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Print On Demand/Self-Publishing Service Reviews [Self-Publishing Linkup]

February 3rd, 2012 by Toni

Have an awesome idea for a post that’s not related to self-publishing service reviews? Consider entering it in our Self-Publishing Writing Contest for a chance to win Amazon.com gift cards and much more!

Thanks to everyone who participated in our previous Self-Publishing Linkups on New Year’s Resolutions/Goal-Setting and Social Media Resources (note: you can still add your link at any time).

For those who missed it, here’s the what, why and how of the Self-Publishing Linkup:

Indie authors share a ton of knowledge and experience through their blogs, and sometimes we feel like we can’t keep up.

Shannon and I were discussing how great it would be to have all of the posts centered around a given topic gathered in one place — voila! The Self-Publishing Linkup was born!

This week’s topic is “Print On Demand/Self-Publishing Service Reviews.” This can be any post that you’ve read or written reviewing an experience with any Print on Demand/Self-Publishing Service (such as Smashwords, iUniverse, Lulu, Lightning Source, CreateSpace, etc). Here’s how to participate:

1. Leave a comment on this post with the following information:

The post can be on any blog – yours or someone else’s. If you find (or write) a great post, share it!

2. Let others know you particpated in the linkup! Share a link to this post (or your post) with the hashtag #selfpublinkup on Twitter. Here’s an example:

  • Just shared my review of CreateSpace on the #SelfPubLinkup: http://ow.ly/8K9Ev

The more authors who participate, the more information and resources that will be shared! Get started by leaving your link in the comments below!

 

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The Long Game of Self-Publishing [Guest Post]

February 1st, 2012 by Guest Poster

The following is a guest post from Merry Farmer and the first entry in February’s Self-Publishing Writing Contest. Voting for the winner will begin on Thursday, February 9th. Want to help out your fellow indie authors? Consider entering March’s contest!

Photo: CompujerameyI once took a train trip from Orlando to Philadelphia. I was moving back home after attending the University of Central Florida and I’d always wanted to make a long voyage by train. The trip was 24 hours as opposed to a two and a half hour flight. I reserved my own little roomette that had a huge window. What unfolded was one of the most enjoyable travel experiences I’ve ever had. I got to see the landscape gradually change from tropical to Southern to Mid-Atlantic. The changing view of America flashed by my window to the steady cha-chunk-cha-chunk-cha-chunk of the train speeding across the tracks. It was literally hypnotizing. And it was also the best night’s sleep of my life.

I’ve been a writer since I was ten years old and realized one day that I didn’t have to wait for the teacher to assign a creative writing project to write something. But traditional publishing never appealed to me. Imagine my joy then last year when the world of Indie Publishing blew wide open. Suddenly it’s possible to write what you love and take it directly to the readers. No agents, no endless waiting, and the only rejection is from the readers themselves not buying your book. It’s a kinder, gentler rejection. But I still write my books, I still revise and have them professionally edited, and I still set them free into the world on my own terms and watch them fly.

So far my first two novels have soared out of my hands … and up into a nearby tree to sit there and roost a while … enjoying the view … hanging out … taking a nap.

Indie Publishing is like taking the train from Orlando to Philadelphia. It’s not a quick trip. No one is going to self-publish their first novel one day and have millions of dollars in sales tomorrow. It takes a lot of work to sell your baby to more than just your friends and family. And it takes planning. You have to be in it for the long game.

I have a strategy. My debut novel, The Loyal Heart, the first in a trilogy, hit the eBook markets on September 30th of 2011. I smiled and told all my friends … and now I’m waiting. What am I waiting for? The second book in the trilogy, The Faithful Heart, was published December 24th of 2011. And then I went on a massive media blitz and spammed everybody on Twitter and Facebook and Goodreads and shouted from the rooftops, right? Nope. I’m still waiting.

When the third book in the trilogy, The Courageous Heart, comes out sometime this Spring, then I’ll act. Then I’ll trumpet the entire trilogy. Then I’ll have postcards printed up to send to everyone I know, to take to as many writer’s and reader’s conferences as I can sign up for, and then I’ll be bugging you all to do guest posts on your blogs.

And then do you know what I’ll do? I’ll go write something else. It’s all about the writing. Always writing.

The beauty of eBooks, even more than the accessibility they give us as authors, is that they don’t go away. They never go out of print. They never get yanked off of shelves for not selling enough and they never have unsold copies mailed back to the publisher, doomed to feed a hungry shredder. I’m not entirely convinced that they’re immortal, but the whole indie publishing format gives us something that traditional publishing only offers to the top few. It give us the ability to plan long-term strategy. Time and again I’ve heard the advice that if you want to be truly successful as an Indie Published Author you need to be marketing multiple books at the same time. You need to have series.

Great, I say. Bring it on! I fall in love with my characters anyhow, so why not write as much about them as I can? Where my strategy diverges from some of the loudest advice givers is that I don’t see a problem in doing the actual book-by-book publishing now and marketing later. I will have multiple books for sale someday, five by the end of 2012 if I stay on target. In the meantime, I’ve got The Loyal Heart, The Faithful Heart, and a plan.

Self-publishing is a journey by train. It takes a long time. There are a lot of stops along the way, you might spend long hours staring at nothing, senses numb as it feels like the world is passing you by. You might wonder why you’re taking the scenic route. But every mile brings some new wonder. Every step is an adventure. And in the end if you hang in there you’ll reach your destination.

About the Author: Merry Farmer is an award-winning author of Historical Romance and Romantic Science Fiction. Her debut novel, The Loyal Heart, a swashbuckling medieval romance with a modern kick, is now available. She also loves writing about History and hot guys for her blog and lives near Philadelphia with her two cats who keep pestering her to write them into her novels…or maybe they just want to be fed.

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Reader Mailbag: Rushing Plot, Book Trailers, Getting Started

January 31st, 2012 by Duolit

Last month, we announced a new feature: the reader mailbag! Here we take your questions about anything involving writing, design, publishing, marketing or any other self-publishing related topic and answer them here on the blog. Have a question? Tweet @duolit or give us a shout via our contact form! 

From @JeremySenko: I have a great idea for a story, but I seem to rush the plot. Tips on how to slow myself down?

Toni: Even though I’m not a traditional writer/author, I can totally sympathize with Jeremy’s plight. I’m definitely a compulsive creative and, when I get an idea, I shoot from zero to 60 in no time flat. Unfortunately, this leads to a lot of started projects and considerably fewer finished ones.

To keep myself on track, I’ve implemented a waiting period system (yeah, kind of like buying a gun or getting married). When I get an idea, I’ll write down the steps it’ll take to reach my end goal and assign each a time period. Whenever I want to rush ahead, I’ll refer to my checklist to make sure I’m not getting too far ahead of myself.

Shannon: Are you rushing the plot as you’re writing it–as in, jumping straight from the start to the turning point without much build-up? If that’s the case, I’d go ahead and get the major plot points written out and then go back and fill in between the points. Maybe come up with a sub-plot so you’re not just throwing in pointless scenes, you want to be sure there’s a palpable build-up and then a satisfying decline to the wrap-up.

From @TheDeguello: Should I get a professional book trailer made?

Toni: Book trailers are everywhere, and, when done well, they can be quite effective. Whether or not you should take the plunge to get one made, however, depends on a big question: How does the book trailer fit into your overall book marketing plan? I’m sure you guys get sick of reading this, but coming up with a cohesive and comprehensive book marketing plan is crucial to your success.

If you’re getting a book trailer just because it seems cool, but you’re not sure how it’ll actually help market your book, don’t take the plunge into paying for a professional trailer. On the other hand, if you have a plan for how your book trailer will go viral and shoot you to the top of the sales charts, go for it!  Like any business decision, it comes down to the return on your investment (both in terms of time and money spent).

Shannon: I completely agree with Toni (I know, that’s a total surprise). It’s worth the investment if it’s part of your overall marketing plan. If you’re not sure, maybe start with something small you can do yourself with iMovie or Windows Movie Maker (that’s how we made ours for Duolit Indie Ninjas).

From @Vogelian: Where do I start? I’m so clueless. I have a book of short stories and poems. What do I do with it?

If you’re totally new to the world of self-publishing, we highly recommend signing up for our mailing list to get the free download of Self-Publishing Basic Training. This will give you an overview of the self-publishing process, from writing to publishing to marketing, and help you explore your options. You can also check out our Getting Started page for more info.

Since your book is already written, the first thing to would do is to pay for professional editing. If there’s one place to spend good money during the self-publishing process, it is in editing. While your book is being edited, take some time to work on your marketing plan. Who will buy your book? Figure out your target market and how best to appeal to them.

After you have your edited book in hand and a good marketing plan laid out, choose your publishing service. An eBook publishing service like Smashwords is a great place to start. It offers a low-cost way to get your book published and distributed so you can start implementing that marketing plan and selling books almost immediately.

What’s YOUR Question?

Do you have a question or situation we can help out with? Tweet @duolit or fill out our super-simple contact form and we’ll do our best to answer it on our next reader mailbag! Remember, the more details you give us, the more specific and helpful our advice will be!

Do you have any additional advice for the questions above? Chime in in the comments!

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How Much Does It Cost to Self-Publish a Book? [Discussion]

January 30th, 2012 by Toni

One of the most common questions we’re asked from authors looking into self-publishing is: how much does it cost? The truth is, the costs of self-publishing vary wildly and are highly dependent on which publishing route you take (eBook vs POD vs traditional printing), your personal skills and abilities (can you design your own cover or interior layout?) and a myriad of other factors that are as individual as the author herself.

So, we want to hear from our author friends: how much does it cost to self-publish a book? Tell us:

  • Approximately how much have you spent on all phases of publishing your book (editing, design, publishing, marketing, etc)?
  • What format was your book published in (eBook/print/both)?
  • Where did you spend the most money? Was it worth it?
  • Looking back, where do you wish you spent MORE?
  • What cost more than you originally anticipated? What cost less?
  • Time is money, too — how much total time do you think you’ve spent on your book? Include all phases of publishing, or break it down into phases.
  • Was your investment worth it (in terms of money, time or both)?

To join the discussion, please leave a comment below addressing any (or all) of the above questions. Also, mention the discussion to your indie author friends — we’d love to get varied input! Note: We know that money is a super-personal issue, so, of course, just share whatever insight and information you feel comfortable with.

What do you think?

We LOVE hearing your thoughts via our discussion posts! To keep up with all future installments (in addition to the great content from the rest of the month), subscribe to our RSS feed. 

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Self-Publishing Ain’t For Sissies

November 21st, 2011 by Guest Poster

 The following is a guest post by Joseph M. Rinaldo. Joseph has self-published two novels, A Spy at Home and Hazardous Choices. 

During a period of unemployment in 2004, I did a lot of soul-searching about my career and a lot of reading for pure escapism. It was at this time that I read Nicholas Sparks’ Three Weeks With My Brother, and I tried to absorb the fact that he received a million-dollar advance for this book. After I got over the initial shock of that fact, I remember thinking, “Holy cow! He’s a good writer, but I know I can do this, too.” I’ve been writing since that day in 2004.

When I finished my first novel, my wife and I spent a great deal of time and money printing off complete manuscripts and mailing them to agents and publishers. This went on for months with no result. We struggled with the disappointment we felt from the countless rejection letters.

As this went on (and on and on), I began working on my second novel. I felt it was much better than the first, and I was very hopeful. We finally realized that it wasn’t necessary or practical to mail the entire manuscript to agents and publishers (in fact, most of them don’t want it as the initial contact), and we began querying and sending synopses, chapter outlines, and excerpts. Still no result. A few nibbles, but no bites. Again, much disappointment. (more…)

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