I was at Printers Row this past weekend, the annual Book Festival sponsored by the Chicago Tribune, and I was struck by how many people wanted me to tell them about self-publishing. They were mostly traditionally published authors, some of whom have large followings, but they’re dissatisfied with either the pace of traditional publishing, dislike the lack of control, or want to try something that their current publishers don’t.
Those of you who already self-publish probably know these steps, but you may be interested in my process; it’s a little different, and, yes, it costs more money. In fact, I disagree with those who tout that self-publishing is basically free. I believe that if you want to be taken seriously, you need to invest. No short cuts.
Let me put it this way: I was hoping to go to Vienna, Prague and Budapest later this year. Um. That’s not going to happen now. I’m investing in my book instead.
I’m going to describe what I’m doing so far with Havana Lost. As some of you know, it’s coming out in September. And here’s the thing. Except for the actual production of the book, the process isn’t that different from the way traditional publishers approach the task. Btw, it’s now June, and all of the steps below I’ve done, except for the last one. If you’re self-publishing, and you want to pursue print as well as ebook opportunities, give yourself 3-4 months to accomplish all these tasks.
Step One – Editing
There are two types of editing, and you’ll need both.
- Developmental Editing: Whether you pay a good developmental editor to read your book for continuity, character development, authenticity, and plotting, or whether you’re lucky enough to have discriminating readers or author friends who’ll do the job, you absolutely need another pair of eyes on your manuscript. In traditional publishing, you get it automatically (or at least you used to). But when you self-publish you need to factor it into your plans. And it might cost a bunch of money. I used to work with a developmental editor who charged about $1500. I now rely on authors and friends, but they have to be honest, and they have to be thorough. Believe me, it’s not always pleasant, but it’s critical.
- Copy editing: This covers all the other stuff; grammar, punctuation, style, consistency and accuracy. If you are like most authors, by the time you approach the end of a book you won’t be able to see the forest for the trees. You will need fresh, expert eyes to add those essential finishing touches, smoothing any rough edges and turning something that is good into something awesome. Don’t sabotage your work by a shoddy presentation. As an editor once said to me, “a good writer deserves a good editor.”
Step Two – The Cover
Expect to pay at least $200 for a cover… and as much as $700. I’m not a fan of pre-designed covers or templates. I prefer a cover that says something worth knowing about my books. Marketers recommend that, too; your cover has a vital role to play in catching readers’ imaginations and compelling them to find out what’s inside. Not to mention creating or sustaining your brand.
So be choosy. If you’re paying, don’t settle for a design you don’t like. Tell the designer to try again. Pay attention to fonts, the arrangement of words versus images, the clarity of the images, and the overall design. Good design is pleasing on the eye, poor design isn’t. It jerks your eyes around, making it difficult to read, or includes illogically placed text that makes the reader work harder than they should.
If you’re doing a print version, which I recommend, the designer will need to do the back cover and spine as well. Here’s what my designers came up with for Havana Lost.
Step Three – Preparing materials
- Your publishing imprint – I recommend coming up a Publishing Imprint, the trade name under which your book will be published, especially if you create a print version (which I’ll talk about in more depth next week). You’ll need it if you want to establish an account with Lightning Source for print copies, and if you are planning to use Ingram Spark (which seems like an efficient, quick way to print books). My imprint is The Red Herrings Press.
This is NOT to hide the fact that you’re self-published. In fact in my query letters to reviewers, I make sure to tell them I self-publish; an imprint is simply something that makes you look more professional.
- ISBNs – You’ll need at least 3 different ISBNs per book. One for your ebook, one for print, and one for audio, if you plan to produce one (I am producing an audiobook through ACX.) Yes, ISBNs are outrageously expensive. But they’re worth it, particularly if you plan to use more than one platform to sell your book. You can split 10 with a friend or even buy ISBNs in bulk for a lower cost. Head over to Bowker.com, the official US and UK ISBN provider.
- Jacket copy/Book Description – You need to to craft a couple of paragraphs that describe the novel. Keep it short and punchy. Get some help from other authors or writers whom you know and respect. Research other authors’ books in your genre and see how they do it. The same as your book cover, the aim is to seduce readers to such an extent that they can’t resist finding out more.
Here’s mine:
On the eve of the Cuban Revolution, headstrong 18-year-old Francesca Pacelli flees from her ruthless Mafia-boss father in Havana to the arms of her lover, a rebel fighting with Fidel Castro. Her father, desperate to send her to safety in the US, resorts to torture and blackmail as he searches the island for her.
So begins the first part of a spellbinding saga that spans three generations of the same family. Decades later, the family is lured back to Cuba by the promise of untold riches. But pursuing those riches brings danger as well as opportunity, and ultimately, Francesca’s family must confront the lethal consequences of their choices. From the troubled streets of Havana to the mean streets of Chicago, HAVANA LOST reveals the true cost of chasing power instead of love.
HAVANA LOST is award-winning author Libby Fischer Hellmann’s tenth novel and third thriller that explores how strife and revolution affect the human spirit. HAVANA LOST is a testament to Hellmann’s gift for authentic historical detail as well as her talent for writing compulsively readable thrillers.
How will you use it? Your jacket copy will inform the query letter, the sell sheet and all the platforms through which you distribute your work. It will become ubiquitous, so make sure it’s powerful.
- The sell sheet – This is a single sheet of paper with full details about your book. It should go out to all your reviewers and possible distributors, and it’s handy to have as an at-a-glance reminder. Here’s my Sell Sheet for Havana Lost
- The query letter – This is a simple query letter for bloggers and reviewers, politely asking them if they’d like an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) to review. The better you make your book sound, the more people are likely to be interested. It is another small but critical marketing job that can make a difference in how influential people perceive your book and how many of them get around to reading and reviewing it.
- Interior design for print books – If you are creating a print version, as I recommend, someone needs to design the inside of the book. You can do it yourself, but I choose not to. It’s above my pay grade.
Step Four – Print and Distribute ARCs
- Bound galleys – Just like traditional publishing, you need some bound galleys to send to reviewers and bloggers. I used CreateSpace, which is fast, efficient, and doesn’t cost a lot. I ordered 35 copies— the rest of my ARCS are pdfs.
- Assembling a list – Assembling a list means capturing the contact details of professional reviewers, bloggers, and other potential influencers. If people/organizations have reviewed you favorably in the past, approach them first. There are lists all over the Internet, and at KindleBoards to help you find reviewers. It helps if you have an email list because you can canvas your contacts, asking if they’ll review your book in exchange for an ARC.
- Paying for reviews – If getting the book into bookstores and libraries is important to you, consider paying for a review from PW, Kirkus and/or Foreword Magazine. They still have enormous influence and they are important enough to receive a bound galley.
- Simplified covers – If your permanent cover isn’t ready yet, you can use a simplified one for the ARC. Here is the cover of my ARC:
Step Five – Formatting and uploading
- Self-formatting – Plenty of writers format their ebooks themselves. I don’t. I’ve found people who will do it for me very reasonably. However you do it, You’ll need an epub, mobi and .pdf file, each with a cover embedded.
- Forward and end materials – You will need acknowledgements, a dedication, a list of your other books, snippets of reviews, etc, and a call to action at the back; something like “If you liked this book, would you consider leaving a review on Amazon, Goodreads? Thank you so much.”
- Multi-platform upload – Upload your book to every available platform, unless you intend to go exclusively with one vendor. This is probably the simplest step of all. Essentially it’s just pushing buttons and filling out forms
Step Six – Promotion and Marketing
Marketing is the black hole of time and money. You can spend as much or little as you like, but one thing is certain; you need to do some promotion Here are a couple of essential basics.
Solicit blurbs from other authors in advance – You’ll use them on the front and back cover, in descriptions on Amazon and Kobo, within your website pages.
Promotion Budget – I suggest you prepare to spend at least $1000 on various promotional activities, mostly advertisements on blogs with a broad reach, eg. Book Bub, ENT, and Pixel of Ink. Ads on Facebook can also work well when you get them right.
Invest time – Time is just as important as money. Figure out how much social media you can get done without going crazy; Twitter, your Facebook fan page, Google Plus, Linked In, etc. This is, of course, above and beyond what you do on your website. But that’s another story. And blog post.
I’ll probably do another marketing post later, because it’s a huge subject all by itself. And, of course, marketing is much more of a journey than a destination.
The green stuff
Before I leave you, I want to give you an idea of my costs. Clearly, not everyone wants or needs to go this route, but here’s my ballpark:
- $500 Cover
- $200 Print ARCs
- $600 Reviews (PW, Kirkus)
- $450 Interior Design/Ebook Formatting/Print production
- $500 Copy edit
- $150 ISBNs
- $100 Mailings
Total investment $2,500. Give or take.
I will be back next week with a post on why I think it’s important to produce a print version of your book.