How to Publish a Book / Creating an Online Presence
Write A Way: Journey to Creativity
"Publishers are just middlemen. That's all. If artists could remember that more often, they'd save themselves a lot of aggravation."
~ Hugh Macleod,
How to Be Creative
You as Publisher: How to Publish a Book
By Sandra Lee Schubert
There are wonderful things that can happen as a writer. Having your first article published and seeing your byline in a magazine is great fun. Of course getting paid is a great benefit. Mostly I think many of us write because it is a creative urge we can't deny. We may not make a dime but will do it anyway. A novel may not get noticed by an editor but we still slug along. We write when we can and hopefully enjoy the journey along the way. Becoming a publisher is a natural extension of the creative process. You want to be with your book through its whole development.
Pursue the idea of self-publishing as an exercise. Thinking about it may bring you to a place where you consider your writing worth becoming a book. If at the end of this exercise you are excited about your work then this has been a successful enterprise.
I feel a need to have a certain experience, to see certain feelings displayed, to see certain ideas pursued, and at one point or another I make the audacious choice of appointing myself as the person who can conceivably do that.
~ Scott Spencer, author of 8 novels including
Endless Love
The Internet offers a great opportunity for both writer and artist to publish their works. There are many informative books available to help the self-publisher just starting out. The realm of publishing does not belong to large companies. Anyone can do it. I knew a poet who would sell his handmade chapbooks on the subway. He knew I was a burgeoning poet and would give me copies from time to time. We were fellow travelers on the creative road. I do admire people who get their work out there one way or another.
Having been unpopular in high school is not just cause for book publication.
~ Fran Lebowitz, American author and humorist
What can you publish? Non-fiction seems to work best for the self-publishing market. The non-fiction market gives you a range of topics you can pick from to create your book or books.
Don't be swayed by thinking your book won't be big seller. I just read a story about Walter Swan who with his wife Deloris wrote Me 'n Henry. He became discouraged when bookshops were not interested in his story. So he decided to open a bookstore that only sold his book! The One Book bookstore put him on the map and he sold many books with this unique take. Now that is determination!
Many people who want to be writers don't really want to be writers. They want to have been writers. They wish they had a book in print. ~ James Michener
Start with what you know and continue from there. Investigate some of the online companies that provide publishing options for writers. What books are popular? What types of books are for sale, how many pages, what is the layout?
How to Publish a Book
Subsidy publishers will take your content and turn it into a book for you. Sites like
lulu.com,
iUniverse.com,
and
BookSurge.com
all offer different ways you can publish. The print on demand (POD) saves you space if you don't have the cash or space to house a supply of books. E-books are also popular. They also have all kinds of services, such as, editing and marketing. They also can provide you with other things like ISBN (International Standard Book Number) the bar code you see on the back of books. You would need this to sell the books to sites and stores like Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble. Consider getting all the necessary numbers yourself so you have complete ownership. Once you set up your book type you can create a storefront offering all of your products. You have a range of products if you want to expand your empire to cd's, e-books, pictures books, or calendars. You can have a selection that expands your creativity and profit centers.
Writing is damned difficult business. But take heart, there is one thing even more difficult than writing: self-publishing.
~ Peter McWilliams, Self-Publishing, Self-Taught
Pros and Cons to Self Publishing
The main "pro" to self publishing is you have control over your books and the words in them, however, self-publishing is not necessarily cheap. But you keep more of the profits per book. Marketing and promoting your book is still required with both traditional and self publishing models. You will have to make the phone calls to get a bookstore to take your book. As a self publisher you have a faster turnaround and can publish more books then in traditional methods. You are also responsible for editing your books. Without the benefit of a copy editor you must rely on trusted friends, or peers to review your book for inaccuracies and grammar issues.
You are the agent, editor and marketer for your book. Publishing requires organizational skills, dedication and deep desire to be the master of your work.
Becoming a self-publisher can be a small or large enterprise. Take time to research the possibilities and then take your next steps to creating your publishing empire. We have looked at a variety of ways to publish your work. You could
create a blog
or copy your chapbook of poetry to sell to people you meet.
Sending out a newsletter
you build good habits for writing consistently. The options to write and get your work out are as endless as your imagination. The important thing is to keep creating- putting your work out into the world.
How to Publish a Book ~ Getting Started!
Create your book.
- What kind of book would you publish? Give it a title, a table of contents. Create a front and front back cover...
- What is your subject?
- Who is your audience?
- Is it a non-fiction book?
Jot down answers to above questions here or in your journal:
Spend some time thinking of what it would be like to have your book in your hand, how it feels. See the people waiting in line to have you sign your book! Have some fun and let your imagination run wild.
Copyright © 2007 Sandra Lee Schubert. All rights reserved.
Sandra Schubert is the creator and instructor for the Self-Healing Expressions online writing course
Writing for Life: Creating a Story of Your Own.
This creative journal writing course features interactive Web Tools. To learn more about Sandra and her
online writing course,
click here:
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