Getting started
As a self published author, I understand the struggles of publishing on your own. For those who don't want to go the route of finding a traditional publisher, (No matter what the reason may be), there are sites that can help you make the dream of seeing your books published come true.
First Off...
Do not rush to publish, or else your work can wind up looking unprepared and unprofessional which can turn off a lot of potential readers.
Also know that once you self publish or e-publish your work a lot of traditional publishers won't touch it afterwards. (In case you're thinking of still submitting your book to publishers even after self publishing it.)
Also know that once you self publish or e-publish your work a lot of traditional publishers won't touch it afterwards. (In case you're thinking of still submitting your book to publishers even after self publishing it.)
Book Covers
An attractive eye catching cover is a must! I've seen plenty of great covers selling mediocre books, but never poor quality covers selling great books, so finding a good artist to create your book cover is important!
There are lots of artists for hire out there, and many can be found at sites like Deviant Art.
There are lots of artists for hire out there, and many can be found at sites like Deviant Art.
If you go with CreateSpace to publish your book, they do have a decent book cover creator. It makes clean cut looking covers that would be better than pasting font on a basic picture.
If you decide to make your cover yourself then know that you can't simply find a photo online and use it for your book, or else you may find yourself dealing with copyright infringement. There are stock photo websites you could use, but make sure to do your research on how they've obtained their photos, because some of those sites don't always obtain their images legally.
Editing
Proper editing is a MUST, it doesn't matter how great a story is told, if you have too many spelling/grammatical errors then odds are you're going to lose your readers. It's fine to do the first or second pass through your story yourself, but it's better to have a different pair of eyes look through your books. Often as the writer you will read your work how you meant to write it, causing you to not catch missing words, spelling errors, or the wrong use of a word.
There are plenty of editors available for hire out there, but make sure to check their resume, because there are also a number of scammers out there. The site: www.sfwa.org/other-resources/for-authors/writer-beware/editors/ will give you further tips on what to look for and avoid when searching for an editor.
There are plenty of editors available for hire out there, but make sure to check their resume, because there are also a number of scammers out there. The site: www.sfwa.org/other-resources/for-authors/writer-beware/editors/ will give you further tips on what to look for and avoid when searching for an editor.
Preparing Your Book
Beta readers are good for not only critiquing the quality of your story, but are also good for feedback on the pacing and general flow of your writing; such as whether the plot goes too slow or is too fast paced. Whether you left an obvious plot-hole unanswered, or changed a character's name mid story but missed changing it in a sentence.
If you plan to publish your story as an eBook, I recommend adding a link at the end to where your readers can review your book;
If you plan to publish your story as an eBook, I recommend adding a link at the end to where your readers can review your book;
Of course you can always have links printed into paperbacks, but with paperbacks I would sooner recommend listing the titles of any other works you may have already published so your readers can look them up.
ISBN
ISBN is a number that identifies a book. It's short for "International Standard Book Number". You have to have an ISBN or you will not fully own the rights to your book. There are a lot of ISBN companies out there that you can purchase one from.
CreateSpace offers to provide an ISBN for free, though if you use their ISBNs then they require that you distribute exclusively with their distributors. If you want to be able to take copies of your books (this is with paperbacks) and sell them at local bookstores, do book signings, or sell them on sites like Esty, then you have to own your ISBN personally.
CreateSpace offers to provide an ISBN for free, though if you use their ISBNs then they require that you distribute exclusively with their distributors. If you want to be able to take copies of your books (this is with paperbacks) and sell them at local bookstores, do book signings, or sell them on sites like Esty, then you have to own your ISBN personally.