Indie Quality Publishing Tips

steps to elevate your self-published book

Sandra Beckwith has a good list of issues to review as you’re working toward indie publishing your “baby.”

It’s really important to take the time to do publish in the best way you can. Readers can be hard on authors sometimes. They don’t realize how complex the process of indie publishing is. And because they can cut us down anonymously, it’s a lot easier. The best way to get around this is take the time to find out what quality looks like and takes.

Sometimes it takes a bit of money, so save up and don’t publish until you have the money to spend where you need to.

It definitely takes time. I know how exciting it can be to think about sending your book out to the world, but holding off is worth the wait. Many readers won’t give you a second look if they find problems with your book. And if they give you a bad review, that’s not helpful either (though keep in mind, not ever reader will like your book). But not liking your book because it’s not their thing is one thing. Not liking because of quality issues is another.

Take a look here: https://buildbookbuzz.com/why-quality-counts/

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NonFiction Book Proposal Tips From Jane Friedman

Jul30

I wanted to share this wonderful opportuntity for those of you writing nonfiction.

If your nonfiction project has been rejected, you might think publishing trends are working against you or that your platform simply isn’t big enough to attract an agent or publisher. That may indeed be the case.

But other problems are often hiding in plain sight that lead to rejection: (1) your proposal is focused on yourself (or the book’s content), and not the reader, (2) you haven’t demonstrated your knowledge of the readership, (3) you’ve explained your book rather than pitched it, and (4) you haven’t answered the questions “why now?” or “why me?”

Using examples submitted by attendees (that’s you!), Jane will discuss how proposals can be strengthened and revised for a chance at greater success.

Register for free »

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16 Things I’ve Learned From Self-Publishing 16 Books – Musings Of A Wildflower

Jul28

Some real words about self-publishing from Sara Flower Kjeldsen.

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#1 People aren’t waiting to buy your book. The shock. The horror! I’m joking. I think it’s common when you’re first starting out to imagine people are as excited about your …

Source: 16 Things I’ve Learned From Self-Publishing 16 Books – Musings Of A Wildflower

Writer Beware®: The Blog: Another Fake Agency Referral Scam: Harper Literary / Bantam Wings

Mar5

Writer Beware tells us about another publisher/agent scam. Just so you know, no publisher or book agent will contact you looking to represent or publish your book. Never. If someone does contact you and they are even legit, I’d still run. If they need work, they probably aren’t very good.

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Writer Beware shines a bright light into the dark corners of the shadow-world of scams, schemes, and pitfalls that prey on authors.

Source: Writer Beware®: The Blog: Another Fake Agency Referral Scam: Harper Literary / Bantam Wings

DRAFT2DIGITAL TO ACQUIRE SMASHWORDS

Feb10

Now isn’t this a pleasant surprise – the merger of Draft2Digital and Smashwords. I don’t know about you, but I like it! I’ve been a big Smashwords fan, mostly because of it’s founder, Mark Coker, and some of the handy tools Smashwords has – of note: the ability to offer a coupon code for ebooks when you want to have a quick sale or if you want to give someone an ebook for free.

But I know D2D has a lot to offer, and it too seems like a company (like Smashwords) that really does want to help the indie author. I hadn’t heard that D2D was working on POD (print on demand) so I’ll be watching that carefully. More competition is always good, in my opinion.

If you have your book with either of these companies and want more details, click the link below. If you haven’t used Smashwords or D2D, now is the time!

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We’re betting that’s a headline you never expected to see, and we’re already anticipating the chatter this will cause in the indie author community! We know this is going to feel a bit unexpected and out of the blue, but we’re very excited to make this announcement, and even more excited about what this means […]

Source: DRAFT2DIGITAL TO ACQUIRE SMASHWORDS – Draft2Digital | Blog

Copyrighting Your Book

Jul6

How to Make the Copyright Symbol on Your Computer Here is a great post about all aspects of copyright. I always recommend my clients get their book copyrighted. It takes a bit of time and the government copyright page is not as straightforward as I’d like it to be, but it’s definitely doable for most people.

And as the post mentions, it’s not that expensive, so why not?

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Source: Copyrighting Your Work | Books Go Social

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Another Book Scam

Mar27

As you are looking for help with your writing or publishing, remember, there are a lot of scammers out there ready to take advantage of what you don’t know.

Of course, there are many who are legit.

So how do you know the difference?

You go on sites like the one I’ve linked to below (Writer Beware), or join a group like the Alliance of Independent Authors. They have an Approved Services list that can help you find reputable services.
You can join a local writers group and when you get one of these odd emails noted in the linked post, you can ask other writers what they know about the company. Though, really, if a publishing house is contacting you, chances are they are not legit.
When you are looking for services, you can ask your fellow writers who they have used.
You can use the “googlizer” and search for warnings about the company you are thinking of working with, but the sites google might send you to also might not be legitimate. This is not your best option.
Contact me. I keep my eye on this stuff and probably know if a certain company is okay to work with.

And always read the fine print of any contract. Even legitimate companies may offer you things you don’t want.

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Scam, Right Choice Multimedia, West Literary Agency, Philippines

Source: Writer Beware®: The Blog: Scammers Taking Big 5 Publishers’ Names in Vain: A Growing Trend

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The Pros and Cons of Independent Publishing: Part One | Valerie Biel

Apr1

Valerie Biel of Lost Lake Press, lays out the good and the bad of both traditional and indie publishing in a clear, easy to understand way. If you’ve ever questioned why to do one or the other, take a look at this post.

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Welcome to a three-part series on the pros and cons of independent or self publishing. This is going to be an honest discussion about what you need to consider before deciding which route is best for your publishing goals and skill set. First, we’ll look at overall concerns within the positives and negatives of each type of publishing. Part two will dive into potential earnings and royalties along with the business concerns you must address for successful independent publishing.

Source: The Pros and Cons of Independent Publishing: Part One | Valerie Biel

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The Biggest Mistake New Authors Make

Mar16

Great post by Anne R. Allen about common mistakes, misconceptions with writing that first book.

I like how she specifically address the problematic examples she gives and offers some solutions to the quandary of that first book.

I disagree, however, that you shouldn’t try and pitch that first book. Why not pitch it? You learn a lot by doing this. But… at the same time, work on that second book for sure, and the third. Build that viewership via a blog or some other social media presence. Join writer’s groups, critique groups. Go to writing conferences… Go ahead and self-publish, if you want. If the agent you eventually find doesn’t want your first book, then maybe they’ll want the second or third one.

Publishing is a business so you need to learn the business. And connecting with other writers can help in so many ways.

Novelists and memoirists have a lot in common, including the mistakes they tend to make. Don’t make this one when you’re starting out.

Source: The Biggest Mistake New Novelists and Memoirists Make

How to Copyright a Book

Feb26

I’m sure I’ve shared posts on copyright before, but it’s always good to have a refresher. It’s quite easy to get an official copyright for anything you publish and even though it doesn’t help someone from taking your work electronically, it’s an inexpensive safeguard ($55 for electronic submission) if you every need to enter the court system. And Dave gives some examples of text used on a copyright page for those indie publisher out there!

Thanks Dave and Lawyer Steve!

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Learn from a lawyer how you can legally copyright a book, with examples and a easy step-by-step process to help protect your book’s rights.

Source: How to Copyright a Book (Written by a Lawyer) [2019] – Written by a Laywer

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