. Remember, I made all the mistakes so you won't have to.
Happy researching and editing until next Tuesday.
Keep revising and have a few readers give your manuscript a quick read. Again, have them keep a notebook handy to write down their thoughts and feelings. (And any grammar edits you and your editor missed. They are there. I promise you.)
Now, check out e-publishing services.
A good one to look at is Smashwords.com and it's free to set up. It takes your manuscript and cover and creates all the different forms e-readers use, including formats for the Nook and Kindle. (They are having some problems with Amazon right now and that won't be fixed until October, 2011) It also distributes your ebook for you. Smashwords takes a cut, 15%, and the site it goes to takes a cut, and you still end up with at least 60%.
It is pretty easy to publish for the Kindle without Smashwords by going to kdp.amazon.com (And if you price your book for between $2.99-9.99, you keep 70%.)
It's not so easy to publish for the Nook. It's crazy confusing. Use Smashwords for sure. You also want your book available on sites like Kobe and Sony and the others Smashwords distributes to.
Remember, you are only researching now. You still need a cover. That is why Createspace is so important.
Smashwords can't convert your manuscript into all the different formats without you first formatting it in the way they tell you to.
I know that sounds confusing, but they actually have a free e-book with directions that walk you through the process.
I read through the book and started to put a copy of my "print" manuscript into the form they wanted. Then I found out Smashwords keeps a list of people who take your book and format it for you for super cheap.
You just request the list from Smashwords and then pick the person that floats your boat. I picked a fabulous formatter who guaranteed her work and it only cost me 25 bucks. Money well spent. My manuscript got included in the premium catalogue on the first try. (You want to be included in the premium catalogue)
Going too slow for you? Take a breath. There is so much to learn, take your time. Remember, I made all the mistakes so you won't have to.
Happy researching and editing until next Tuesday.
Friday, May 20, 2011
Indie Publishing Secrets Revealed
Ever wondered if you could publish a book on your own? On this blog, I am starting a series going through the steps to do just that.
First things first. Steps 1-3
Step number one-finish your manuscript. (seems obvious, doesn't it?)
Step two-Once finished, and hopefully you used a critique group to help you along the way, give it out to about 10 beta-readers (these are people who love to read and will be honest with you-not family members).
Ask them to have a notebook or paper handy while they read to jot down things that come to their minds like: I'm losing interest here, I totally don't understand this, why would this happen, this doesn't sound like the character I know, I love this part, and any grammar problems they stumble across. Once they've finished, interview them and take notes.
Step three, after you've gotten all 10 beta-readers' feedback and have made the changes that need to be made, have your work edited by an editor. Pick someone you like and who fits your style of writing. There's nothing worse than an editor messing with your character's voice if it's just fine. It should be a content and grammar edit. Do not skip this step!
Come back next week for step four.
Happy writing
First things first. Steps 1-3
Step number one-finish your manuscript. (seems obvious, doesn't it?)
Step two-Once finished, and hopefully you used a critique group to help you along the way, give it out to about 10 beta-readers (these are people who love to read and will be honest with you-not family members).
Ask them to have a notebook or paper handy while they read to jot down things that come to their minds like: I'm losing interest here, I totally don't understand this, why would this happen, this doesn't sound like the character I know, I love this part, and any grammar problems they stumble across. Once they've finished, interview them and take notes.
Step three, after you've gotten all 10 beta-readers' feedback and have made the changes that need to be made, have your work edited by an editor. Pick someone you like and who fits your style of writing. There's nothing worse than an editor messing with your character's voice if it's just fine. It should be a content and grammar edit. Do not skip this step!
Come back next week for step four.
Happy writing
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)