Self-publishing Misconceptions
To a new author considering self-publishing her book, the amount of contradictory information on the web is bewildering.
Adding to the confusion is the fact that some of the information is inaccurate, incorrect or simply wrong. Sifting through this mess will uncover a series of misconceptions about the self-publishing process.
Here’s a list of these misconceptions:
Authors don’t have to have to market the book
Self-publishing a book and marketing that book are two separate and independent projects
You can upload the same manuscript file for a print book and an ebook
Self publishing a book doesn’t cost money
A vanity press is a good alternative to self-publishing
Book distributors (packagers) will market your book for you
Let’s explore each of these misconceptions.
Authors don’t have to have to market the book
This statement is flat out wrong, especially for self-publishing authors. Publishers may provide a measure of marketing for a new book, but the author will also be responsible for undertaking much of the marketing.
A self-publishing author has only herself and if she doesn’t market the book, no one will marketing it. Unfortunately, writing a book does nothing to train an author on how to marketing the book, so this is an entirely new skill set the author must learn.
Self-publishing a book and marketing that book are two separate and independent projects
It is easy to see where this misconception comes from. If you scan the books on publishing and self-publishing, you’ll rarely find a mention of marketing. If you scan the ones on book marketing, you’ll rarely find a mention of the publishing processes. It’s as if the two are completely separate operations, hence the misconception. The reality is that publishing (whether self-publishing or not) and marketing are integral parts of the same process. This reality means that book marketing must begin before the book is published.
You can upload the same manuscript file for a print book and an ebook
Naw! Don’t do that! Print and ebooks have quite different formatting requirements. Word processor defaults are set in the belief that whatever you typed into it will be printed. Many of these default settings violate the ebook formatting requirements in the Epub3 standard. Uploading a print manuscript to an ebook packager will produce a mess, if the upload isn’t rejected. Similarly, uploading a properly formatted ebook manuscript to a print packager will also produce a mess. With recent technology improvements, many packagers now offer to convert a print book upload to an ebook and vice versa.
Self publishing a book doesn’t cost money
This is a tricky statement. It is true that you can self-publish an ebook for little or no money. To do this, you’ll have to draw the cover yourself and ignore the need for a professional editor. You can upload the file to an ebook packager and SHAZAM! you’re a published author. Expect the book is a piece of junk. And your name is on the cover of this travesty!
Actually, this possibility is becoming less likely to happen because the packagers don’t want to handle these junky books since no one will buy them. So it’s quite possible your upload will be rejected.
A vanity press is a good alternative to self-publishing
Self-publishing a book is a complicated process. While considering it, you may come across an attractive ad on a website that offers to publish the book for you. The site will do all the work: all you have to do is pay the bill. And the bill will be huge. If you see an ad on the web, it’s a vanity press and it’s after the contents of your wallet. It has no interest in your book, only your money. To deal with the bad reputation vanity presses have earned, they now disguise themselves as “hybrid” publishers. These publishers offer services such as editing and formatting which are legitimate, but lurking in the background is the vanity press option and the site will offer all sorts of reasons on why you should turn the publishing over to it. Don’t be fooled.
Book distributors (packagers) will market your book for you
Nope! Not gonna happen. Packagers distribute the books, collect the sales revenue and send you the royalties. What they don’t do is book marketing. That function is for the publisher (you!) to do. Packagers may claim they do marketing, but that will consist of creating a page for the book on their website. The page will have a description, the cover and little else. They will not promote the webpage. That’s your job.
The material in this article came from my video class Book Publishing and Marketing Insights.
If you looking for help with fiction writing, self-publishing or book marketing, check out the resources on https://writersarc.com
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