While I could have left you with more to-do’s, I’ve opted for something a little unconventional, and instead, want to leave you with 6 self-publishing principles you should know.

Take some time after reading the article to put them to memory and commit to them. If you do, you’ll have a lasting authorial career brimmed with fulfillment and accomplishment.

Know Your Vision and Remain True

Marketing trends will come and go. This is a fact of the Indie Publishing industry. What shouldn’t morph like the wind is your vision.

• Why are you writing?
• What stories are you curating?
• Who are you intending to impact?
• What does success look like for you?

These are vital to know from the outset, for they will be what ground you when the noise of opinion grows louder than the steady call of your original vision. 

What you originally set out to do with your stories has to become your anchor. This will help you through seasons of doubt. Comparison. Slowness. 

There will be many times you’ll think you haven’t done enough, written enough, published enough, or earned enough. But when you lift your vision, you’ll find you’re still on track, and perhaps even ahead of yourself.

Knowing your own goals and desires will allow you to craft blinders necessary to keep from betraying your work and following everyone else. Know with all certainty what your vision is and do what’s in your capability to remain true to it throughout your career.

Have A Strong Community

Community isn’t synonymous with loved ones. Nor does it often translate to those you assumed would naturally support you. There isn’t a writer who starts their career without hope their greatest support will be their significant other, their parents, or even best friends.

Unfortunately, a great number of times, this isn’t the case. Many of these individuals eventually come around if they see success (by their own definition), but until then, writers and authors alike need a safe place to land when things are not going as planned. When comparison and imposter syndrome kicks in. When doubt becomes crippling, and the novel seems like it’ll never get done.

Communities of like-minded people who are in the trenches like you are vital. This can be a community of authors, and non-authors alike, but they’re also entrepreneurs working hard to build something from nothing. I have both, and they’ve kept me through the years when I nearly quit for good.

Keep your community at the top of your list. These will become your people. They will nurture you, love you, encourage you, support you, buy from you, and stick beside you, no matter what.

Get Comfortable Pivoting

The sooner you make a habit of getting comfortable having to do things differently, the easier your journey will be. What you do today to write, edit, publish, and market your novel is not what you’ll be doing in one year. Or five.

Make pivoting your friend. 

As your skills grow, and as you develop as a human being with increasing experiences, your process will evolve. Not to mention, marketing trends are always fluctuating. What attracts readers today is not what will attract readers tomorrow.

Pivoting in business is natural. It has nothing to do with how well you write, or whether you did something wrong. It simply comes when people are ready for change. Usually this doesn’t mean a change in the tropes they love, or the books they favor, but mainly in the way they receive it, and how they want their reading experience to be curated.

Learn to pivot and be okay. It will happen often.

Quit But Don’t Fail

I can’t stress this enough. It is okay to quit.

Yes, I said it. Quit and do it fast.

If the story isn’t working? Quit. If the characters aren’t going in the direction needed? Either follow them down their path or quit. If you no longer believe the thematics of the novel align with your personal values, quit.

Quitting isn’t a permanent end. It’s simply stopping what isn’t working to pivot to what is. Most authors would have undergone far less stress in their careers had they let an idea go and just quit.

Of course, when you give your word, especially if a release date is attached to it, sound integrity would have you meet your deadlines, and keep your word by publishing.

But if you’re in the ideation phase, the editing phase, or you’ve been working to publish secretly but have told no one – if it feels right, and there wouldn’t be egregious conflicts – if you’ve got to quit, quit.

It’s only when you permanently give up you then become a failure. 

You’re not obligated to keep working at a story, marketing plan, or towards a goal that just no longer works. Strive for alignment and fulfillment instead. Do what feels right, because often that intuition is our clue that it is.

Show Up For Your Readers, and They’ll Show Up For You

There’s power in remembering who you’re doing this for. Of course, we first write for ourselves. At least, we should. Because if you’re not a fan of your own books, then it’ll be tough convincing others to be.

That said, after writing for ourselves, we write for our readers. In this era of Instagram and TikTok, it’s easy to look at follower counts, strive to keep getting more, and forget these are all people.

It’s easy to say, “I only have one thousand followers.”

But imagine if one thousand people showed up at your front door, asking for an autographed novel. You would lose your mind.

I want you to keep that at the forefront. Let gratitude be the choice you continuously make while growing as an author. Whether you have ten readers, or ten thousand, you have actual human beings besides your mom who are in their homes, browsing your website, reading your emails, and highly expecting your release.

Show up for these precious humans, because I promise you, they’re already showing up for you. They’re talking to other readers about your books. They’re creating Pinterest boards inspired by your characters. They’re waiting for your next email with more bookish goodies. 

They’re inspired by you and wholly support who you are, and the books you write. Show up, and you’ll find that your people have been there all along.

Stephanie BwaBwa is an Afro-Caribbean, Christian epic romantasy novelist, fantasy universe builder, educator, and podcastor, with big dreams, a big heart, and novels that fill readers with awe, light, and wonder. She’s the creator and author behind the fantasy universe: Elledelle, full of angels, adventure, romance, and light. You can usually catch her going for a walk through a park, or simply binging anything creatively juicy with too many snacks. Get in contact with Stephanie directly at: stephaniebwabwa.com or follow her on Instagram or Goodreads.

The post 6 Self-Publishing Principles For A Fulfilling Authorial Career appeared first on DIY MFA.

Going the Traditional Route

If you have your eyes set on traditional publishing, then you might want to pull back on pitching a three or four book series. There was a time when publishing was handing out three book deals to debut authors on the regular back in the heyday of vampire and dystopian novels, but times have changed a bit. Publishing got stuck with big losses after they had shelled out huge advances for multi-book deals for series that never took off. Thus, they became risk averse—with good reason—and now hesitate to purchase more than two books from an unknown author. Mary Kole’s advice in her book Writing Irresistible Kidlit echoes this sentiment: “A first book is a big investment, as the author is an unknown. The title could either sink (statistically more likely) or swim. A series represents an even bigger investment—and possible risk.” If you follow deal announcements on either Publisher’s Marketplace or Publisher’s Weekly, it’s far more common to see duologies being announced for debut, and even seasoned authors. 

I Hear You, but What About XYZ New York Times Series With a Three Book Spin-off?

While it might be tempting to hear this advice and then try to counter with, “But Cassandra Clare’s Shadowhunter Chronicles has over thirty books in this series. Why wouldn’t <insert Big 5 publisher’s name here> want my fifteen book and counting thriller series?” Well, for starters, Cassandra Clare has been a bestselling author for fifteen years and counting, so she has a rabid fanbase ready to buy up every book set in the Shadowhunter world. 

Believe it or not, even current NYT best-selling authors of successful book series didn’t necessarily start with a three book deal. Jennifer Lynn Barnes, the author of The Inheritance Games series, didn’t know if there would be a second book. “I had a slightly different ending for a standalone book than a series. I didn’t add the last twist in the book until the last minute, when I knew I would get to write a book two,” Barnes explained in an article for Writermag.com. “Then for book two, I had the list of things that weren’t resolved in book one—the balls that were still up in the air.” The Inheritance Games now has three books published, a fourth on the way, and an entire spin-off series planned. Her strategy of making book one a standalone, but having plans for a different ending in case she got to write more after the success of the first book, is a great way to approach writing a series if you are going the traditional route. And this advice goes for both debut and seasoned authors. Barnes had published over 20 novels before The Inheritance Games. 

Don’t get me wrong, you can still sell a three or four book series to a commercial publisher as a debut author, but those opportunities are more the exception than the rule. The best bet, if you want to go the more traditional route, is to approach an agent with your standalone book that could have additional books in the series, or with a duology. 

If You Are Self-Publishing, the Series is Queen

The advice on planning a standalone or duology goes out the window when you are self-publishing. This is because, in the self-publishing world, series are your bread and butter. Not only that, but authors who self-publish will often give the first book in the series away for free as a loss leader to hopefully get readers hooked to buy the rest of their books. This is the strategy that Sarra Cannon, highly successful indie author of the Beautitful Demons series, uses and recommends. Cannon now teaches aspiring and seasoned writers what she’s learned in her more than a decade of success as an author on her website Heart Breathings. Indie authors target binge readers, so the more books you release, and the faster you release the books, the better. Not only should you plan and write a series if you are going the self-publishing route, but you should also plan to release them quickly. There is a strategy to this, and you can learn everything you need to know to get started by checking out Elana M. Johnson’s book Writing and Releasing Rapidly. 

So What’s the Verdict?

The answer is, it depends on a whole host of factors, but a starting point for your decision-making should be whether you want to go the traditional or self-publishing route. And even then, there will always be exceptions to the rule. There are successful self-published authors who write standalone books, and there are debut authors who sign a multi-book series contract right out of the gate. As with anything in life, it’s wise to understand the pros and cons of the approach you choose to take and then, in the end, you can eschew whatever advice is out there and go for what you believe is the very best vision for the story you want to tell. 

With the book series that I co-authored, The Everbeach series, the vision was always for four books with each of our main characters getting their own storyline. And with the advice of our agent, we went ahead and pitched it as a four-book series. However, book one could have always been a standalone, or it could have easily been transformed into a duology. The options were there for the publisher’s choosing. And in the end, we ultimately signed a four-book deal. It wasn’t easy, and we had our fair share of publishing rejections. But we stayed true to our vision, and it paid off in the long run. But we knew the publishing landscape and we were absolutely prepared to write this series however our publisher saw fit (one book, two books, or the four-book dream). 

So, I leave you with this: understand the industry, make the best choice you can given the publishing route you choose and always stay true to the heart of your story. Be prepared for multiple outcomes, but never stop believing in your vision. Just be willing to be flexible, seek the advice of experts, and enjoy the ride. Publishing isn’t an easy career, but it’s worth it if your passions are books and writing, so you have to find your joy in the journey. 

Dominique Richardson is a Lebanese-Jamaican author and CPA who now uses her number crunching excel skills to plot her stories and do good for the young adult community in Tampa Bay. She is the Executive Director of YA by the Bay, a 501c3 young adult book festival coming to Tampa, FL in October 2023. She spends her free time passing on her love of unicorns to her twin boys, running in the Florida heat, and drinking all the coffee. Raised between Jamaica and the United States, her biracial heritage finds a home in her books. She now lives in Tampa, Florida with her family. Dominique is the coauthor of Red as Blood, Book 1 in the Everbeach Series (Spring 2023).
You can find her on her website or follow her on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok. Also, if you love young adult and want to hear from some of the leading authors in the young adult space, then sign-up for YA by the Bay’s email list.

The post Should You Write a Young Adult Series Today? appeared first on DIY MFA.

This includes wearing the marketing and sales hats.

This may seem terrifying, but it’s not as daunting as you may think. While marketing your books and bookish products for your career may be laborious, it doesn’t have to be painstaking. If there’s one thing I’ve learned in my journey as a career, independent author, it’s this:

Systems and automations will get you far.

Believe it or not, some of your favorite 6, and 7, figure-earning authors have no team. No staff. Just independent contractors and vendors they use every now and again to get certain projects done. Aside from that, they’re able to get almost everything in their business done themselves.

How?

Through tight, and highly efficient, systems, and automations.

Being an author doesn’t have to overwhelm you. Especially not the publishing and marketing bits. In this article, I’m thrilled to share some of the systems and automations I have in place that help me automate the majority of my business so I can easily market, focus on writing more books, and serve my readers, all while growing my publishing career.

Canva: Content and Product Creation

Canva is a free-to-use online graphic design tool. Use it to create social media posts, presentations, posters, videos, logos and more.

I’m not afraid to admit, I swear by Canva. Truly. I use this tool for just about everything in my author business. From creating social media graphics I use on Instagram, to videos I create for book trailers, to branding materials like logos for my business, and even printed materials like character art and stickers.

It’s a great all-in-one media design tool. Canva will help you create the posts for the social platform of your choice, and even help you create what you need for more personal touches when fulfilling orders for your readers. 

Also… did I mention it’s free? I can’t recommend Canva enough. Give it a try and see how it helps do wonders for your author business.

Preview: Social Media Scheduling

Preview is an Instagram Planner that helps you easily plan your posts, Reels, IGTVs, and Instagram Stories. Find the best hashtags, caption ideas, presets, analytics, and more.

Once upon a time, it was said that content is king. Well. I think we could all agree, in today’s online climate, the new king is automation. I personally focus strictly on Instagram to grow my author business socially, so Preview is my go-to tool to schedule all of the content I create.

It’s great because you get a high-level view of your feed so you can see what your Instagram page will look like when your posts go Live. Preview also allows you to do this magical thing called, “auto-post”. This makes content 100% easier. You add the content in, you schedule it to post, and you don’t have to worry about it anymore.

Whether you schedule content for next week, next month, or even next year, once it’s there, you can forget about it, and use up that mental space on greater priorities in your business.

Lintr.ee: Social Media Conversions

Linktree is a tool that allows you to create a personalized and customizable page that houses all the important links that you want to share with your audience.

Never let the internet fool you into thinking that clicks are more important than conversions. What I mean by this is, if you have 10,000 followers, but only get 10 people who buy your books, then your business is only as powerful as the 10 buyers.

This is why conversions are incredibly important, and the easiest way to increase them is to remove distractions. Linktree helps do just that. It provides a link readers can click on and see all the different ways they can connect with you. 

My favorite way to use Linktree is when promoting my current upcoming release, pushing readers to my newsletter, and making it easy to get to my website. Some authors share many links to their books, promotions, and more. As for me, I typically have no more than five links. Again, because conversions matter. The less there is to click, the easier it becomes for a reader to reach checkout.

Omnisend: Email and Text Marketing

Omnisend is an omnichannel marketing automation platform for growth-focused eCommerce businesses. Omnisend allows you to add several channels to the same automation workflow for seamless communication via email, SMS, web push notifications, and more.

If you don’t have an email list, you’re playing a highly dangerous game in business. At the end of the day, followers we have on any kind of platform, whether it be a social one like Instagram, or a search engine one like Pinterest, are not followers we own. If we lose access to those platforms, we thereby also lose access to those audiences we’ve built up.

This is why it’s incredibly important to build an email list. And these days, you also need a text list, too. We are increasingly on our phones for business, and everyday life. Reaching your readers where they are is directly tied to the backbone of your business. Omnisend makes growing both your email, and your text list, easy.

You get access to important data, have the ability to see what’s actually working, what’s converting, and what’s bottlenecking your business. It is one of the best tools I could recommend for you to invest in immediately for your author career.

Notion: Planning and Scheduling

Notion is a project management and note-taking software platform designed to help members of companies or organizations coordinate deadlines, objectives, and assignments for greater efficiency and productivity.

You’ve heard it said, if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. There are many tools online for you to use when it comes to fleshing out your publishing schedule, writing out your marketing campaigns for email and social media, and also writing out tasks so you meet your goals and deadlines.

Recently, the tool that has made planning and scheduling easy for me is Notion. From tables, to checklists, to options for importing images, videos, spreadsheets, and more, it has taken my author business to the next level. 

Sometimes all your career needs is one right decision that will take you in the direction success lies. Notion is a project management tool, and for authors, it’s invaluable. I highly recommend giving it a go to propel your authorial career.

Now that we’ve discussed some phenomenal tools to assist you in your self-publishing career, tell me: Which of these do you plan to use?

Stephanie BwaBwa is the Jesus-centered, YA Fantasy Author and Entrepreneur, creator of fantasy world Elledelle, and Co-Host of the Indie Author Lifestyle Show, who’s enjoying building a legacy through the lens of story. You can usually catch her going for a walk through a park, or simply binging Disney+ with too many snacks. Get in contact with Stephanie directly at stephaniebwabwa.com or follow her on Instagram or Goodreads.

The post Marketing Systems and Automations to Grow Your Self-Publishing Career appeared first on DIY MFA.

If you’ve never published a book before, get ready to take a deep sigh. Several times. Be sure to have your Nespresso geared up. Have a financial cushion available, and prepare yourself for hiccups.

If you do all of this, when you run into these skin-flaming steps of the process, you’ll be mentally ready to face, and crush, them.

I say this in advance because getting to the finish line of any marathon is always the toughest, and publishing is no different.

Just because it sounds easy, doesn’t mean it is. However, I’ve laid out some great tools that will lessen the head-to-wall banging that can ensue.

I’ve tried these tools myself throughout the years. Use them! They will be of great service to you, and seriously push you ahead in your authorial career. Your toolbox will thank you!

In the last article, Your Self-Publishing Toolbox for Authorial Success: Editing Tools, we discussed the tools I highly recommend for the writing phase of an author’s publishing journey. 

In this article, I’ll dive deep into what I personally recommend for the publishing phase of your journey as an author.

Publishing Tools

Cover Design: Miblart

Miblart is a web and graphic design company that offers professional book cover design services for indie authors: illustrated, ebook, and print covers, and interior book design.

I have used miblart for years. They’re fast, with affordable investment, and top tier quality. They’re not just for book covers, but they’re also great for other services like: typography, author branding, and more.

I myself have used the book cover services, as well as typography services. I’ve also booked the formatting service for both the paperback and hardcover print versions of my books.

I can attest that their customer service is wonderful! Their designers will do what it takes to get you the cover you need, and overall you’ll leave satisfied.

Is this service for every book you will publish? Of course not. But if you need low overhead, a quick turnaround, and quality art? This is the company to go to at the outset.

If, and when, you use them, be sure to tell Tania I sent you. She’s a sweetheart, and I guarantee you’ll appreciate her kindness.

Cover Design: Professional Designers and Illustrators

Let’s be clear about cover design. You know that saying, “Don’t judge a book by its cover?”

It’s a lie. A bonafide L I E.

We all judge books by their cover. And your readers will judge yours, too, if you don’t invest in high quality book design. Don’t even bother DIY’ing this part. What it will cost you in the long run isn’t worth it.

After miblart, I seriously recommend working with professional designers and illustrators.

Now, here’s the rub. These professionals are everywhere, their schedules are the cesspools of chaos, and their work, plus 1:1 service to you, can sometimes be a hit or miss.

To this date I’m sitting on illustrations that will never see the light of day. However, just because one designer fell short, doesn’t mean all of them will.

I have worked with fabulous illustrators and designers throughout the years that have blessed my career with their art.

Keys to finding a good artist? Check their street cred!!!

Beyond the beautiful fotos you see on Instagram and TikTok. Beyond what they say authors are saying. Ask around. Ask in author communities. Read the comments section on their posts. Look on Amazon for the supposed art they claim they have done. Check who has resposted them.

Do. Your. Research.

Some are pretty obvious they’re professional and a go to, while others you’ll have to take a chance on. 

I still recommend this route.

Be sure to message them in advance. They may require full payment upfront. They may be booked out for half the year, or even up to an entire year. They may only do a certain kind of illustration or design. They may be available, but take 6 months to finish the artwork and you need to publish in 4.

Again. Do your research.

I highly recommend working with professional artists from around the world who specialize in covers for your genre to design your cover so you have a higher chance of success!

Formatting: Vellum

Vellum is a book creation tool for Mac that allows you to professionally format books for publication. This software is free to download and use, but you’ll need to purchase a package to actually export your files to publish.

Ya’ll. If you have a Mac, buying Vellum is a must.

No. 

But. 

Seriously.

Vellum is a formatting tool that makes getting your book publish-worthy an entire dream! You can format hundreds, or even thousands, of pages in mere minutes to hours.

It’s as simple as uploading your book’s word doc into the software, choosing your header images and the book’s dimensions, adding in your front and back matter, then presto! Click export, and you now have several book files to upload on every platform you plan to publish on.

Sounds too good to be true? I promise you it’s not. This software is the real deal for formatting.

Currently it’s only available for Mac users, but if you can manage to get your hands on this tool anyway, I can’t shout its praises enough!

Publishing: IngramSpark

IngramSpark is an award-winning independent publishing platform, and an online self-publishing company that allows you to print, globally distribute, and manage your print and ebooks!

I’ll say this now, this platform comes with an upfront cost that will result in backend fruit.

What this means is, through IngramSpark you’ll need to purchase ISBN’s, bar codes, and pay a book-set-up fee when you’re ready to publish. 

However, your author copy purchases will be less. And might I add, when you’re ready to ship directly to your readers, while Amazon has you waiting several weeks for your books to arrive, with IngramSpark, your books will take days.

This platform is for those who are willing to spend a little more on the front end, and take a little longer to get their books live, but want long term security for book success and reader satisfaction.

Publishing: Kindle Direct Publishing

Kindle Direct Publishing is a platform to self-publish eBooks and paperbacks for free and reach millions of readers on Amazon.

KDP is often a go to for authors, especially if they’re publishing for the first time, and I completely understand why.

You pay for nothing upfront. Bar codes, ISBN’s, and even a cover generator, are all provided by Amazon’s self-publishing platform. All you need to do is upload your manuscript in the appropriate book file and you’re good to go.

If you’re an author wanting to take the approach of solely publishing on Amazon for now, go for it! Many authors have done this and carved out 6, and 7, figure businesses for themselves.

There are many perks to publishing through KDP and being exclusive to Amazon. I myself have used this service for years, even in the golden hour when it used to be Create Space (Where my OG’s at?). I love the ability to publish a book, with zero stress, in literally minutes.

I highly recommend the KDP platform for publishing your book. Not only you’ll find it simple and easy to use, but you’ll also find great success in using it.

Publishing: Draft2Digital

Draft2Digital is a digital publishing aggregator offering conversion and distribution services for authors. The platform is aimed at authors “going wide” and selling the books in as many places as possible.

Friend, if you’re an author with a vision of having your published book everywhere, Draft2Digital is for you. I used to publish solely on Amazon, and for a time this served me well. 

However – not all my readers like to buy their books on Amazon. What, with them not wanting to constantly feed the Bezos and all that…

Anywho. Some readers are still loyal to Barnes and Noble. Indie Bound. iBooks and the like.

If you know you want to build a “wide” audience, by having your books published on all platforms, in all markets, I encourage you to upload your books to Draft2Digital. It’s quick, easy, simple, and oh yeah, it doesn’t cost you a dime upfront.

I’ll admit. The publishing leg of the authorial process is a bit of a journey with moving parts. However, once you know what to expect, you can make sure you have the publishing tools you need to accomplish your dreams and be successful. 

These are not end all, be all publishing tools. But they’re a wonderful start, and have been tried and tested by me throughout the years. I love and highly recommend them all.

Tell us below: Are you ready to publish your novel? Which of these publishing tools do you plan to use?

Stephanie BwaBwa is a Fantasy Universe Builder, Author, and Entrepreneur. She’s the creator of Elledelle, the universe filled with angels, adventure, romance, and magic. She’s the author of the fantasy series: The Seraphim Resistance  and The Transcendents, as well as the writing guide, Fantasy Fundamentals. Stephanie co-hosts a podcast for indie authors called: Indie Author Lifestyle with her fantasy partner-in-madness, Angela J. Ford, and is a self-publishing columnist for DIY MFA. You can usually catch her going for a walk through a park, or simply binging anything creatively juicy with too many snacks. Get in contact with Stephanie directly at: stephaniebwabwa.com.

The post Your Self-Publishing Toolbox for Authorial Success: Publishing Tools appeared first on DIY MFA.

In the last article, Your Self-Publishing Toolbox for Authorial Success: Writing Tools, we discussed the tools I highly recommend for the writing phase of an author’s publishing journey. In this article, we’ll dig into the editing tools I recommend for your self-publishing toolbox for authorial success.

When we finish writing the magical words, The End, a deep sigh of joy escapes our lips. 

We did it. We. Wrote. The dang. Book. And it can seem as if we’ve reached the final finish line. Except there’s only one problem. Once the manuscript is done being drafted, the process of true writing has just begun. This is where your editing tools come in.

Editing Tools

Intuitive Editing by Tiffany Yates Martin

Intuitive Editing is a book written to explain exactly how to edit a book. It’s described as: 

Developmental editor Tiffany Yates Martin has spent her career in the publishing industry honing practical, actionable techniques to help authors evaluate how well their story is working, where it might not be, and how to fix it.

With a clear, accessible, user-friendly approach, she leads writers through every step of deepening and elevating their own work, as well as how to approach the edit and develop their “editor brain,” and how to solicit and process feedback. Intuitive Editing doesn’t offer one-size-fits-all advice or rigid writing “rules”; instead it helps authors discover what works for their story and their style—to find the best version of their vision.

Whether you’re writing fiction, narrative nonfiction, or memoir; whether this your first story or your fiftieth, Intuitive Editing will give you the tools you need to edit and revise your own writing with inspiration, motivation, and confidence.

I myself go through this invaluable resource over and again every time I’m editing a new book. It’s that rich. Whether you’re tackling developmental edits, plot holes, character flaws, and so on, this book breaks down exactly how to fix your book. I can’t recommend it enough. 

Google Docs

Here’s a second plug for Google Docs because the tool is versatile. You’ll remember that Google Docs is:

A free web-based application in which documents and spreadsheets can be created, edited, and stored online. Users of Google Docs can import, create, edit, and update documents and spreadsheets in various fonts and file formats, combining text with formulas, lists, tables, and images.

Even if you don’t choose to draft in Docs, it is a powerful editing tool for you. Not everyone is comfortable with editing software like: Grammarly and ProWritingAid. 

Sometimes, all you need is to add your manuscript to a different writing processor, change the font, and get to polishing to create your best work.

ProWritingAid

ProWritingAid is the only platform that offers world-class grammar and style checking combined with more in-depth reports to help you strengthen your writing. Our unique combination of suggestions, articles, videos, and quizzes makes writing fun and interactive.

While I haven’t personally used ProWritingAid for one of my novels yet, I know this is an invaluable editing tool. I’ve used it for smaller projects and was blown away by its features. Not to mention how much ease it brought to the entire process of editing.

ProWritingAid also employs technology, such as artificial intelligence, to amplify the tool so while you may miss something, the tool itself will not. It’s a great software to use for processing your manuscript before sending it off to betas and editors.

Grammarly

Grammarly is a cloud-based typing assistant that reviews spelling, grammar, punctuation, clarity, engagement, and delivery mistakes. It uses artificial intelligence to identify and search for an appropriate replacement for the error it locates.

Grammarly is a good editing tool if you have a shorter manuscript and you’re not looking to do a thorough edit, such as developmental editing. I’ve used it for different projects. I, personally, noticed the tool works best on simpler, and shorter, projects versus, let’s say, a long-form epic fantasy manuscript.

If you like browser add-ons and something that’s quick, but works, I encourage you to add Grammarly to your toolbox for initial editing, after proofreading, before you dive in to handle developmental edits and so on.

Print It Out

Not a digital writer? No problem. I know many authors who will draft their books in a writing tool like Scrivener, but then they will go to their local library, or even somewhere like FedEx (USA establishment for printing and shipping), and they will print out their entire manuscript.

This helps them because they can physically scratch out lines, write notes, and rearrange scenes, all in a bright red pen… Okay, that may be too triggering. For some, the pen is purple… Or orange. Ha!

Nevertheless, if you need to touch it? Flip it? Physically put your pen to it? Go ahead and print it all out. Grab a massive binder to add the sheets to, and be sure to stack up on pens and highlighters so you can dive into a thorough edit of your book.

As you continue on your journey, you will find other editing tools that will help support you where you are and be of great assistance to your craft. However, if you’re uncertain of where to begin, I highly recommend these tools for your toolbox once you’ve crossed over into the editing stage of your book.

Tell us in the comments: What editing tools do you use? Are there any not on this list?

Stephanie BwaBwa is a Fantasy Universe Builder, Author, and Entrepreneur. She’s the creator of Elledelle, the universe filled with angels, adventure, romance, and magic. She’s the author of the fantasy series: The Seraphim Resistance and The Transcendents, as well as the writing guide, Fantasy Fundamentals. Stephanie co-hosts a podcast for indie authors called: Indie Author Lifestyle with her fantasy partner-in-madness, Angela J. Ford, and is a self-publishing columnist for DIY MFA. You can usually catch her going for a walk through a park, or simply binging anything creatively juicy with too many snacks. Get in contact with Stephanie directly at: stephaniebwabwa.com.

The post Your Self-Publishing Toolbox for Authorial Success: Editing Tools appeared first on DIY MFA.

An author’s toolbox is essential. Within will be the resources you revert to, time and again, to write, edit, publish, and market your books. While every story you pen will begin from scratch, your toolbox will make putting it all together far simpler. 

In this article you’ll find a list of self-publishing tools, specifically for writing your stories, I highly recommend for your authorial success. Most of these writing tools I use myself, and can confidently say they will be of great service to you as they have been to me for many years.

*Please Note: In this article, we will focus on writing tools. In subsequent articles, I will share the best tools for editing, publishing, and marketing.

Writing Tools

Scrivener

Scrivener is the go-to app for writers of all kinds, used every day by best-selling novelists, screenwriters, non-fiction writers, students, academics, lawyers, journalists, translators and more. Scrivener won’t tell you how to write—it simply provides everything you need to start writing and keep writing.

I have used Scrivener for many years. It hasn’t always been perfect, but it has been the best tool possible for me when it comes to writing my novels. There are many functionalities I love about it, and this writing tool is always my first suggestion for a writers’ toolbox.

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Microsoft Word

Microsoft Word is a word processor software developed by Microsoft in 1983. It is the most commonly used word processor software. It is used to create professional-quality documents, letters, reports, resumes, etc, and also allows you to edit or modify your new or existing document.

When I first began writing for publication, back in 2013, Word was the first tool I used, primarily because it was the one tool I knew. I wrote in Word for years before switching to Google Docs, and then finally finding the magic that is Scrivener. Word is wonderful for beginners, especially if you already own the software. Depending on what you’d like to do during the writing process, you may find yourself itching for a more efficient tool for authors. But if you need to get typing right away, Word is a great way to start and go.

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4thewords

4thewords is an online writing game and community. It helps you write more using game mechanics like monsters, item rewards, quests, and a fully immersive world to explore. 4thewords is here to push your daily word count and to help you maintain a consistent writing habit.

I myself have not used 4thewords yet, albeit I plan to. One of my best friends, Angela J. Ford, swears by 4thewords. This is how she has successfully published over 20+ bestselling novels throughout the last several years. If you’re into RPGs, or you’re a gamer of any kind, this tool will help you pen your novel while you’re having a world of fun. If you need something more interactive to get you writing, this writing tool will be a great option for you.

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Google Docs

Google Docs is a free web-based application in which documents and spreadsheets can be created, edited, and stored online. Users of Google Docs can import, create, edit, and update documents and spreadsheets in various fonts and file formats, combining text with formulas, lists, tables, and images.

After Scrivener, Google Docs is my best friend! But nah, for real. While it may not have all the fun features of Scrivener, it’s quite efficient and is a great tool. I often draft in Scrivener, but I edit in Google Docs. It’s wonderful to use as well if you also have software such as ProWritingAid or Grammarly (more on these in a subsequent article). 

If you don’t have a Google account, I highly recommend creating one so you can have immediate access to Google Docs, whether you want to use it to draft or edit your manuscript. Google Docs is also where most editors will send your manuscript for you to confirm their changes for your polished novel.

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Pen and Paper

This goes without saying. Most of us are still pen and paper writers. Even if it’s only for the early stages. There’s something about fleshing out ideas in a notebook, or the back of a napkin, or the edges of mail you’ll never read, that stimulates your imagination and fosters your creativity. Keep a few notebooks on hand with working pens close by. Story ideas are always brewing, and you want to be ready when they decide to pay you a visit. 

Here’s your permission to go to Target, Michaels, and Hobby Lobby, and splurge on all the notebooks and stationary your heart desires!

The above writing tools may not seem profound, but you’ll be pleasantly surprised at the wonders they do for your career as you use them. The longer you use a tool, the more familiar you become with it, the more your creativity will find a home within it. This makes for easier writing and better storytelling.

Soon I will share with you the best editing tools. For now, pick one of the above writing tools and get storytelling. Share with me below which tool is your favorite, which one you use now, and what you will give a go in the future.

Disclaimer: There are no affiliate links in this article that will profit the Columnist, Stephanie BwaBwa. She genuinely loves and uses these tools herself, and sincerely hopes your authorial career benefits from them. If you’re on the fence, don’t be. There are no gimmicks here. Just value.

Tell us in the comments: What writing tools do you use? Are there any not on this list?

Stephanie BwaBwa is a Christian Fantasy Novelist. She’s the creator of the universe: Elledelle – about angels in magical worlds with impressive power that mirror the human condition.

Stephanie is a Canadian-born, Haitian-raised, Congolese descended, North American dweller who lived a colorful life in south Florida that cultivated a perspective on the world as unique as her background.

She’s the author of the YA fantasy series: The Seraphim Resistance Prequels and The Transcendents Serial, as well as the writing guide, Fantasy Fundamentals for Christian fantasy writers.

You can usually catch her going for a walk through a park, or simply binging Disney+ with too many snacks. Get in contact with Stephanie directly at: stephaniebwabwa.com or follow her on Instagram or Goodreads.

The post Your Self-Publishing Toolbox for Authorial Success: Writing Tools appeared first on DIY MFA.

Although it’s a Kindle product, it actually has nothing to do with the e-readers and, in fact, can’t even be read on them at this time. Rather, Kindle Vella is simply a platform for readers to access bite-size installments of fresh stories, primarily on their phones. This article will explain what exactly the Kindle Vella platform is and how to get started both reading and submitting on it.

*Note: Until the end of 2021, Kindle Vella will be running its beta version, which means it is only accepting stories from U.S. authors in English.

Kindle Vella: The Specifics 

To begin, readers access the Vella platform through either Amazon’s desktop site or the Kindle mobile app (iOS users click “Discover”; Android users should point their browsers to the desktop site). Once there, readers can choose from a variety of genres, including non-fiction, fantasy, children’s fiction, teen/YA, LGBTQ+ fiction, humor, paranormal, erotica, and mystery, among others. However, one should note that despite the variety of genres and micro-genres, literary fiction is not included as a specific category.

On the Kindle Vella platform, one large story consists of multiple episodes. To see if a story catches their interest, readers receive the first three episodes for free. Each episode itself is a 600-5,000 word installment. Should the reader want to continue on their journey, they must purchase each additional episode via tokens. The number of episodes per story is highly variable, from as low as 5 to greater than 40. The most popular stories currently have about 20-40 episodes. New users are given 200 free tokens, which buys about eight episodes.

Readers are encouraged to give episodes a thumbs up if they like an episode and once a week, crown a favorite. The Kindle Vella homepage consistently displays a leaderboard of crowned favorites, which can also be broken down by genre and/or month.

How to Submit

Now that you have hopefully hopped on over and examined the Kindle Vella experience for yourself, let’s talk about how authors submit their work.

First of all, the big thing with Kindle Vella is that they want exclusive content. If your content is available in the public domain or freely available on the web (i.e., your blog or Medium account), it is ineligible. Additionally, you cannot break down a previously published book into episodes and submit it as a Kindle Vella work, even if that work is currently unavailable or available in a different language.

However, you can compile 10 or more Kindle Vella episodes into one book or long-form work. Please refer to the fine print here for more information. 

If you do not already have one, create an account with Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP). You may link your primary Amazon account to KDP or choose to create a new one, should you wish to keep business and pleasure separate.

Once signed in to KDP, access the Kindle Vella Library. Currently, this is on the first page that comes up once you sign in. If that changes, look for Kindle Vella as a subcategory of KDP Bookshelf.

The next part is pretty much following KDP’s step-by-step rules on the Kindle Vella Page. You are asked for a title, 500 character description, and may use up to 7 tags (a.k.a. keywords) to associate with your work. 

A very important part of this process is choosing the accompanying image. Unlike a book cover, the image chosen should not have any words; rather, the image should be an eye-catching representation that gives the reader a feel for your story.

From there on out, you essentially click “publish” and your story is out in the wild. It is up to you how frequently you would like to publish episodes. Of course, regularity will be a key to success on this platform. Weekly installments are suggested and readers have the option of being notified when a new installment comes out.

Getting Paid: The Token System

As previously mentioned, readers buy episodes with tokens. Again, to try out the program, Amazon gives readers 200 free tokens. Thereafter, tokens are bought in bulk. $1.99 will get you 200 tokens, which averages out to about 8 episodes. This is the smallest order of tokens, with the largest being 1,700 for $14.99, giving the reader a purchasing power estimate of 34+ episodes.

Generally, episodes sell for 1 token per 100 words. An episode consisting of 721 words would cost 7 tokens.

Royalties are calculated using this formula: 

(Number of Tokens to unlock episode) x (Tokens bundle price/# Tokens in bundle – taxes and fees) x (50% revenue share) = Earnings per episode

Examples and launch bonus opportunities are given on the Kindle Vella Royalties, Reports and Payments page

As such, you will earn (negligibly) more if a reader keeps buying 200 tokens at a time to unlock your episodes rather than a larger package.

Moreover, one should also note that you will not earn royalties if your episodes are unlocked using the free 200 tokens given to new readers.

In Conclusion

Serial publishing via digital devices is on the rise and a great way for new authors to get their stories in front of the people who matter: readers. If you are a writer who dreams of keeping readers in suspense about what your characters will do next, serial publishing is for you. Kindle Vella is specifically focused on a smartphone-based experience and represents a wide variety of genres, which notably includes non-fiction. 

Finally, both the reading experience and publishing experience are simple, quick start processes on Kindle Vella, so whether you are a reader or a writer, I encourage you to go check out Amazon’s latest attempt to cultivate wild minds.

Tell us in the comments below: Have you ever used Kindle Vella as a reader or writer?

Melissa Haas is the author and illustrator of Catula: The Misadventures of Dracula’s Cat and The Night Before Christmas (NOW WITH CATS), among other books. Follow Catula’s whereabouts on Instagram @CatulaTheCat or download a free coloring page at www.catulathebook.com.

The post Kindle Vella: Serial Publishing & How to Get Started appeared first on DIY MFA.

This debate has been flourishing since Amazon introduced Kindle Direct Publishing in the late-aughts, and if you’re not too familiar with KDP, you might be surprised by the nuance involved. Many indie authors have praised Amazon for its easy-to-use platform, promotional opportunities, and more. Yet at the same time, the inner workings of Amazon remain murky, its book market is highly competitive, and—needless to say—going Amazon-exclusive means missing out on what other retailers have to offer.

To help first-time authors make this crucial choice, this post will candidly unpack the pros and cons of Amazon exclusivity and how it functions. We’ll start with the pros before moving onto the cons. And whatever your experience or opinions of Amazon, I’d encourage every author to read all the way through before committing to either path.

Pros of Amazon exclusivity

1. Kindle Unlimited enrollment

We can’t discuss Amazon exclusivity without first mentioning KDP Select, the program that requires it in the first place. To clarify, anyone can publish a book with KDP (the platform) and still have the freedom to sell on other retailers. However, those enrolled in KDP Select must sell their ebook only on Amazon—at least for each 90-day KDP Select period (which automatically re-ups unless you opt out). As a result, much of the exclusivity decision boils down to the benefits of KDP Select.

First and foremost is the inclusion of your ebook in Kindle Unlimited, Amazon’s reading subscription service. When enrolled in KDP Select, your book becomes available to over three million KU subscribers, and you earn royalties based on pages read. This means if your ebook blows up on Kindle Unlimited, you could earn a lot more than you would otherwise—especially if you’ve written a romance, which is by far the most popular genre on KU.

Basically imagine if you got paid every time someone read your blurb, or previewed your book’s first few pages on Amazon. It’d be pretty sweet, right? Because KU royalties aren’t dependent on readers committing to your book, as regular sales royalties are, you’ll likely receive more of them over time—so long as your book remains part of KDP Select. And don’t worry, it will still be kept up for sale; Kindle Unlimited is just another channel for people to access it.

2. The ability to run price promotions

The other key feature of KDP Select is the ability to run price promotions on your book. These promotions come in two flavors: Kindle Countdown Deals and Kindle Free Promotions. The former allows you to discount your book to under $2.99 for one week each 90-day period and still receive 70% royalties on the sales. The latter is what it says on the tin, allowing readers to download your ebook for free, though just for five days rather than seven.

You’re only permitted a single price promotion per enrollment period—i.e. you couldn’t make your book free for the first five days, then $1.99 the next week, without cutting yourself down to 35% royalties—but price promotions can be very useful, especially for authors launching their first books. Running a limited-time promotion on your ebook not only makes it more enticing to readers, but also gives you a shot at the Kindle Daily Deals page and the Kindle Store Best Sellers page (which, as you’ll see, has a whole section just for free books!).

The only downside of price promotions is how infrequently you can run them. However, for those in the know, these promo days can absolutely be optimized for exposure. If you do go Amazon-exclusive and take advantage of price promotions, make sure you’re simultaneously plugging them on social media, to your mailing list, and wherever else you can think of.

3. It’s less effort than going wide

As Rob Eager touches on in this episode of DIY MFA Radio, one of the few silver linings of Amazon’s near-monopoly is that authors who wish to reach the majority of readers (at least in the US and UK) don’t need to expend their energy elsewhere. Amazon is so dominant, especially when it comes to ebooks—controlling an estimated 75% of the US ebook market—that for many indie authors, the additional effort required to “go wide” may not be worth it.

There are exceptions, of course. If you’re willing to pay for an aggregator like Draft2Digital, you can sit back and relax as the aggregator uploads your info and centralizes your data for all the different retailers (though it’ll cost you either a flat fee or a ~10% royalty cut). And if your target audience is outside the US or UK, or if you want to expand your reach in other countries, going wide can be very fruitful indeed.

But if you’re looking for a single US-based platform on which to go “all in,” Amazon is the one—as daunting (or disillusioning, if you’re not an Amazon fan) as that might sound. 

Still, it’s not without its drawbacks, which is exactly what we’ll talk about next. Having covered the major pros of Amazon exclusivity for first-time authors, here are the potential cons.

Cons of Amazon exclusivity

1. You can’t make your book permafree

Somewhat ironically given the price promotions touted by KDP Select, you cannot make your ebook permanently free, or “permafree,” on Amazon without also publishing it elsewhere. This is because Amazon doesn’t allow you to set your book’s price to free for more than five days at a time—unless, that is, you’re leveraging its price-matching feature.

As spelled out on Amazon’s Digital Pricing Page, the retailer has the authority to price-match your book to its lowest price online, presumably to give Amazon a competitive advantage. The trick, if you want your book to be permafree— as many authors do, when they care less about royalties and more about exposure—is to set your book’s price to free on another retailer, then notify KDP Support (select “Pricing” → “Price matching” in the sidebar).

Making a book permafree, especially if it’s the first in a series, is a popular and often successful tactic for indie authors; however, it’s simply not an option if you want to stay Amazon-exclusive. If you’ve run your allotted Free Promotion and are impatiently waiting out the remaining 90 days of this KDP Select period so you can do another one, consider just going wide instead.

2. The algorithms can do a lot of damage

Again, Amazon’s inner workings are less-than-transparent, but we do know a few things about its algorithms—the complex formulas that control everything from the Best Sellers lists to the top search results for buyers. The good news is that there are plenty of ways to game these as an author: calibrating your keywords to hit as many relevant terms as possible, writing a compelling book description, and so on.

The not-so-good news is that there’s still a great deal you can’t control—elements that, if compromised even slightly, can tank your book. For example, you might think you should go all-out for your book launch… but what you might not realize is that a big sales spike on your first day, then low sales in the days to follow, indicates to Amazon that your book should not be promoted consistently. The algorithms will take the spike as an anomaly and advertise your book less than if you had steady sales for several days.

Another notorious example of the algorithms’ fickleness is what can happen with your book’s “also boughts.” If you make the mistake of doing an external group promo (like on BookFunnel) with other books that aren’t very similar to yours, Amazon will map connections between your book and those books. The algorithms will then continue recommending your book to disparate readers who won’t buy it outside that promo, because it won’t seem like it’s for them. The result? Amazon clocks your book as a dud and stops recommending it at all.

This is how, for some authors, the supposedly foolproof algorithms become a nightmare to wrangle. Yes, if you do your research and play it safe, you’ll likely be okay. But if you’d rather avoid the possibility altogether—or if you want to support retailers that still have some good old-fashioned human curation, like Barnes & Noble—you should go wide.

3. You’ll lose out on Amazon-boycotting readers

Speaking of human curation, let’s address the elephant in the room: the fact that, despite Amazon’s ubiquity, more and more readers have begun striving to avoid it. Though poor worker conditions and the decimation of independent bookstores can hardly be blamed on Amazon’s self-publishing division, the company’s shortcomings may be enough for you, too, to steer clear—especially if you run in close circles of anti-Amazon consumers.

These are the main pros and cons for any first-time self-publisher, though you’ll probably want to look into other ebook distribution channels before making the final call. And if you decide to enroll in KDP Select and commit to Amazon exclusivity for 90 days or more, make sure to check out Helen J. Darling’s post on the long-term effects of Amazon exclusivity—with additional factors to consider like how many books you have and the diversity of your products.

With all this information at hand, you should end up on the right path! But even if you don’t, remember you can always switch from Amazon-exclusive to wide, or vice-versa; as your life changes, your publishing goals might too, and it’s never too late to re-route.

Savannah Cordova is a writer and content creator at Reedsy, a marketplace that connects authors with the best editors, designers, and marketers in the business. In her spare time, Savannah enjoys reading contemporary fiction and low fantasy, as well as writing the occasional short story. She’s here to pull back the curtain on publishing so that every author can have the greatest possible chance at success.

The post Amazon Exclusivity: An Honest Appraisal for First-Time Authors appeared first on DIY MFA.

But a few publishing myths are more insidious, and even as someone who works in self-publishing, I’ve rarely seen them challenged. These are the misconceptions I’d like to address today — and which I hope you’ll recognize as false the next time you see them pop up! 

Misconception #1: A dozen query rejections is a lot 

One of the best-known anecdotes in publishing is that Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone was rejected by twelve publishers before finding a home at Bloomsbury. This bit of trivia has often been touted as encouragement for new authors, giving the impression that a dozen rejections is an unusually high amount, requiring a Herculean level of perseverance.

I do appreciate the “Never give up!” moral of the story, and I won’t deny how awful it feels to get rejected even once. But as any author who’s written their share of query letters will know, twelve rejections is not a lot. Maybe it was back in 1995, but in 2021 — with agents and publishers so much more accessible online, and receiving constant queries and submissions as a result — modern authors need to adjust their expectations.

It would also benefit most authors, both professionally and psychologically, to realize that generic form rejections and even delayed rejections (those that take weeks or months to arrive) are not personal. Top agents get hundreds of queries per week; they simply can’t respond to every author, and even form rejections may not arrive in a timely manner. I know it’s tough to let go of rejection, especially when an agent seems so cavalier about it — but try to take each one in stride and use this as an opportunity to fix whatever might be turning them off.

Though I can’t say what is a “normal” amount of rejections to receive, I will say it’s more than a dozen. If you’ve written a book in a competitive niche and you’re sending out tons of queries, it could be more than fifty. In that sense, the spirit of the famous anecdote stands: don’t give up! But also don’t expect to hit the jackpot on query #13.

Misconception #2: Your advance sets your career in stone

Some might recall this article by Heather Demetrios that circulated back in 2019, all about the author’s rollercoaster experience with trad pub: how she received high advances for her first few books, only for later advances to drop dramatically when the first books didn’t perform. It ignited major controversy in the publishing community, with some agreeing that Demetrios was taken for a ride by her publisher, while others argued she’d squandered the chance of a lifetime.

But if one indisputable truth emerged from all this, it’s that a big advance from a publisher — even multiple advances — doesn’t mean you’ve “made it” as an author. If your book doesn’t earn out (i.e. generate profits equal to your advance), you won’t receive royalties, your further advances will be lower, and you could even be dropped by your agent or publisher.

Despite all this, there remains a disproportionate industry focus on the importance of trad pub advances. Not that this focus is always bad; sometimes advances are a useful metric, as in 2020’s #publishingpaidme campaign. This movement sparked a much-needed conversation about racial disparities in publishing, and to be sure — whatever you think about what advances should signal — no one can deny that Black authors should be receiving much higher advances for their books.

Still, one can see how new authors might deduce that high advances are the ultimate barometer of publishing success… which, as we know from Demetrios’ story, is not the case. And authors like Roxane Gay and N.K. Jemisin, both of whom participated in #publishingpaidme, arguably prove the opposite: you can receive a paltry advance and still become a celebrated bestseller (though again, in an ideal world, the first part would not happen).

So if you’re an aspiring author, just keep in mind that your advance does not determine your career trajectory — and if you do manage to land a book deal, don’t let that initial lump sum distract you from the nuts and bolts of the deal itself. Instead, focus on tightening up other important aspects of your contract, such as release date, distribution channels, and setting a baseline rate for every book you want to sell.

Misconception #3: Publishers go all-out to promote their books

Another key point from the Demetrios article was that, despite the promise seemingly implied by a contract, a publisher’s interest in your work does not mean they’re going to promote it. This is a huge part of why most trad pub authors don’t earn out their advances — and debut authors are at a particular disadvantage, as they often have no idea what’s coming.

Unfortunately, there’s not much to be done on the publisher side. You can ask for more marketing support and opportunities (requesting that your publisher pay for ARCs, send you on tour, etc.), but most publishers don’t have the resources to promote every book they acquire. They do it for the biggest titles, sure, but otherwise rely mostly on word of mouth and their authors’ pre-existing platforms to move copies.

The silver lining is that you can start building your own platform at any time, before your book is even acquired. In fact, having a solid platform can significantly improve your chances of landing an agent and publisher in the first place! This is especially true for nonfiction authors whose subjects require a show of experience or expertise; if you already run a flourishing lifestyle Instagram, for example, you’ll have a much easier time pitching your lifestyle book.

An independent platform will come in even handier if you decide to self-publish rather than traditionally publish — and with all the wild unpredictability of trad pub, the control afforded by self-pub might be looking better by the minute. But before you decide to self-publish your book, take heed of this next point… 

Misconception #4: Self-publishing is cheap

Though there are many benefits to self-publishing, low cost is not one of them, at least not when done right. Yes, it’s possible to self-publish for almost nothing, but that book is bound to have a cobbled-together cover, strange formatting, and typos throughout. And sadly, no matter how amazing your book is at its essence, these kinds of issues will stop readers in their tracks.

The lesson here: if you want readers to invest in your book, you need to invest in it first. For reference, the average self-publishing author on the Reedsy marketplace spends between $2,000-$4,000 for a full slate of book-related services — this includes multiple rounds of editing, formatting, cover design, and possibly professional marketing as well.

However, you don’t have the budget for all of this, I recommend prioritizing cover design. It’s the first thing readers will see of your book, and one of the clearest indicators as to whether it’s a) a professional product and b) a good match for them specifically. Getting a professional cover design still isn’t cheap, of course — but if you keep your cover relatively simple and weigh plenty of options in terms of designers, you can get a bestseller-worthy cover for $300-$500.

(PS. Check out that post on the cost of self-publishing for more tips to save money, and Helen J. Darling’s post on indie author budgeting for a breakdown of key terms and best practices!)

Misconception #5: Every author should try trad pub first

“Traditional publishing > self-publishing” is one of those blanket statements that I think most people in the industry would recognize as false — but that doesn’t stop a lot of authors from categorically thinking they should try trad pub first. After all, self-pub will always be an option. Why not shop your manuscript around before you commit to publishing it yourself?

This approach makes sense if you’ve done your research and are well-informed and confident on the subject. But many authors out there have no idea what trad pub really entails, only envisioning that six-figure advance and glittering book tour — which, as we’ve covered, are far from guaranteed. For some of these authors, self-publishing will turn out to be the better path… but they’ll forge ahead with trad pub anyway, investing months or even years of their lives, only to find it wasn’t right for them after all.

Admittedly, without knowing you, I also can’t tell you which publishing route you should take. It depends on countless factors, from your feelings on creative control to royalties to mainstream recognition to literary awards. But I can implore you to do your own research and educate yourself further before you decide.

Look into your options, never assume, and when you hear something that doesn’t sound right — like one of these misconceptions, for example — don’t be afraid to question it.

Savannah Cordova is a writer and content creator at Reedsy, a marketplace that connects authors with the best editors, designers, and marketers in the business. In her spare time, Savannah enjoys reading contemporary fiction and low fantasy, as well as writing the occasional short story. She’s here to pull back the curtain on publishing so that every author can have the greatest possible chance at success.

The post The Biggest Misconceptions About the Publishing Industry appeared first on DIY MFA.

What does “wide” mean here? What is “Select”?

“Select” means KDP Select, Amazon’s program that restricts electronic distribution of your ebook to Amazon in exchange for certain royalty and promotional perks. Choosing select means your ebook will be included in Kindle Unlimited (KU), so KU subscribers can read your book in the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library (KOLL) for free, but you get paid for the pages they read. “Wide” means foregoing those perks to publish your ebook on a variety of platforms and storefronts. Both Joanna Penn and the Alliance of Independent Authors offer valuable primers on the pros and cons of wide vs. select.   

What’s your career objective?

The choice to publish wide vs. select represents a key strategic decision for the author-publisher. Reflect on your long-term business plan and your author goals, and consider which tactic will be more likely to get you where you wish to go. Although authors can switch back and forth between the two channels at will, the audiences are different. Cycling between the two may result in wasting time serving an audience that won’t support your goals in the long run, or failing to gain traction in your chosen sector.

Here are a few factors to consider:

• How many books do you have? Some authors, including prominent indies like Joanna Penn, recommend going with KU until you have at least two books, as it’s easier to learn a single platform first and then broaden your marketing. 
• What genre or genres do you write in? KU readers favor romance, followed by fantasy and mystery. If you write outside these genres, you may find other platforms friendlier places to build readership. 
• How diversified are your product offerings? Do you offer your books in ebook format only, or do you have print and audio options as well? If you offer products in multiple formats, you can choose to offer your ebooks in KU and offer your print and audio books in wider distribution. 
• What’s your product release strategy? If your business model is to write constantly and publish frequently, Amazon exclusivity may benefit you, as you can learn to time releases and promotional days to make Amazon’s recommendation algorithms work in your favor. If you take longer to write your books, it may make sense to go wide, so you can take advantage of the different platforms’ opportunities to market your existing works while you bring the next one out.
• How comfortable are you with risk? Amazon offers a lot of benefits, but using a single retailer means assuming a great deal of business risk. Amazon can change their royalty structure or the KU business model at any time. Antitrust litigation could conceivably impact the way Amazon treats independent authors. The decision is akin to placing all your retirement funds in a single stock (even if it is Amazon stock), or a balanced portfolio of mutual funds. If you’re comfortable with that level of risk, the payoff from Amazon can be great. If you prefer to diversify your risk, wide makes sense. 

Depending on the number of books you have and the formats you have them in, you can enjoy benefits of both markets. For example, you can offer a few ebooks in KU–a first book in a series, or a complete short series–and have your other ebooks (plus your print and audio versions) wide. Offering a few ebooks in KU lowers the risk to the reader, who doesn’t have to pay anything extra to try your book out. After reading your series, that reader may be willing to venture outside of KU to continue to support your career.

• What kind of audience do you want to build? Authors constantly work to build their platforms, or their readerships. With whom do you want to be in conversation? Although I love it anytime someone signs up to my mailing list, as a US-based author, I get a special thrill when I see an email address with a country extension on the top-level domain. If you desire to build a global audience, it’s hard to argue against choosing wide, because Amazon is not the dominant vendor in most countries. Even if you publish only in English, you can gain a global readership quickly.

This map shows my English-language international sales through Kobo, a Canada-based vendor with a major global presence. This kind of reach simply would not be possible by keeping my books in KDP Select. Aggregators such as Draft2Digital and PublishDrive maintain international networks of smaller vendors that can expand your reach and even help you with translations of your books. 

• What’s your timeline? By publishing through KDP Select, even if you publish in a less-popular genre, you can achieve visibility quickly and easily (keeping it is another matter). Publishing wide demands patience. However, as vendors like Kobo and Apple and aggregators like Draft2Digital and PublishDrive offer more opportunities to market and promote your books, the gap will close.

There’s no right or wrong answer to the question whether to publish wide or select. The only thing that matters is what makes sense for your goals. With independent publishing, the tools are available for you to realize almost any goal you can envision, and you have the power to make all the decisions.

Helen J. Darling writes contemporary women’s fiction. Her latest novel, Terms and Conditions, was self-published in November 2019. You can connect with her at itshelendarling.com.

The post Making Goal-Driven Publishing Decisions: Wide vs. Select appeared first on DIY MFA.