If you are thinking of writing a book but you are stressing out over all the steps to write, publish and launch to market, you should seriously consider enrolling in one of the best self-publishing courses available today.

Why take an online publishing course?

There is a lot to know beyond writing a book. Not to say the writing part is easy, but you will have greater confidence in writing and publishing your book with connections to a support network walking you through the steps.

Now we will take an inside tour of the best self-publishing courses, including the benefits of each course, and the best online publishing program for you.

Here is a list of the best self publishing courses we will cover:

1. Self Publishing School with Chandler Bolt
2. Authority Pub with Steve Scott and Barrie Davenport
3. Self Publishing 101 with Mark Dawson
4. Your First 10,000 Readers with Nick Stephenson
5. Tribe Writers with Jeff Goins

Although all the best online self-publishing courses here come highly recommended, the course content and purpose of each course varies depending on:

• What you need as an author. Are you writing your first book? Scaling up your author platform to 6 figures a year?
• Your budget. How much cash are you willing to invest in your self publishing business?
• Your expectations. What are you expecting by taking an online publishing program? A strong return on ROI? Can the course deliver on its promise?

But, before we dive into the best self-publishing courses on the market today, let me ask you this:

• Are you writing a book? If yes, have you finished your book?
• Are you ready to launch and earn passive income from book sales?
• Do you have a plan for marketing and selling your book to international sites?
• Are you building an email list of raving fans through your book empire?

Depending how you responded to the above, this should give you an idea what course to enroll in.

Every day, thousands of books are self-published through various publishing companies: Amazon KDP, Barnes and Noble Press, or Apple iBooks to name a few. Thousands of authors—just like you—have a dream to see their books in print, on a bookshelf, or for sale online in the Amazon store, the largest ebook retailer in the world.

To get your book to the publishing stage takes a lot of work. If you are not familiar with everything needed to self publish a book, you could end up spending more money than planned or, unknowingly fall into the hands of a deceiving vanity press publisher that waits for new authors desperate to publish.

Don’t let haste or desperation lead you to a bad decision. Check out the best courses here and any questions, contact support through the course so you can be confident you’re making the right decision.

Why Self Publish Instead of Traditional Publishing?

Here are reasons to consider self-publishing your book instead of traditional publishing.

1. Writing a book makes you an authority in your area of expertise.
2. Self-publishing a book, or series of books, creates an additional income stream that could lead to a full-time career as an author within 6-12 months. Publishing your book through one of the big 5 trade publishers could take years.
3. Self Publishing lets you build your own business at your pace with the freedom to make key business decisions.
4. Potentially you can earn more because it is easier to scale up when you have control over marketing and book launch pacing.
5. Tax breaks by forming your own business and working from home.
6. Publish more, publish faster. This means the potential to earn more in a shorter amount of time and scale up your email list at a faster rate: The key point here is, it’s faster all around.
7. 0 rejection letters. That’s right, you can never be rejected as a self-published author.

Some of the big titles available today started out as self published books before being picked up by a major publishing house. Recognize any of these titles?

• Fifty Shades of Grey—E.L.James
• The Tale of Peter Rabbit—Beatrix Potter
• The Martian—Andy Weir
• The Shack by William P. Young
• Eragon by Christopher Paolini
• Swann’s Song by Marcel Proust
• Milk and Honey by Rupi Kaur
• Switched by Amanda Hocking
• Still Alice by Lisa Genova
• The Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield
• Hacker series by Meredith Wilder

So yes, self publishing can be a great path to launch your writing career. You can work from home, set up a writer’s temporary workstation at your local Starbucks, or hunker down in a library hammering away at perennial bestseller after bestseller.

How Do I Choose the Best Online Course?

As a self-published author of 12+ books, I know firsthand what it is like to navigate through all the steps involved in writing a book. And writing the book can be the easy part!

Now, you might be thinking to just do it yourself without help from any of the self publishing courses. I did this too, and I made a lot of mistakes that could have been avoided had I invested in a course with a built in blueprint.

This is why I have put together a solid list of the best self publishing courses on the market today. Only the best made this list because I know what it is like to waste money on courses that went nowhere.

I have personally been inside each of these courses so I can share with you first hand the pros and cons of each.

Why take a self publishing course?

Good question. Take into account the marketing, networking, and getting the book ready for print. The steps are many and it is a big investment of your time and effort.

Do I need a course to write a book? Can’t I do this myself?

Yes, you can. But…

Publishing can be difficult with lots of moving parts. You start to feel like a juggler with too many balls in the air!

The good point of joining a course is, you are not alone. And, without support, a launch team to help launch your book, it is easy to make a lot mistakes could otherwise be avoided.

So, this is why we bring you this list of professional experts, each with years of book writing experience and marketing confidence, sharing with you the best strategies for writing, launching and selling more books. And yes, despite the flood of material out there these days, you can make money from self publishing…if you do it right and learn from the best.

The 7 Criteria for Choosing the Best Self Publishing Course

1. The instructors for these self publishing courses are multi-bestselling authors with the sales and platform to show it. They are trusted by the industry with solid reputations for being honest and driving their business with integrity.
2. The course content is current and up to date. In an industry that is constantly changing, publishing courses can become outdated within a year. The courses here are updated regularly with additions and updates every few months.
3. Based on industry reviews and student satisfaction, the self publishing courses are praised and recommended from authors who have been through the programs.
4. The strategies and business practices of the owners do not break any rules pertaining to Amazon’s rules and are morally sound.
5. I have personally taken these courses and recommend each one.
6. The material, content and overall course is professionally packaged and high quality.
7. Support: When you run into trouble, you want to know that you can talk to someone and get everything sorted quickly and efficiently. No fuss.

Take note: Several courses are open for a limited time only at certain times of the year. The enrollment period is usually every three months, but this varies.

Self-Publishing School with Chandler Bolt

Self-published entrepreneur Chandler Bolt quit college back in 2014 and set out to write a book called The Productive Person. The book was hugely successful and Chandler soon set up an online course to help authors self publish their books…in just 90 days!

Yes, the professionals at Self Publishing School are making big claims: You can go from blank page to published book in as little as 90 days. To date, close to 5000 authors have been through the course since it started in late 2014.

The online publishing course has been featured by INC 5000 as one of the 5000 fastest-growing private companies in America.

With this comprehensive go-at-your-own-pace blueprint, the school has created an easy-to-follow system to take you from first-time author to course creator with three pillar courses available.

Breakdown of Course Content

When Self-Publishing School first started out they had a basic course for writing and publishing a book. There are now four premium courses to choose from on the platform, including a full fiction course piloted by successful self-published fiction author RE Vance.

VIP—Blank Page to Published Author: From blank page to published author, write your book in 90 days with this course. There are 3 modules to walk you through the program with over 4 hours of video, bonus content and an outsourcer rolodex to assist with hiring professionals for all phases of the book production.

• VIP Writing
• VIP Book Production
• VIP Marketing and Publishing

SMB [Sell More Books]: For authors that have already published a book and are focusing on book marketing and promotion to achieve sales results.

• SMB Launch Strategies
• SMB Email Marketing Strategies
• SMB Foundation Strategies
• SMB Author Brand Strategies
• SMB Advanced Marketing Strategies

CBA [Course Building for Authors]: Building a course from your book? This premium course is made specially for those authors ready to take their platform to the next level.

• CBA Plan & Develop Your Course
• CBA Create and Upload Your Course
• CBA Market and Sell Your Course

Each course comes with its own customized, professional workbook. The best part of these courses is that you will be assigned a personal coach after being accepted into the program.

Course Details

Cost to Enroll: Speak to an SPS representative to discuss best course options and pricing.

Availability: If you meet the course requirements you can start right away

Target Author: Writing your first book, advanced or pro authors. SPS has courses to cover any level.

Enrollment Availability: If you qualify for access to the course, you will speak to a self publishing representative who will set you up with the best course to meet your publishing goals.

6 Reasons to Enroll with Self-Publishing School

• The one-on-one personal coaching that comes with each course [VIP 2.0, SMB and CBA]. You will get the best results by working with a professional student success coach.
• One hour clarity call with your coach to drill down into your book idea.
• Weekly live online mastermind group with Chandler Bolt
• Customized workbook comes with each course
• Mastermind facebook Community of 1000+ active participants.
• 4 premium courses to meet your publishing goals

Self-Publishing School has a long track record of successful students that have written, launched and turned their dreams of being published into a reality. The course is fast-paced and doesn’t waste time on details.

Check out this review of Self-Publishing School we did.

Authority Pub Academy With Steve Scott and Barrie Davenport

Steve Scott [also known as S.J. Scott] is one of the biggest names when it comes to self publishing. He has been marketing online for a long time and when the eBook craze started back in 2011, Steve was one of the first authors that as in there doing it.

Steve Scott has published over 70 books and has been branded as the “Heavyweight of Self Publishing.” He runs the blog Develop Good Habits. Together with his writing partner Barrie Davenport [Live Bold and Bloom], Steve and Barrie created Authority Pub Academy.

With the combined talents of two bestselling authors, Authority Pub is everything you would expect it to be: A self publishing course that is focused on teaching authors to write and publish, not just a book, but focuses on building out an author platform.

In today’s overwhelming jungle of books, with thousands being published daily, Steve Scott recognized the importance of turning your book platform into a brand and a book business.

This is the strength and focus of this course, and there are loads of videos, downloads and information taught from two authors that have been engaged in the self-publishing business from the beginning.

Breakdown of Course Content

Authority Pub Academy is made up of 6 modules:

• Module 1: Setting the Author Mindset and Building a Writing Habit
• Module 2: Niche Focus and Researching a Perennial Bestseller
• Module 3: Outlining, Writing a First Draft and Editing
• Module 4: Pre-Publishing and Setting Up Your Book in KDP
• Module 5: Lead Magnets, Reviews and Launch Strategies
• Module 6: Advanced marketing and Scaling Up Your Author Library

Authority Pub is a plethora of knowledge and both Steve and Barrie have learned everything through years of trial and error. Authority pub is a “one-stop resource to help writers streamline the whole process.”

Course Details

Cost to Enroll: $597 or 2 payments of $348

Availability: Anytime

Target Author: If you are just writing your first book, or already published and looking to scale up your author platform with more content and strategies that increase long term growth, Authority Pub is for you.

6 Reasons to Enroll with Authority Pub Academy

• Advanced supplementary materials includes WordPress blog setup mastery, Canva tutorial, email walkthrough using Aweber and Evernote tips for productive writing
• Course content professionally delivered via high definition videos supported by quality downloads
• Solid case studies and examples of writers who have made it work
• Effective advanced marketing strategies to scale up your books
• The course removes any guess work and provides students with a clear roadmap
• 30 day “try it, test it, apply it” money back guarantee

Self Publishing 101 with Mark Dawson

I became interested in Mark Dawson’s platform as a big fan of his John Milton action series books and Isabella Rose thrillers. If you’re looking for a great read this weekend, I’d highly recommend these books.

As a traditionally published author who used to write for a big firm, Mark Dawson started self publishing his action and thrillers and, to date, has sold over a million copies. Mark has published 25+ books, has three series in the works, and is constantly launching bestseller after bestseller. His monthly earnings in 2015, according to an interview in Forbes.com, Mark Dawson was being paid $450,000 a year for his works.

So, who better to learn the craft of self publishing than an established author with both a library of successful bestsellers and the income to show it. This brings us to Self Publishing 101, Mark Dawson’s course for authors.

If you are new at self publishing or have been publishing for awhile, this course has something for everyone. You will learn the basics as well as advanced marketing strategies to scale up your author platform.

With Self Publishing 101, you’ll will write, launch and market a quality book that sells. Although Mark Dawson is mainly a fiction author, the course can be customized for nonfiction writer’s. The same marketing strategies apply to both.

Breakdown of Course Content

Inside Self Publishing 101, the course is broken up into 8 modules that includes:

• Build Your Platform
• Pre-Publication
• Amazon Exclusive or Go Wide
• Go Wide
• Generating Traffic
• Advanced Teams & Launching
• Getting Reviews

As additional bonuses, there is also a tech module that walks through how to build a website, lead magnets, email service providers, and formatting your book.

The best part of this course is the system Mark teaches for email list building through an author website. Building an email list is critical to the success of any author, and Mark and his team have these bases covered.

Course Details

• Cost to Enroll: $497 or 12 monthly payments of $49.00. Comes with a 30-day money back guarantee.
• Availability: Closed after enrollment begins. Cycle is every 3-4 months.
• Target Author: Beginner, intermediate and advanced authors looking to build a rock-solid fan base through email list building and advertising.

6 Reasons to Enroll with Self Publishing 101

• Deep dive into the Amazon algorithm
• Focuses on subscriber communication and building an email list
• Bonus tech library with an introduction to using advanced apps and tools
• Active Facebook group with high response time
• Additional “Writing Copy for Facebook Ads” module
• Reasonably priced course for the value it delivers

Your First 10k Readers with Nick Stephenson

If you are looking for a comprehensive, in-depth, no-holds-barred course on marketing tactics, Nick Stephenson’s Your First 10,000 Readers is that course.

Created by a bestselling fiction author, Your First 10k Readers is a different beast from the other best courses listed here for one defining reason: It isn’t about writing your first book.

The course assumes you already have a book, or a library of books, and now you want to take what you’ve got and line it all up in order to grow your list to a 10k readership…and beyond.

Your First 10k Readers is really better suited for the more seasoned author. It gets into the nitty-gritty of the Amazon algorithm, merchandising, keywords and niche marketing, email marketing, landing pages, giveaways, and what Nick calls “You’re secret sauce.”

So yeah, there’s a lot going on here.

Let’s take a look inside.

Breakdown of the Course Content

The course consists of 6 modules that you can work on at your own pace.

The self-publishing course modules are:

• Module 1: Rule the Retainers. This includes Amazon Algorithms, Merchandising, Broad Reach VS KDP Select, and Pricing.
• Module 2: Generate Endless Traffic. This includes Keywords & Niches, Using Free Books, Smart Promotions, and The Author Dream Team
• Module 3: Convert Traffic Into Fans. This includes Traffic Funnels, Optimize Your Website, Giveaways, and Events Marketing
• Module 4: Build Engagement and Sell—Without Being “Salesy”. This module includes Why Readers Don’t Buy, Priming the sale, Scarcity, the Secret Sauce, Social Media Mastery, Getting Reviews, and Auto-Responders
• Module 5: Launch Strategies. This module includes Launch Teams, Building Buzz, and Launch Day
• Module 6: Facebook Advertising. This module includes Intro to Power Editor, How to Track Results With Pixels, and Ninja Tricks.

In addition to the 6 core modules, there is also a wide range of bonus content that includes rock star author interviews, email swipe files, and tools of the trade bonus section.

Course Details

• Cost to Enroll: $597 or 12 monthly payments of $59.00. Comes with a 30-day money back guarantee.
• Availability: Enrollment anytime.
• Target Author: Intermediate and advanced authors needing advanced tactics to scale up author platform and build your publishing business into an empire

6 Reasons to Enroll with Your First 10k Readers

• Membership includes author interviews with big industry authors Mark Dawson, Joanna Penn, Simon Whistler, Bryan Cohen, and Nick Loper
• A powerhouse of book marketing tactics for both fiction and nonfiction authors
• Video content is high quality, fast-paced and engaging
• Comes with a highly-engaged private Facebook group
• Includes a BONUS course “The 60-Day Author” for writers who haven’t published yet
• Includes a members cheat sheet that breaks the course down into a comprehensive blueprint

Tribe Writers with Jeff Goins

Jeff Goins is the best-selling author of five books including The Art of Work and Real Artists Don’t Starve. He is the owner of Goinswriter.com where he shares his thoughts on writing, life and creativity.

With a successful blog and five bestselling books, it isn’t any surprise that Jeff has a writing course to market to his raving fans of authors: Tribe Writers.

Jeff’s course is packed with material. With the formula presented in Tribe Writers, you as the author can create your own path to creativity. There are twelve steps of a tribe writer that allows you to tailor fit the best plan while keeping your unique voice.

Tribe Writers is broken up into four individual modules:

• Module 1: Honing Your Voice
• Module 2: Establishing a Platform
• Module 3: Expanding Your Reach
• Module 4: Getting Published

In addition to the four modules, you also get:

• Exclusive interviews with over a dozen authors, bloggers, and publishing experts
• Access to the Tribe Writers community of 6000+ members
• Live conference calls to ask questions and get help
• Downloadable PDF workbook that summarizes every lesson
• Admission to a private Facebook group only for students

The modules take about 2 weeks to get through but you can move at your pace.

This course comes with five additional bonuses to support you including You Are a Writer eBook + Audiobook and The Perfect Book Launch.

Where Jeff’s Tribe Writers is different from the other courses is, a strong emphasis on honing your ideas and creativity as a writer to create a unique brand. There is a strong foundation for support and networking with hundreds of other authors.

Best 6 Reasons to Enroll with This Self-Publishing Course

• Loaded with tools to help get you started
• Community of writers to help you when you get stuck
• Lots of valuable content and expert interviews included
• Designed to show you how to find your voice and audience
• Monthly conference calls to keep you on track
• “12 steps of a Tribe Writer” that clearly outlines the expectations of the course.

Ready to Write and Publish Your Bestseller?

All of these courses are excellent in their own way. Depending on your budget and writing goals, you might choose one over the other.

Now that we have taken an in- depth look at the best self publishing courses for you to write your bestseller, you have a solid idea of what to expect from each course. The question is: Are you ready to write your book?

The best writing course you decide depends largely on your goals as a writer.

Are you writing one book only and need a step by step process to guide you through to published author?

Self Publishing School could be a match. Keep in mind they do have additional courses for marketing and business including Sell More Books and Course Building for Authors.

Do you want to build a solid library of books and focus on your author platform? Authority Pub Academy could be your best match. Let Steve Scott and Barrie Davenport guide you towards your success of being a multiple bestselling author.

Do you want to learn the essence of email list building, creating an author website and setting up landing pages that convert readers into subscribers? Self Publishing 101 could be the best choice to make.

Need more advanced marketing tools from one of the best in the business? Your First 10k Readers is the path you might consider, and…

Interested in a course that focuses on honing your creative writing talent while showing you how to connect with your unique voice? Tribe Writers with Jeff could be the best option.

Or, you might decide you need two self publishing courses, combined together for maximum impact. Self Publishing School can show you how to go from blank page to published author in 90 days. But Nick Stephenson’s course can teach you the more advanced analytics and how to really build out an online book business.

So now, make a choice. You have been sitting on this long enough. Your book won’t write itself and if you have written it already, take it to the next level.

Your move.

Life is short.

Take action now.

It’s your time to write that next perennial bestseller!

The post The Best Self-Publishing Courses: Top 5 Online Publishing Courses for Authors appeared first on SelfPublishing.com.

You have spent the past 3-6 months writing your book and, after weeks of self-editing and several rewrites, it is time to release your book into the world.

You’ve worked hard on your book. You want to make sure you choose wisely when it comes to setting up your book for publication.

You know there is a long process to this and you aren’t sure where to begin. So, at this stage, you’re asking, “What are the best self-publishing companies?”

Here are the 12 best self publishing companies:

1. Kindle Direct Publishing
2. Barnes & Noble Press
3. Kobo
4. Apple Books
5. Self Publishing School
6. Reedsy
7. Lulu
8. IngramSpark
9. Publish Drive
10. Draft2Digital
11. Smashwords
12. Streetlib

In today’s publishing marketplace, self-published authors are leading the race. Now, as an authorpreneur, you have total control over the cover design, content, and distribution of your book. You get to choose when to publish and who to publish with.

There are a lot of choices when it comes to choosing the best company to roll with, but the difficulty is, you can’t tell one publishing company from the other.

This post is introducing you to the 12 best self-publishing companies for authors looking to self publish their books—fiction, nonfiction, or memoirs—and get it into the hands of readers as quickly and easily as possible.

You probably have lots of questions before you decide to publish with one company or go with several.

As most authors know, even if you are new to the self-publishing arena, Amazon’s KDP [Kindle Direct Publishing] is the one publisher that seems to be everywhere. So, a lot of authors may think this is the only path to publishing a book.

What are the pros and cons of each publishing company? Who is the easiest to work when it comes to book formatting, distribution, royalty payments or tech support?

Do you just go with the biggest, which is obviously Amazon, and call it a day? Or is it worth it to publish with several other very reputable retailers and distributors to maximize your reach?

By the time you are done, you will be clear on the direction your book needs to take and have greater confidence in yourself as an indie author, knowing your book is in the best marketplace for maximum results.

What are the Best Options for Self-Publishing?

If you’ve decided to go with self-publishing over traditional publishing, there are now hundreds of publishing companies, from mega-retailers such as Amazon that sell everything, to smaller private publishers focused on specific genres.

It isn’t a question anymore of “Will I get published?” But these days the big question is, “Who do I publish with first?”

This is a very good problem to have.

With the help of the best book publishing companies in the business, self publishers are turning their dreams of writing and publishing into a reality.

Self Publishing your self-help book, memoir or action novel is easier than you think it is. But you still need to know the options available as a self-published author.

Our best advice: Do your research before publishing anything, and please, don’t sign that dotted line until after you’ve read this post!

In the past decade, the combination of technology and innovation has brought something to new authors that had never existed before: Publishing opportunity on a massive scale.

The time to get published is NOW, and that book burning a hole in your imagination doesn’t have to wait for someone else to decide if it is publishable

No matter where you are at now with your book, you’re going to publish it, right? Of course you are. For that, you need to think about your options and the grand plan for publishing your “baby.”

Self-Publishing Company Terms to Know

• Aggregator—With aggregators the bonus here is it saves you time, energy and money. You upload your book and aggregators distribute to 30+ retail channels such as Apple Books or Google Play Books.
• Retailer— A company that sells books exclusively through its own retail store. This includes Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple Books, and Kobo. Authors can upload books to these platforms and make book sales through these platforms. Retailers pay authors directly and some offer exclusive programs such as Amazon’s KDP select program.
• Publishing Education Company— These sites generally don’t sell books through their platform. Instead, an educator will offer free or paid courses, or paid services to help authors prepare for self-publishing. Examples of publishing educators would be Self Publishing School, Lulu or Bookbaby.

The differences between retailers and aggregators is, retailers can make you more book sales by marketing directly to their market. But most aggregators can place your book into wider channels and a larger audience.

An aggregator is your first step to publishing with an international self-publishing company.

How We Chose the Best Self-Publishing Companies

There are lots of companies out there to offer their services for publishing your book. Not all these companies are playing on the level. You need to be realistic and not sign up with the first publisher that promises to get you onto Oprah for your book launch.

To make this list I have put together 6 points. Just because a self publishing company didn’t make it here isn’t an indication you should avoid it.

Here’s the criteria we used to make our decision for the best self-publishing companies:

1. Book publishing volume: The amount of book sales volume this company has shipped is huge. They have proven themselves in the marketplace with high shipping volume and a business model you can trust.
2. Reputation and Trustworthy: These companies are legit and come recommended. Cross check with this detailed list put together by the Alliance of Independent Authors. These companies are NOT on the blacklist of publishing companies that have been red flagged as dangerous.
3. Customer Reliability: A proven track record with authors as easy to work with and trustworthy staff and communication.
4. Helpful Resources: These self-publishing companies have a plethora of publishing resources for authors to get the job done. Some of these services and materials are free and some are not. But what matters is they are offering what you need to get published.
5. Affordable: You can publish your book within your budget. While there are expenses to self-publishing, it won’t break your bank.
6. Subscribers List: These companies have large email lists of thousands of subscribers to their newsletter or services.

You are about to embark on an incredible journey into self publishing. You are your own boss, you make all the creative decisions, and how fast you get your book out there into the world is really up to you and how much time you can invest in your book project.

Still feeling it? Good! Let’s move ahead.

The Best Self-Publishing Companies for Aspiring Authors

Now, here are 12 of the best self publishing companies to get your work out into the world. In order to bring you this list, I have personally worked with most of these companies, some more than others, and will break down the pros and cons of each.

I will also cover how to use these companies together and the benefits of one over the other.

These are the companies that sell and distribute books directly through their website. They have a long reach for international distribution so your book gets pushed into the pipeline for maximum selling power.

#1- Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP)

Kindle Direct Publishing [KDP] is how you publish on Amazon. In the US alone, Amazon makes up close to 40% in self-published digital books. So as an author, you can’t afford to ignore the “big Guerilla” of book publishing.

What makes Amazon so critical in the publishing arena? First, Amazon has a widespread reach that puts books in front of millions of browsers per day. They also offer competitive royalty rates of 35% for books prices under $2.99, or 70%, for all books priced between $2.99 and $9.99.

KDP Select Exclusivity

KDP has an exclusive program that sets it apart from the other retailers: the KDP select program.

When you join KDP select you are enrolled for 90 days in an exclusive partnership with KDP. This means you are tied to Amazon exclusively and cannot make your books available on other platforms. Instead, you have access to discount promotions:

1. Free Book Giveaway: To give your book away for free up to 5 days during the 90 day enrollment in KDP select. In addition, your book is placed in Kindle Unlimited [KU] and the Kindle Owners Lending Library [KOLL] where prime members can borrow your book for free and you, as the author, get paid per number of pages read.

Depending on the number of books borrowed or how many you have published, this could be very lucrative each month.

2. The Kindle Countdown Deal is another promotion allows authors to run limited time discount promotions in which authors continue to earn selected royalty rates per sale during the promotion. If tied in with BookBub ads, this deal can work very well.

But the big question is, do I go exclusive with Kindle Direct Publishing? The answer: It depends on your publishing goals.

Amazon has a big slice of the pie, but it doesn’t have the whole thing. For example, Joanna Penn mentions in this post that her book sales on the  German platforms almost match Amazon sales.

As we will see in the rest of this post, there are other publishing companies that focus on pushing your book into the wider market and that means increased sales and subscribers to your platform.

Now, having said that, we know KDP is a “big deal” in the self publishing business. But, take into consideration that, publishing exclusively on Amazon and ignoring the other self publishing companies could put you at certain risk as well.

What happens when Amazon decides to change something, and you suddenly lose half your income overnight?

As a first time author, you might consider staying with KDP select for at least the first 90 days to build momentum for your book. But if you push forward and write a series of books, go wide and expand your global reach.

That is why the rest of this post introduces you to the other self-publishing companies.

#2 – Barnes & Noble Press

“Publishing with B&N Press is as easy as 1, 2, 3. You can easily create different formats of your book, publish, and get sales reporting—
all in one place.”

Barnes & Noble Press [Nook Press] is, according to their website, “a free, fast, and easy-to-use self-publishing service that enables you to publish and sell directly to our millions of readers.” Barnes and Noble has been a leader in the book industry for many years.

The name implies Brick and Mortar retail for books, but in the age of digital publication,  B&N now has a premium ebook platform that can compete with the rest of the growing ebook market.

While getting your book onto the physical shelves of Barnes & Noble proves to be a challenging task, you can set up your ebook and print book through Barnes & Noble Press.

Books published with Barnes & Noble Press retail only at their online and physical bookstores.

Royalty rates range from 40% to 65%, depending on the price of the book.

Barnes and Noble has many resources for authors to help with the publishing process, and they have strong affiliations with some of the best service providers in the industry.

Barnes & Noble Press has partnered with Reedsy for editorial, 99 designs for cover design, Inkubate for marketing solutions, and Girl Friday Productions for publishing resources.

To get started with Barnes & Noble Press, simply setting up a free NOOK account, register as a vendor, and work through the steps to create your book for publication on NOOK. Your book will then be live within 72 hours of hitting publish.

It is free to upload to B&N. You can take advantage of the cheaper printing costs with Barnes & Noble when you publish directly to their site instead of going through 3rd party.

Books priced over $2.99 get 65% royalty, a competitive rate when compared to other print companies.

Note: The B&N Press platform is available for use by authors and publishers only in the following countries: United States, U.K., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, The Netherlands, and Belgium.

#3 – Kobo [a Rakuten Company]

I have a confession to make: I am Canadian.

I publish primarily in the US store and, if it weren’t for Kobo, I would have very few sales in the Canadian store. Why?

Kobo. Founded in 2009, Kobo is a Canadian-based company out of Toronto and a subsidiary of the Japanese e-commerce company Rakuten, the world’s 14th largest Internet company.

Kobo is an open platform, which supports the most popular formats, including EPUB, EPUB3 and PDF, allows readers to buy and read digital content from various sources.

Kobo’s marketing power makes up an estimated 25% of all ebook sales in Canada. That’s huge. Whoever thought the world’s 2nd largest country with a population density of 4 people per square kilometers would have so much marketing power for self publishing.

As an international book retailer and one of the largest ebook stores, Kobo should definitely be on your list for publishing. It operates in 16 countries outside the US and has over 5 million titles available in 77 languages.

Kobo Writing Life

A great feature of Kobo is the self-publishing platform called Kobo Writing Life [KWL]. This site features an easy-to-publish platform for your books, as well as a detailed sales analytics tool to allow authors to track sales in real time.

Kobo Plus

Launched in 2017, Kobo Plus is Kobo’s subscription service that’s available to customers in Belgium and the Netherlands, in collaboration with Kobo’s Dutch retail partner Bol.

Kobo Global Partnerships

Kobo has expanded its global reach to include a growing number of international ebook retailers.

Kobo Publishing Details:

• Cost of Service: Free to Upload
• Royalty Rate: 70% on books priced more than $2.99 in the U.S. OR 45% for books priced below $2.99
• Book formats: epub
• Competitive Edge: 25% of all ebook sales in Canada, 16 countries worldwide, 77 languages
• How to Publish: How To Publish An eBook on Kobo
• You can download the Kobo FAQs here.

#4 – Apple Books

Apple launched its self-publishing platform in 2010. The self-publishing platform for authors is Books and is relatively easy to upload your book. Publishing on iBooks Authors is free and the royalty is a flat 70%.

Although Amazon has the longest arm of retail sales, Apple fares very well with its direct marketing approach to Mac users, making it the 2nd largest online retailer of ebooks. Why? It targets Mac users, and according to appleinsider, there are now 100 million Mac users worldwide. That is no small cookie. Apple targets Mac users and derives traffic from Mac users already plugged into the brand.

How to Publish Your Book on the Apple Store

You can visit Apple Support here to get the steps for formatting and uploading your book to Apple Author. But one unique feature is, you can publish your book using Pages.

Everything you need to make your book available in the Apple Store is right here. You can also update a previously published book.

I would recommend you visit the Apple Books Publisher User Guide and download the checklist to make the publishing process as easy as possible.

Follow the step-by-step guide and get your book published to one of the world’s largest retailers.

A few things to know about publishing to Apple Books.

• You have to be a Mac user to publish directly to the Apple Store. If not, use an aggregator such as Smashwords or PublishDrive
• No browser reading. With Kindle you can read the books in the browser. Not with Mac.
• iBooks Authors uses the ePub format that is not compatible with most other platforms.
• iBooks Authors is available in select countries only.
• Authors can discount books for free at anytime, and there are no exclusive distribution contracts to weave through.

Publishing on Apple

It is free to publish on the Apple Store. The royalty rate is 70% for most books sold through Apple only. If you go through an aggregator, that drops to 60%. The preferred format is Pages of ePub.

#5 – Self Publishing School

“Go From Blank Page to Bestselling Author in as Little as 90 days.”

When it comes to online learning for self-publishing, the Self Publishing School 6-time bestselling author and company Founder Chandler Bolt provides a premium course that takes first-time authors from blank page to bestselling author in 90 days.

Yes, you really can write, develop and publish a book within this timeframe if you follow the SPS formula.

Self Publishing School launched its way onto the scene back in late 2014 and has since then grown into a multimillion dollar company that has helped close to 5,000 authors become published. That is impressive considering Chandler himself is a college dropout and started the business after publishing his bestselling book The Productive Person.

Although technically Self Publishing School is listed as a course, it provides a “publishing education service” for first-time authors through their VIP publishing program.

For more advanced authors who have already published and looking to scale up book revenue, the Sell More Books course is definitely recommended.  And, if you are looking to turn your book into a course, the Course Building for Authors is the path to take.

The online self-publishing educator has been featured by INC 5000 as one of the 5000 fastest-growing private companies in America.

With this comprehensive blueprint, the school has created a system to take you from first time author through to professional entrepreneur.

In addition to the courses, the Self Publishing School Blog is now one of the top-rated blogs on book publishing. You can find a wealth of information here to help you write a book step-by-step or the best book writing software for writers.

We have a full review of Self-Publishing School you can check out.

#6 – Reedsy

Reedsy is an online publishing educator that gives access to free courses for authors and provides a number of self-publishing services. In addition, Reedsy has a powerful outsourcing platform that connects authors with editors, proofreaders, formatters, cover designers, marketing strategist, and ghostwriters.

Authors need lots of help getting a book ready for publication, and Reedsy makes this process simple with one-stop outsourcing. You can get an editorial assessment of your work, or a query letter review for authors looking to publish the traditional route.

The freelancers outsourced through Reedsy have profiles easily visible and this builds instant trust with authors.

Reedsy is not an aggregator or book retailer but focuses on providing educational materials and services for authors.

They do this by hosting a platform that provides reliable resources for authors to write better and prepare a book for publication.

This saves a lot of time and banging your head against the wall because you just hired another outsourcer that totally messed up your book formatting.

Trust in the pros you can find in the Reedsy Marketplace. Then, when your book is ready, you can set it up for publishing success with the online ebook distribution and print-on-demand retailers.

#7 – Lulu

Lulu has been around for a very long time, and is one of the oldest publishing platforms, when they began publishing and distributing ebooks from 2009. By 2014, the publishing giant had produced 2 million books

Lulu is a plethora of education, information and houses a large platform to help authors with every step of the publishing process. Lulu has its own bookstore to sell and distribute books.

The process for working with Lulu is relatively straightforward. As an author you upload your book to Lulu, and authors can purchase their own books through Lulu.

By acquiring an ISBN—check out Bowker.com for US citizens—your books can be distributed to online retail outlets such as Barnes and Noble, Amazon and Apple’s Bookstore.

Royalties: The author receives an 80% royalty for print books and a 90% royalty for eBooks after sale.

Cost: Lulu’s ebook conversion, publishing, and distribution services are free, but they sell a variety of author services including editing, cover design, formatting, promotional services and book marketing.

Lulu is a one-stop shop for everything and, with the services they have, you can feel confident you’ll get your book published after using their services.

We know that Amazon has over 80% of the book market share. But if you set up your book for wide distribution through an aggregator, you can tap into a huge international market. This could lead to other publishing opportunities such as having your book sold to foreign publishers.

#8 – IngramSpark

When it comes to wide distribution for print-on-demand, this is where Ingramspark comes sliding into home base.

Before Createspace was absolved completely by Amazon, it was the main storefront for authors setting up print books. But now, KDP and IngramSpark work closely together to print and distribute hard copies through print on demand.

IngramSpark has made huge strides in the last couple of years. As part of the Ingram Group, they boast to be the industry’s largest global book distribution network to over 39000 libraries, bookstores, online retailers, and schools and universities. Ingram also distributes to the top online retailers: Amazon, Kobo, Apple Books and Nook.

Formats and Quality Print

Ingram “prints everything” from novels, graphic novels to children’s books and business textbooks. Ingram offers hardcovers as well as paperbacks, an option that KDP doesn’t have.

IngramSpark also specialize in high-quality print books requiring color and offer matte, gloss or cloth for the cover. As for binding, Ingram can do perfect bound, saddle stitch or case laminate.

When you consider all of these book options, in addition to the distribution network and high quality printing, Ingram is the leader in print on demand.

Pricing

$49.00 set up fee per title. / $25 for ebook only.

ISBN Required: $125.00 through Bowker.com

Royalties

For distribution orders, Ingram Book Company takes 15-25% from the wholesale discount and the rest goes to the retailer.

You receive a 40% royalty when selling through IngramSpark only. But, opt out of Amazon, and you will receive a 45% royalty of the list price.

The question is, do I go with IngramSpark or KDP?

Suggestion: Both KDP and IngramSpark is recommended.

Here are 3 reasons why…

• KDP charges less for print books and it is free to upload and publish.
• KDP has expanded distribution but, in reality, it is through Ingramspark. The distribution services of Ingram are definitely above and beyond the rest.
• IngramSpark has far better quality and offers superior book bindings and hardcover printing.  

#9 – PublishDrive

“With PublishDrive you can focus on the most important job: creating beautiful content, meanwhile the rest of the operational work is handled by PublishDrive.”

A relatively new company, PublishDrive is making big strides as a core aggregator. Created by Kinga Jentetics when she was looking for a way to publish her master thesis, PublishDrive was created to help other authors launch their dreams. Kinga Jentetics was named by Forbes magazine as one of the top female entrepreneurs under 30 and top 100 female founders

Publish Drive has a core team of specialists with 24/7 support, and has over 400 stores worldwide with direct distribution to Apple Books, Kobo, Amazon KDP, Barnes & Noble Press, and Google Books.

This makes PD one of the best distributors on our list. PublishDrive is an expert in international distribution so that authors can tap into those foreign markets they would otherwise struggle to reach.

PublishDrive is an Apple-approved aggregator and Google partner, making it a powerhouse for global distribution.

Here is how you can publish on Author iBooks with PublishDrive.

Here is how you can publish on Google Books via PublishDrive

A Unique Feature

Most retailers or distributors charge a royalty rate for sales. PublishDrive charges a monthly subscription rate and you keep 100%—Yes, that’s right—of sales. If you choose not to go with the monthly subscription PublishDrive charges a flat rate of 10% on all sales.

Check this out…

• PublishDrive FAQs
• How to Publish Your Books Through PublishDrive

#10 – Draft2Digital

“As a writer, you want to write. So when it comes to publishing, you could use a little support. We make it easy. Keep writing. Keep your rights. We’ll help with the rest.”

On D2D there are no fees for using their service. D2D keeps 10% of all sales and you can set the price as you like, or even offer your book for free. D2D handles the formatting for free and that makes this a huge selling point when compared to Smashwords.

And…D2D distributes to Amazon, whereas Smashwords doesn’t. If being published on Amazon, the world’s largest retailer, is important to you this feature is huge.

D2D provides a very easy method to upload your book within minutes and have it live on the site within 24 hours. When it comes to aggregators, whereas Smashwords was once the King of the Hill, D2D is taking over the top spot and, if it comes down to Smashwords or Draft2Digital, D2D is the preferred platform for many self publishers now.

Universal Book Links

One major feature of Draft2Digital is they provide authors with access to International Book Links. This can be a major advantage for readers not shopping on Amazon for their favorite books. As an author, instead of having to create links for all the sites, D2D provides you with one link for the book.

For more information on Draft2Digital check out the FAQs page

Learn more about Draft2Digital:

• How to Publish With Draft2Digital
• Self Publishing with Draft2Digital
• Introducing Universal Book Links – Next-level Discoverability for Authors

#11 – SmashWords

If you are looking to get your books into the bigger markets and maximize on distribution, Smashwords is the aggregator you should be using.

But before you make a decision, let’s take a look at the platform.

Smashwords was one of the original aggregators to appear but since then, has seen big competition through Draft2Digital and now PublishDrive, two platforms that are easier to navigate and set up books for authors.

Smashwords has 5 PR points that still make it a good choice:

1. Monthly payments made and one penny payment threshold with PayPal
2. Earn up to 80% royalty if your book is listed in the Smashwords store.
3. Daily sales reporting from Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, OverDrive and the Smashwords store
4. Publish pre-order books to Apple, Barnes & Noble and Kobo
5. Smashwords is the world’s largest ebook distributor for self-published authors

Why should you NOT use Smashwords:

1. Smashwords doesn’t distribute to Amazon.
2. Formatting for Smashwords is complex and time consuming.
3. The FAQs page is disorganized with too much information.
4. The web design is archaic and difficult to sort through

So yes, Smashwords has incredible reach with distribution, but they have strict interior guidelines and do not support authors for formatting.

When compared to D2D, there are more cons than pros, and Draft2Digital can handle anything that Smashwords does.

Since PublishDrive has arrived on the scene Smashwords doesn’t make sense for a lot of authors to go through the trouble of formatting for Smashwords.

#12 – Streetlib

Streetlib is an Italian-based distributor with a strong presence in Europe, mainly Latin America and Europe.

With its expanding international reach, in February 2019 Streetlib launched digital portals for authors and publishers in 20 countries across 6 continents, with 5 in Africa.

Similar to the other aggregators on this list, Streetlib is aiming to distribute books wide to all international markets but the site does have a unique feature: The dashboard is configured for multiple languages such as Italian, Hindi, English and Spanish, and they are adding more as they grow.

My 2 Cents Worth: This is a site to watch because it is showing exponential growth as Streetlib now moves into the African continent and is building out a distribution channel across all of Europe as well as the Western countries.

Streetlib distributes to all of the major retailers: Amazon, Google Play, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Scribd, OverDrive, Indigo, Kobo, Tolino, and Google Play Books.

You can check out the Streetlib pricing here but basically, they take 10% of each ebook sale.

If you are looking to break into the European market [and beyond] Streetlib is definitely worth investing in.

Scale Up Your Book Success: Publishing Wide Matters

What do I mean by “publishing wide”?

Glad you asked.

Getting your book out into as many stores, platforms and online retail shops as you can. Remember that if you are enrolled in Amazon’s KDP Select program, you have to remain enrolled for 90 days.

For first time authors, this makes sense to enroll in KDP select for the first 90 days to gain traction on your book. But then, building out your platform, look at setting your book up for long term success in deeper international markets.

Imagine this: Your book on the Apple Store, the 2nd largest retailer, hitting 100 million Mac users.

On IngramSpark, reaching a global audience with Ingram’s wide distribution network.

With Self Publishing School, signing up for their VIP program and working with a personal coach to walk you through the steps to launching a bestseller.

On Kobo, you are tapped into the Canadian market and taking advantage of big book sales there.

PublishDrive is distributing your book to Amazon, Apple Books, Google, Barnes & Noble, and local distributors.

With Streetlib you are branching out further into the European markets and the African continent.

I know this looks like a lot of work, and you could expend tons of effort without seeing much result at first.

Start with Amazon at first of course and you build out your platform from there. You don’t have to use all of these sites at once. Get started with Draft2Digital and move into IngramSpark for expanded distribution with print books.

Now that you have a solid list of best self publishing companies there are today, what is holding you back?

You need an author business plan! Brainstorm the plan for your book business and start publishing with these sites. Start local and go global if you want.

The power of distribution and making a living as a bestselling international author is now up to you.

Ready to Start Your Self-Publishing Journey Today?

The post The 12 Best Self Publishing Companies for Authors appeared first on SelfPublishing.com.

There is endless information out there on how to write a book; it can be overwhelming, to say the least.

Hi, I’m Justin author of Inbound Content: A Step-by-Step Guide to Doing Content Marketing the Inbound Way. I wrote this book in 2018, and once it published it was an immediate bestseller on Amazon for several months.

As a first-time bestselling author, I can tell you that writing my first book was one of the most rewarding and challenging experiences of my life.

I experienced a lot of growth and pushed through many hurdles, in my mind and process, to self-publish something I was truly proud of.

To me, the real reward was seeing how my book was received by those in my industry.

“Justin Champion’s new book is a comprehensive overview of content marketing and a much-needed gift to a field short on actionable guidance that both teaches and inspires. Through engaging storytelling he arms his readers with frameworks and exercises, illustrated with real-life examples.”

— Anke Audenaert, digital marketing nanodegree lead at Udacity and adjunct professor of marketing at the UCLA Anderson School of Management

I achieved my dream of becoming a bestselling author. And I did it on my first try.

This is how to write a book in 8 Steps:

1. Download your writing toolkit
2. Develop a writer’s mindset
3. Determine what you want to write about
4. Create an outline for your book
5. Break your writing up into small pieces
6. Collaborate with others
7. Finish the rest of the content to complete your book
8. Edit and configure your book

How to Write a Book Workbook

I’ve distilled the experience of writing my first book to eight essential steps. And to help you get started on writing your first book, I created a free workbook which includes 17 practical exercises to help you through your journey.

Access the Writing your first book [WORKBOOK] and get started on your book today.

Upon clicking through to the page, you’ll be prompted to “Make a copy” of the workbook in Google Drive (if you don’t yet have Google Drive, click here to get it for free).

Section 1: Setting Yourself Up For Success

Ready to start writing your book? Let’s get to it!

#1 Download your writing toolkit

In 1882, Mark Twain sent to a publisher the first manuscript to be written on a piece of technology that would transform the writing industry: the typewriter. We’ve come a long way since Life on the Mississippi.

Nowadays, we have computers with word processing and the internet where you can find an endless assortment of useful writing software and apps that are meant to help you be an efficient and effective writer.

You may be tempted to overload on apps because you think it’ll help elevate your writing. But honestly, less is more. The truth is that the right tools and even self-publishing companies make writing and publishing easier and more enjoyable.

Instead of overwhelming you with all the possible apps in existence, below is a list of four tools I recommend adding to your writing toolkit today (and they’re free).

A) Google Drive

• You can organize all aspects of your project in folders (research, outline, manuscript drafts, etc.)
• You can host files for your projects like images, photos, etc.
• You can use Google Docs as a word processor.
• You can enable offline access and work on your files even when you don’t have an internet connection, such as when you’re traveling.
• You can collaborate easily with others, avoiding version control issues.
• You can access it from just about any device (laptop, smartphone, tablet, you name it).

Google Drive is one of the most versatile cloud storage services available today. But Google Drive is so much more than cloud storage. Here’s a list of ways you can use Google Drive to help you write your book:

Plus, Google will give you 15GB of free storage just for signing up.

If you’re new to Google Drive, here’s a list of resources that can turn you into a pro. (FYI, if you have a Gmail account, you have a Google Drive account.)

B) Grammarly

Grammarly is an editing tool that helps you identify grammatical errors, typos, and incorrect sentence structure in your writing.

Download the web extension and Grammarly will edit most anything you type in a web browser (yes, it will work with Google Docs).

You can check out this Grammarly review if you’re on the fence about this one.

C) Evernote

Inspiration can strike at any time. Capture those thoughts and ideas as they happen in Evernote. You can even sync Google Drive and Evernote. I recommend doing this, especially on your mobile device.

#2 Develop a writer’s mindset

Writing a book takes time, work, and dedication. It’s easy to romanticize being a well-known bestselling author like J.K. Rowling or Octavia Butler. However, every author has a story on how they started out just like you or me and overcame adversity to get where they are today.

For example, Rowling, who had no job and was on welfare at the time, would take her children to a coffee shop and write.

Butler, who was a dishwasher and potato chip inspector at the time, would wake up at two or three in the morning to write and wrote herself mantras to keep her focused on her goals.

Let’s review three things you can do to circumvent roadblocks and crush challenges to keep you focused on your goal — writing your book.

A) Hold yourself accountable for your work.

It’s not good enough to write only when inspiration strikes.

Below are a few ways to establish a consistent writing schedule:

• Block off chunks of time to write every week. If you’re looking for a place to start, consider one to two hours per day five days per week. The more often you write, the more you’ll develop a habit for it.
• Set a daily word count goal. Consider how many words you want to write each week. For example, if your goal is 3,000 words per week and you have five chunks of time blocked off to write per week, then you’d need to write 600 words per day to achieve your weekly goal.

I write early in the morning before I do anything else for 1-2 hours. I find that as I go throughout the day and work on other projects my mind isn’t as fresh or sharp by the end of the day. However, sometimes I have ideas throughout the day that I jot down in Evernote to jump-start the next morning with a working outline.

B) Let others know your intention and have them hold you accountable.

The best way to hold yourself accountable for your work is to let others know your goals. Is there someone you trust or a group of people in your network you can appoint to check in on progress?

Perhaps there is someone else you know who is trying to write or someone who is a seasoned writer who can serve as a mentor. If so, try to have regular check-ins with this person.

One way to keep these meetings consistent is to schedule a lunch or coffee date. Talk about your progress and perhaps any challenges you’re facing. They may be able to bring a fresh perspective.

I told my wife, Ariele, and several of my closest teammates from work about my intentions to write my first book. We had regular check-ins to talk about progress. Everyone helped keep me motivated and had different feedback that helped progress the book. Without them, it would have been a lot more difficult to write Inbound Content in the timeframe I did.

C) Find creative spaces where you can produce your best writing.

Where do you work best? What surroundings inspire you most? Identify them and make it a best practice to work there consistently. Here are a few examples.

• Coffee shops (classic)
• Library
• Beautiful park or somewhere in nature
• A dedicated writing nook at home that is only used for that purpose.

My main writing location is the dinette in my Airstream. I do my best work when traveling; I wrote the manuscript for Inbound Content in six weeks as I traveled the U.S. and worked full time from the road.

Section 2: Writing Your Book

#3 Determine what you want to write about

One of the most common pieces of advice for aspiring first-time authors is “write what you know.” A simple phrase that’s meant to be helpful, yet it begs so many questions.

What sticks out most from what Englander said is, “If you’ve known longing, then you can write longing.” Whether you’re writing a non-fiction how-to guide or a fictional post-apocalyptic thriller, you need to form a connection with your audience and you can do that through emotion. The best way to create emotion with your reader is to understand them.

Let’s review three things that will help you determine what you want to write about and how to write it in a meaningful way.  

A) Who are you writing for?

The key to producing meaningful content is understanding your reader. You can do this by creating a reader persona — a semi-fictional representation of your ideal audience. To get started with your reader persona, consider answering the following questions:

• What’s the reader’s age?
• What’s the reader’s education level?
• Does the reader prefer visuals?
• What is this reader interested in?

The more you know about your reader, the better experience you can create for them.

My main audience is marketers and business owners at small- to medium-sized businesses. They’re strapped for time and don’t need another theoretical resource. They value real-world examples to help visualize what tips and strategies look like in action.

B) Write about something that intrigues you.

You need to write about something that spikes your curiosity, something that keeps you coming back day after day.

I can’t stress the importance of this enough. If you choose a topic to write about for the wrong reason, don’t expect to create something that people will love. You need to be able to stick with it through dry spells and bouts of non-inspiration. Your own desire to hear the story will be what drives you through.

I’m a practitioner at heart and curious about finding ways to use content marketing to stand out and compete online. It energizes me to explain complex problems in an easy-to-understand way. Inspiration for this project is what kept me coming back to work on it day after day.

C) Perform research online.

Google makes it easy to research just about any topic. Have multiple ideas for your book? Do a search on Google to learn more. Here’s a list of ways to research your book concept on Google:

• What content already exists? Are there already books written on this topic? If so, which ones performed well? Why did they perform well? Is there anything interesting about their content that enhanced the reader’s experience? Is the market over-saturated on this topic?
• What influencers exist on the subject? Are there well-known authors on this topic? Who are they? What can you learn from them?
• What do you need to learn? Are there specific things you need to learn to create a rich, meaningful narrative (ex. geography, culture, time period, etc.)?

I performed extensive research before writing the manuscript for Inbound Content. It was important for me to understand what content was already out there, which content was performing well, and most importantly, how could I make my book unique. This is exactly why I included homework after each chapter to help my readers build an action plan that they could implement immediately, something I noticed wasn’t typical in other marketing books.

#4 Create an outline for your book

Once you know what you want to write about, you’re probably eager to start writing. Keep in mind these words from Mark Twain, “the secret to getting ahead is getting started.

The secret to getting started is breaking your complex, overwhelming tasks into small manageable tasks, and then starting on the first one.”

Let’s review four things you can do to create a clear outline for your book that you can use as a roadmap.

A) Write a purpose statement.

In one sentence describe the purpose of your book. A strong purpose statement will explain to readers why they should consider reading your book.

Inbound Content‘s purpose statement: People who read this book will learn a step-by-step process on how to do content marketing the inbound way.

B) Create a working title.

A working title is a temporary title used during the production of your book. Identifying your book by giving it a name can help set the direction. Once you finish your work you can revisit the title and update accordingly.

Inbound Content’s working title was Content Marketing Simplified. Once I completed the content, I updated it to something more fitting based on the content I created.

C) Write an elevator pitch for your book.

An effective elevator pitch should last no longer than a short elevator ride of 30 seconds. For context, 30 seconds equals about 65-70 words.

Inbound Content’s elevator pitch: Content marketing is about your audience, what they value, and how you can help educate and entertain them. Successful content marketing creates a trusting relationship with your audience. It’s no secret that fostering trust leads to business. Content Marketing Simplified offers techniques and strategies to create content that will attract the right people, convert those people into leads, and help engage them to become customers.

Pro tip: Take the time to nail your elevator pitch. You want to be ready to have a clear, confident answer when people ask about your book.

D) Create a BookMap.

If you want to create a solid foundation for your book in just a few hours, consider Self-Publishing School’s BookMap method. It’s a template you can follow to quickly pull together all the subjects you want to write about and organize them into topics that will become chapters of your book.

The BookMap I created for Inbound Content was so extensive, it made my writing process that much easier. I actually dedicated a week to my BookMap, this way I had time to reflect on it and update it. The more time you spend creating a BookMap, the easier it’ll make your writing process.

#5 Break your writing into small pieces

Writing a book can be compared to running a marathon. Most runners don’t go into the 26.2 miles thinking about how long until they make it to the finish line. They focus on every mile, every step, every breath. And many actually enjoy the process!

Like a marathon, your manuscript is essentially a puzzle made up of many smaller like-themed pieces. Your finished book may be 262 pages long, but it’s written one word or thought at a time. Pace yourself and stick to your consistent writing schedule.

Pro tip: Set deadlines to complete the chunks of writing you determine. This will help you better prioritize your blocks of writing time and word count goal.  

Because the BookMap I created was very clear, I was able to focus on creating one chapter (aka puzzle piece) at a time as opposed to worrying about and focusing on the project as a whole. I had a goal of writing the first draft of the Inbound Content manuscript in six weeks, so I set a goal to write two chapters per week and gave myself three hours per day (equating to 15 hours per week) to do so.

Additionally, after I finished writing my three-hour writing block, I gave myself 30 minutes to an hour to review the outline for the following day. This helped me prewire and get my mind ready for the next writing goal.

Section 3: Bringing Your Book to the Finish Line

Now it’s time to put on your marketing pants and spread the word about your book!

#6 Collaborate with others

On December 8th, 2016, David Bain brought together 107 leading digital marketing experts as part of a four-hour live show.

During this program, each influencer had three minutes to share their number one, actionable digital marketing strategy for 2017. David then used this video content to write the book, Digital Marketing in 2017.

David’s success was based solely on collaborating with others. And not only did this approach help him write an effective book quickly, but also, and more importantly, each person included in the book helped him promote the book once it published. That was smart, efficient, and effective if you ask me.

Let’s review three things you can do to collaborate with others when writing your book.  

A) Connect with your original accountability partner or group.

As I mentioned earlier, make sure you have someone you trust, like a mentor, to provide feedback on your writing. This is especially important as you wrap up your story.

A great example of finding accountability partners is through a group or self-publishing company much like what Self-Publishing School does with their Mastermind Community on Facebook.

I leaned on my accountability group to help me through my project. To keep things easier I appointed different people for different roles. For example, I had a weekly coffee date with a fellow teammate to brainstorm ideas and another weekly meal with a friend who was willing to read and edit my content.

I picked up the tab for both meetings; If someone is going to go out of their way to help you, do your best to express your appreciation.

B) Collaborate with influencers or thought-leaders on your subject.

**Ideal for non-fiction writers.**

This could mean asking well-known people in your industry to write a quote that brings value to your content.

As I mentioned earlier, the goal of Inbound Content was to be practical, not theoretical. In order to do this, I needed to find examples that I could share in my book. I set a goal to find at least 20 unique examples to include in the book.

Additionally, I set another goal to work with at least five industry influencers to help share their stories. I did this two ways: 1) for more authoritative sources I asked for a one- to two-sentence quote, and 2) for those who had a good story I wanted to share in my book, I had them write a chapter or a section within a chapter. This helped me when prioritizing what content I needed to create.

And lastly, I created a promotion kit so upon launch, each source could easily help me spread the word on my book while also promoting their example.

Pro tip: When promoting your book launch on social media, consider creating a buzzworthy piece of content and have your audience share it. I did this when Inbound Content published. I created a short satirical video, posted it to YouTube, and asked my network to share it. This helped me increase book sales during the first week of launch.

#7 Finish the rest of the content to complete your book

There are elements outside of your book’s content that you’ll need to write, such as a preface, foreword, notes, etc. I suggest waiting until after you’ve written your book. This way, not only can you better connect them to your story, but you won’t waste time editing them in case you make changes to your manuscript.

Let’s review eight final touches you may or may not need to wrap up your book.

A) Preface or Introduction (**ideal for non-fiction writers**)

Draw in your readers with a compelling story. This could be a personal anecdote related to your topic. Tell them what the book is about and why it is relevant to them (think of your reader persona from earlier).

Give more detail about the industry or topic you’re writing about and some background as to why you are the right person to tell this story. This provides context and validity for the reader.

Lastly, wrap up and give the reader a basic outline of what they’ll read and perhaps learn from your book.

I chose to inspire people with Inbound Content’s introduction. I fed off a lot of energy from others when writing Inbound Content and I wanted my audience to know that.

Additionally, I included and expanded on my purpose statement and elevator pitch. It was important for me to explain why Inbound Content was important and how it was going to help them achieve their goals (differentiating this book from other books they may have read or considered reading).

B) Foreword (**ideal for non-fiction writers**)

A foreword is typically written by another author or thought leader of your particular industry. Getting someone credible to write this can add a lot of value to your readers.

I put a lot of thought into my foreword. I prioritized finding someone that aligned with my goals and vision and was well-respected in the space. Marcus Sheridan, founder of The Sales Lion and author of They Ask You Answer wrote the foreword for Inbound Content. He wrote it in a practical way, which I knew my reader persona would appreciate.

C) Testimonials

Just like with the foreword, try and find respected, well-known people in your space and have them write a review about your book. The best way to promote yourself is to have someone else speak on your behalf.  

I focused on quality over quantity when looking for testimonials for Inbound Content. I had a goal of securing four testimonials, which I included on the back cover.

D) Author Bio

How do you want to be portrayed to your audience? Readers love knowing personal details of an author’s life, such as your hobbies, where you live, or what inspired you to write this book.

I repurposed content from my introduction to write my bio. Again, I wanted to let people know what motivated me to write Inbound Content, why it was an important read, and how it was going to help them.

Pro tip: The author bio on the flap of your book might be one of the first things people read when deciding whether or not to read our book. Keep it short, but make sure it packs a punch (just like your elevator pitch).

E) Glossary (**ideal for non-fiction writers**)

A glossary is an alphabetical list of terms or words relating to a specific subject, text, or dialect with corresponding explanations. If you are writing nonfiction, especially a topic that uses a lot of lingo or uncommon words, make sure to include a glossary to create a better experience for your readers.

I created a glossary for Inbound Content and included every word that I thought would come off as industry jargon. This way I was educating my readers as opposed to confusing them.

F) Notes (**ideal for non-fiction writers**)

If you are writing nonfiction, keep track of your sources as you research and write. A clear bibliography will only add to your value and credibility.

Being nonfiction that was based on a lot of research and experiments, I made sure to include a notes section in Inbound Content. It included citations, stats, image sources, etc.

G) Images (**ideal for non-fiction writers**)

Using images is a nice addition to your content. Images can create a more engaging experience for the reader while improving the communication of hard-to-grasp concepts.

I used images throughout Inbound Content to bring a visual component to examples I featured.

Pro tip: Include a figure number on each image. This way you can easily reference it in your text. You can organize images by leading with the chapter number first, then image number after the bullet point. For example, the above image is image 22 in chapter 11 of Inbound Content.

#8 Edit and configure your book

Now that you’ve written your manuscript, it’s time to format it so you can visualize the final product — your book!

If you’ve already decided to go with self-publishing versus traditional publishing, this is all on you.

Here are four steps in finalizing your book.

A) Configure your book

There are many ways to go about pulling your manuscript together.

If you know how to format a book correctly and to fit your book distributor’s specification, you can do so in Word or Google Docs.

Otherwise, we recommend hiring someone to do this professionally, as it’s one of the most important aspects to get right.

B) Create a compelling cover.

Don’t judge a book by its cover? Please. People are definitely judging your book by its cover. The cover design is generally the first thing that will pique a reader’s interest.

Let’s review some tips for creating an effective book cover:

• Whitespace is your friend. Make it a best practice to choose a design that pops, but doesn’t distract.
• Make it creative (non-fiction) or emotional (fiction). Do your best to connect the art to the story or use it to enhance the title.
• Consider a subtitle. Think if this as a one-sentence descriptor on what this book is about.
• Test two or three designs. Send a few designs to your trusted accountability group to get their honest first impressions and feedback.

Keeping these best practices in mind, I chose a cover for Inbound Content that was simple but made the title pop and let the subtitle provide the promise to the reader.

Pro tip: If you need help with your cover design, consider hiring a professional. Reedsy offers cover design services.

C) Find a professional book editor.

As meticulous as you may be, there are bound to be some grammatical or spelling errors that get overlooked. Also, a professional editor should be able to give you feedback on the structure of your writing so you can feel confident in your final published draft.

If you use Reedsy to configure your book, you can leverage their network of experienced book editors to bring your book to the finish line.

Finishing Your Book

And that’s it! Eight steps to writing your first book.

You can and will write your first book if you put forth the effort. Trust the process, create a consistent writing schedule, and use the practical guide to help you through the journey.

You’re going to crush this.

Next Steps

Looking for more support? Attend Self-Publishing School’s free webinar training — The Busy Person’s Guide to Getting Your Book Done. In this training, Chandler Bolt, founder and CEO of Self-Publishing School, reveals the exact tactics and strategies he used to write and publish six bestselling books in a row.

Are you writing a book? What’s it about?

The post How to Write a Book: A Beginner’s Guide for First-Time Success appeared first on SelfPublishing.com.

Thinking about taking a course with Self-Publishing School?

If you’re researching how to write a book or how to publish a book, chances are you stumbled across several self-publishing companies. And more than likely, one of them was Self-Publishing School.

A quick Google search that includes the term “self-publishing” will likely land you on one of the company’s resources, whether it be a blog article, a YouTube video, or an advertisement.

So, let’s take an honest look at this self-publishing education company.

A note about this review…

We’ll review other self-publishing companies in a different article. For this particular article, we’ve only got our eye on Self-Publishing School.

First off, it’s important to understand that this isn’t an in-depth review of one specific Self-Publishing School course.

If you didn’t know already, the company has a variety of courses, all geared towards authors, including:

• VIP Self-Publishing – Where nonfiction-specific authors can write, market, and publish their books within 90 days, all with 1-on-1 coaching from expert bestselling authors.
• Fundamentals of Fiction – Aspiring fiction authors will learn the ropes of fiction writing and publish their first fiction book with 1-on-1 coaching from a bestselling fiction author.
• Sell More Books – Authors who have already published a book will learn how to market their books and maintain consistent, 4-figure sales months.
• Course Building for Authors – Authors who wish to advance their book into a business will learn how to make courses and what it takes to sell them using the same exact methods Self-Publishing School uses itself.
• Elite Business Intensive – An in-person event where a select group of rising businessmen and women learn how to grow and scale their business from Chandler Bolt, Self-Publishing School’s Founder and CEO.

With that said, this is a collective review of Self-Publishing School’s online courses, so that you can decide which program might be right for you.

What is Self Publishing School?

Self-Publishing School is an online education company geared toward aspiring authors, and those that are already self-published. The courses are built up around Amazon self-publishing.

If you’ve decided to go with self-publishing versus traditional publishing but aren’t sure where to start, Self-Publishing School is the place to look.

The team’s mission is to help you breathe the book you’ve always wanted to write into existence.

And to help you start doing the work needed to share your book with the world.

Self-Publishing School takes an interesting angle with their inclusive approach.

Their message is that you don’t need to be the world’s best writer to publish a bestseller.

In fact, the company’s CEO, Chandler Bolt, makes it clear that he hated writing. Yet today, he’s a six-time bestselling self-published author.

In a booming self-publishing industry, Self-Publishing School was listed as one of INC 5000’s fastest growing private companies in America.

Small but mighty, Self-Publishing School may be on track to dominate the industry amidst other self-publishing companies.

Here’s a snippet of the company’s “About Us” page:

How is Self-Publishing School different from other self-publishing companies?

When considering self-publishing companies and which program to take, it’s important to understand the different types of business out there.

You can scour the internet to find a list of the best self-publishing companies in the industry, but chances are, each will serve a different purpose.

In an effort to clear up some of the confusion, we’ll explain the main types of self-publishing companies:

• Self-publishing platforms: This is where self-published authors actually upload their book to. Think Amazon self-publishing (KDP) and Apple’s iBooks.
• Self-published author services: These are self-publishing companies that provide authors with the services needed to publish a book. Think of it like a one-stop shop for book editing, designing, and illustration services.
• Self-publishing education: These are companies that teach authors the skill of how to self-publish a book successfully. Self-Publishing School falls under this category.

Who is Self-Publishing School for?

If you want to learn a tried-and-true method of writing and publishing a bestselling book with Amazon self-publishing, then Self-Publishing School might be right for you.

If you have the drive to do-it-yourself, but want a bit of handholding and mentorship, then you can definitely benefit from one of their courses.

Other types of people that can use Self-Publishing School programs are:

• Entrepreneurs wanting to uplevel their business and gain new leads
• Writers who want to publish multiple books and build passive income
• Authors who want to create a sustainable business
• Anyone who wants to share their story

Self-Publishing School Programs

As mentioned above, Self-Publishing School offers a variety of programs geared toward helping authors expand their personal book businesses.

VIP 2.0 Online Course

Hailed as the company’s flagship program, VIP 2.0, guides you through the entire Amazon self-publishing process. It includes step-by-step tutorials and personalized coaching sessions.

This self-paced course is most similar to other online programs from other self-publishing companies on the market today in the sense that it is an introductory course for beginners new to the self-publishing scene.

With its three phases (Writing, Book Production, and Marketing and Publishing), it’s a comprehensive program that covers the nuts and bolts of writing and publishing a book. And it’s geared towards non-fiction writers who want to do it in as little as 90 days.

The Self-Publishing School coaches, regarded as industry experts and authors, help support you with individualized, private sessions throughout the duration of students’ publishing processes.

An additional perk included is access to the company’s private Facebook group community, where you can connect with a robust self-published author community. There are also weekly live sessions, and members lean on each other for support and encouragement.

This VIP course recently received a facelift, so it’s been updated with new content and features.

For example, depending on which program you enroll in, a goodie box will arrive on your doorstep shortly after. This includes a physical workbook full of guided exercises.

If you want to write a nonfiction book, this comprehensive starter course might be valuable to you.

Fundamentals of Fiction Online Course

Like VIP 2.0, Fundamentals of Fiction is an online introductory course that will guide you through the self-publishing process from start to finish.

However, this course is particularly for aspiring fiction authors.

This self-paced course includes components that make it suitable for novel writing, as opposed to non-fiction writing. Tutorials on storytelling fundamentals and development can be found in this course.

Many other self-publishing companies have introductory courses that teach you how to write and publish a book, but it’s important to take a course that’s geared towards your book’s genre.

This ensures that you’re going to get the most out of the course, because the content is more aligned to your individual needs.

Like VIP 2.0, this course also includes personalized coaching sessions, and access to the Mastermind Community along with a private Facebook group for only the fiction authors.

If you want to write a fiction novel, this course may be especially beneficial for you.

Sell More Books Online Course

Think of this program as a graduate-level course; it’s the next level up from the starter programs.

The Sell More Books course is designed to help you do exactly that – sell more books. It’s for authors who already have a book, and are ready to dive in deep to their book marketing strategy.

The instructional materials and training videos cover book launches, email marketing, building an author brand, and advanced marketing strategies.

Also recently updated, the content is up-to-date and will be continuously expanding. It also includes a physical “playbook”, which is a planning and strategy guide that walks you through the course.

Just like the other two courses, this one is also self-paced and includes one-on-one coaching sessions.

If you’ve published your book and want to grow your business and increase your passive income, then this program might be for you.

Course Building for Authors

The newest course available from Self-Publishing School, Course Building for Authors is also considered a graduate-level program.

Contrary to its name, it’s not just for authors, but also for entrepreneurs, influencers, and industry experts looking to create and sell their own online course.

Online courses are all the rage right now, and there are a ton of “how to create a course” courses out there. But this program is unique for a couple reasons.

First, building a course is a huge opportunity for authors looking to build a sustainable online business.

Second, you’re learning from one of the few self-publishing companies that has actually built its entire foundation on the premise of online courses. So, it’s safe to say that the Self-Publishing School strategies have been successful thus far.

Included in this course is a physical workbook that you can use to follow along with the online videos, complete with exercises and bite-sized information on each section.

If you’re looking to grow your business and have the passion to share your knowledge with others, then this program might be for you!

What sets Self-Publishing School apart from other self-publishing companies?

There are a few reasons why Self-Publishing School has a leg up in the self-publishing education industry, such as:

1). Comprehensive, without information overload

There is a ton to know about the self-publishing industry, and it’s rapidly changing.

The starter courses are great at giving you the nuts and bolts with actionable steps.

Sure, one could argue that you can learn all there is to know with tons of research and trial-and-error, but all that takes time and effort.

If you don’t have the time to waste on that, these courses are a great start.

2). Designed to achieve a specific result

Each course is developed to help you reach a certain goal. Other self-publishing companies offer “one size fits all” programs, which doesn’t always get you the results you need.

Whether you’re wanting to write and publish a book in 90 days, grow your book revenue, or create your own course – each program delivers a different result.

Which means you can really hone in on what results you want to get out of the course.

3). Continuous improvement

Content is frequently updated, old courses are being redesigned, and new courses and products are sure to come down the pipeline.

This is exciting because even if you don’t find anything you’re looking for with their current course offerings, keep an eye out because Self-Publishing School will likely be rolling out new products in the future.

4). Extra perks

What truly makes Self-Publishing School stand out from competing self-publishing companies is the additional resources. The extra perks that come along with the programs, such as the workbooks and community access, are extremely valuable resources.

With so many online courses on the market today, Self-Publishing School is one of the few that actually mails you a box of goodies when you enroll in eligible courses.

5). Personalized, one-on-one coaching with a self-publishing expert

With the “online course” phase booming right now, self-paced courses oversaturate the market. While it’s convenient to be able to take them at your own speed, this isn’t always effective.

Too many people pull the trigger on self-paced courses, only to never actually finish the course.

Many of us need someone to hold us accountable, and some of us just need that extra push or hand-holding.

With Self-Publishing School’s coaching system, you get the extra support and guidance needed to successfully work through the process, which isn’t provided by other self-publishing companies.

6). Active, hands-on team

The team is super passionate about what they do, and are active in the Mastermind Community. As a result, they listen to feedback and continuously work to improve the company.

Whether you need guidance in the program, have a question, or a technical support issue, there will be someone ready to assist you.

Where does Self-Publishing School fall short?

No program out there is perfect and Self-Publishing School is no exception. While their results are outstanding, we see a few areas for improvement.

1). Price

The price is high compared to other self-publishing companies. But keep in mind that the other self-publishing companies are likely not including the coaching sessions, extra benefits, or additional support that come with Self-Publishing School.

The prices are not listed on the site itself, so if you’re considering Self-Publishing School, book a call to discuss all the details. Which leads us to our other point…

2). You have to apply first

Unlike other self-publishing companies where you can enter your payment information and instantly get access, Self-Publishing School has a “vetting” process, so to speak.

First, you’ll have to schedule a phone call with one of their publishing strategists to discuss whether it’s a “mutually beneficial” idea to have you take their course.

While this can be off-putting for some, the call can be helpful for you even if you decide not to join the program.

And the company is always adding new features, so maybe there will be a digital application option in the future.

3). Focused on Amazon Publishing Platform

For the courses on self-publishing, the material centers on the Amazon publishing platform, Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP).

It makes sense, since Amazon dominates the self-publishing market today. Many self-publishing companies also focus on Amazon self-publishing, so it can be an industry standard.

But for some people who want to focus on other platforms, you’ll likely have to do some extra research.

4). No “Done For You” packages

Since Self-Publishing School is an online education company, they actually aren’t like some self-publishing companies on the market that provide actual author services.

If you’re looking for a one stop shop to have your book self-published, edited and designed, then Self-Publishing School isn’t for you.

5). Video Quality

The bulk of the course content is in video format, which is standard for online courses on popular platforms like Teachable.

But some of the Self-Publishing School videos can be a bit lengthy. Many of the videos follow a screen-share format, where the speaker is talking to you directly, so at times it’s not the most engaging.

Some videos also don’t seem to be scripted, so it can be similar to a casual conversation, which means the speaker may get sidetracked.

If you are a visual learner, and process information more through reading, this might be inconvenient for you. But, many of the videos include transcripts so that you can read along if needed. You can also increase the video speed to skim over parts quickly.

6). Lacks writing development support

Writing is hard! If you’re a writer at heart, you know the struggle with writing.

Actually writing a book and getting the words onto paper is more than half the battle for the author’s journey.

While Self-Publishing School courses can help you simplify the ideation and writing process, they don’t currently have a writing development course. There are sections within the programs to help you with certain aspects of writing, but it isn’t too comprehensive.

Our Final Thoughts for This Self-Publishing Review

Now that you have a more detailed birds-eye-view with this Self Publishing School review, we hope that you have more clarity on what the company offers, and which course might be right for you.

Even though we laid out some of the pros and cons to the company, it’s important to consider your own needs and preferences.

For some people, some of the negative things mentioned in this article, aren’t necessarily a bad thing. So it really boils down to your own individual needs, and what you’re looking for.

If you are leaning towards joining Self-Publishing School, the next step is to schedule a call with one of their publishing strategists.

It’s cost- and risk-free, so you’ll be able to see if it’s a program worth joining.

And remember, before working with any self-publishing companies, do a bit of research before deciding.

Writing a book is life changing, and becoming an author is a choice you have the power to decide on.

Guide yourself in the right direction, invest in yourself when you’re ready, and put in the required work.

With that formula, you’ll be well on your way to being a self-published author in no time!

Are You Ready to Try Self-Publishing School?

Self-Publishing School’s proven results can’t do unnoticed. If you’re ready to take the plunge and invest in your future as an author, here’s what you can do next:

The post Self-Publishing School Review: A Detailed Report of Our Findings appeared first on SelfPublishing.com.

If you’re researching how to publish a book, you’ve likely started (or finished!) writing your book.

First off, congrats! Wherever you may be on your book writing journey, you’re well on your way to becoming a published author.

We live in an exciting time when publishing a book has never been easier.

In our age of information, it’s as important as ever to make an informed decision between self-publishing a book or traditional publishing. A book is life-changing, so you’ll want to be sure you choose the path that’s right for you.

Are you ready to learn how to publish a book and share your story with the world?

Here’s what we’ll cover in our self-publishing versus traditional publishing guide:

1. How to publish a book
2. Traditional Publishing vs Self-Publishing 2019
3. Traditional vs Self-Publishing Pros & Cons
4. Traditional Publishing vs Self-Publishing Costs
5. Steps for Publishing, Traditional Publishing vs Self-Publishing
6. How to Choose Self-Publishing or Traditional

How to Publish a Book for the Modern Author

Throughout history, the road was narrow for aspiring authors.

Traditional publishing companies were the standard, and the process was not easy (not to mention it hasn’t changed much!).

If you wanted to publish a book, you had to get past the gatekeepers first (aka traditional publishers).

Think of Jane Austen’s novel Pride & Prejudice, written in 1797. This magnificent literary piece continues to be a classic today. It has sold over 20 million copies!

But Jane was rejected by publishers on numerous occasions, and this particular book was not published until 1813. It took 16 years to traditionally publish the book!

As you can see, the struggle was real for writers – even literary geniuses like Austen (who later became a self-published author). And though writing itself has never been easy, publishing a book today can be less challenging.

The first step in how to publish a book is to be aware of your options. Most importantly, it’s now easier than ever for writers to be in control.

Modern authors have two choices on how to publish a book: self-publishing vs traditional publishing.

So, what’s the difference?

Traditional Publishing vs. Self-Publishing 2019

First, we’ll start with a quick rundown on each. Then, you can decide on traditional publishing vs self-publishing for your own author career as you navigate how to publish a book.

The traditional publishing process:

1. Write a book.
2. Self-edit the manuscript.
3. Submit your manuscript to literary agents and hope that someone finds the potential in your work.
4. If and when your manuscript is accepted, the literary agent will submit your work to publishers.
5. If and when a publisher accepts your work, they offer you a contract to publish your book.
6. The publisher handles everything in the production process, including expenses – from editing, formatting, and designing your book.
7. Market your book.
8. You are paid an author royalty based on the number of books that are sold.

As you can see from the traditional publishing process steps, authors are generally less in control with traditional publishing.

The self-publishing process:

1. Write a book.
2. Self-edit the manuscript.
3. Have your book professionally edited (and formatted, if needed).
4. Have your book cover professionally designed.
5. Choose a self-publishing platform to publish and/or sell the book.
6. Market your book.
7. Maintain your book.

In brief, self-publishing a book means that an author is in charge of the entire book publishing process – there isn’t a gatekeeper to get approval from!

Although the author oversees and funds the self-publishing process, it shouldn’t be completely DIY. In fact, successful self-published authors hire professionals for things like book editing and book designing.

Because of today’s technology, self-publishing a book is a viable option for many authors today.

Traditional Publishing vs. Self-Publishing Pros & Cons

Each publishing process had its own advantages and disadvantages. As you decide how to publish a book, it’s important to weigh the pros and cons of both traditional publishing and self-publishing.

Traditional Publishing Pros & Cons

If traditional publishing route sounds like a ton of rejection, you might be wondering why authors choose this path when considering how to publish a book.

In short, it was simply the accepted way of how to publish a book for so long. Until recently, many authors didn’t know of any other way to get their work published and into the hands of readers.

Although it’s still extremely difficult to get your book traditionally published today, there are some advantages to going this route.

Traditional Publishing Advantages:

1. No upfront costs from the author. The publisher pays for all of the expenses to get your book published, including editing, formatting, and designings costs.
2. Possibly sell more books. Traditional publishers have more industry connections that can help to sell more books. For example, traditional published books are readily available in retail bookstores.
3. Social Credibility. It’s validating to have your book accepted by a traditional publisher. It can improve an author’s feelings of self worth, and it can be considered prestigious. For some authors, this is important.
4. Publishing is done for you. You handle the writing and self-editing. Consequently, you don’t need to worry about learning how to publish a book because the publisher handles this.

Traditional Publishing Disadvantages:

1. Very competitive. The chances of actually being traditionally published are very slim. In fact, an agent or publisher won’t even consider your work unless you have a social following.
2. Lengthy process. If you’re able to get past the gatekeepers and get a book contract, the process is very time consuming and can take years for your book to hit the market. Just be aware that you’ll need to spend time querying an agent before publishers will even consider offering you a contract.
3. Less creative control. Since the publisher handles the editing, formatting, and designing of your book, you might have less say-so in how the book actually turns out.
4. Lower royalty fees. Because the publisher eats up the costs to publish your book, traditional publishing royalties are often significantly lower.
5. Marketing may be up to you. Many publishers provide less support in marketing your book. For instance, marketing may be entirely left up to the author in many cases.

Self-Publishing Pros & Cons

Now that you understand traditional publishing’s pros and cons, it’s time to weigh the alternative in detail: self-publishing.

If you’re considering how to publish a book, it’s important to note the advantages and disadvantages of self-publishing.

Self-Publishing Advantages:

1. No gatekeeper. If you want to write and publish a book, then you can do exactly that. No need to wait on permission.
2. A quicker process. It’s all on your timeline, so you can decide when exactly you’d like to write and publish your book.
3. Full creative control. You oversee the entire process, and book production is all in your hands. This means that if you have a specific vision for your book, you can execute it!
4. Higher royalty rates. Depending on which platform you use to publish your book, the royalty rates are generally higher. For example, if you publish your book on Amazon, royalty rates are as high as 70%.
5. Build a skill. Once you learn how to publish your book, the sky’s the limit. To clarify, this means you can keep writing and self-publishing as many books as you want!
6. Endless opportunities. Being able to publish your book on your own terms can open up a world of opportunities. Many self-published authors use their book to build industry authority. In fact, some self-published authors even use their book to spring into traditional publishing! Or, maybe your book will have a more personal use, such as sharing your family’s history. Whatever the reason, the opportunities are endless.

Self-Publishing Disadvantages:

1. It’s all on your expense. Self-published authors pay out of pocket for professionals to edit, format, and design their books. There also may be other expenses depending on the author, such as marketing costs.
2. You risk selling fewer books. It isn’t standard to have self-published books in any major retailer. With less visibility comes less opportunity to sell a large amount of books. It will be up to you to market your book.
3. Less support. It’s up to you to learn how to publish a book. And you’re in charge of the entire book process from start to finish, so everything is up to you. But there is a huge self-publishing community that you can reach out to along with self-publishing companies. You can check out our review of Self-Publishing School to learn more about this avenue.
4. Stigma. Self-publishing often gets a bad wrap. This is mainly caused by the idea of an oversaturated market and the quality of self-published books. Because the gates are open to literally anyone, there is a higher potential for a self-published book to not be of high quality. This is why it’s crucial to hire professional services like editing.

Traditional Publishing vs Self-Publishing Cost

Now that you understand the pros and cons of traditional publishing vs self-publishing, we’ll learn how much it costs to publish with both options.

It’s important to understand that the cost can vary depending on a number of factors, which we’ll explain more in the sections below.

How much does it cost to publish a book traditionally?

In true traditional publishing, it won’t cost you anything to publish your book. A traditional publisher will handle all of the costs associated with publishing your book. If a publisher asks you for money, they are not a legit traditional publisher.

Instead, they might be what’s commonly known as a “vanity publisher.” These are companies that basically slap their company label on your book, so it appears that you have a “traditional publisher.”

These vanity publishers are known to prey on authors. They are often not recommended, and can come with a high cost. Thus, it’s important to do your research as you consider how to publish a book.

You can get an idea of which companies to avoid from this list from the Alliance of Independent Authors, which rates self-publishing companies.

How much does it cost to publish a book with self-publishing?

While the actual cost to publish your book is free on self-publishing platforms like Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing, the author will pay for other book production services.

Therefore, the cost to self-publish a book is entirely dependent on you as the author. You can choose to publish your book for as little, or as much, money as you want.

It depends on which services you pay for, and the rate of the freelancer or company you hire. Some services include editing, formatting, designing, illustrations, and marketing.

At the minimum, self-published authors should hire professional book editing and cover designing services.

Self-published authors can stay within a budget of $1,000, or choose to spend up to $20,0000 – it really just depends on your needs and preferences!

What are self-publishing companies?

If self-published authors do everything on their own, what exactly are self-publishing companies around for?

Great question! With the rise of the self-publishing industry, comes a rise in self-publishing businesses. With this in mind, we’ll cover three main types of self-publishing companies:

1. Self-Publishing Platforms are the mediums that you will use to publish your book. Some examples of self-publishing platforms are Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) and Apple’s iBook.
2. Self-Publishing Author Services provide authors with publishing services like book editing and designing. Some authors find these companies convenient, but they often are more expensive than finding your own freelancers. Before working with these companies, do your research to ensure you’re working with a reputable business.
3. Self-Publishing Education Companies, like Self-Publishing School for example, teach writers how to write and self-publish a book, among other things. They can also provide authors with learning resources, community, and mentorship.

Steps on how to publish a book: Traditional Publishing vs. Self-Publishing

We’ll take a quick look at the major steps needed to take on how to publish a book for each publishing process.

Obviously, you’ll want to dive in deep to some of these steps, as each step has its own set of directions to follow, but here’s the gist:

Steps on how to publish a book with traditional publishing:

1. Write the book
2. Self edit the book
3. Write a query letter and/or proposal
4. Submit your material to agents
5. Get an agent
6. Submit your materials to a publisher
7. Receive a publishing offer
8. Have your book published

Steps on how to publish a book with self-publishing:

1. Write the book
2. Self edit your manuscript
3. Learn how to publish a book through self-publishing
4. Hire a professional editor
5. Hire a professional book designer
6. Format the book
7. Publish the book on a self-publishing platform
8. Launch your book
9. Market your book
10. Maintain your book

Traditional vs Self Publishing: Choosing how to publish a book

Still struggling to decide which publishing route to take? Use these guiding questions to help you decide how to publish a book:

You should try to traditionally publish if….

Traditional publishing might be the route for you if you…

• Have a large social following
• Are writing a book for an extremely large market
• Can handle rejection often
• Have the time and patience for a longer publishing process
• Need the validation

You should self-publish if….

Self-publishing might be the route for you if you….

• Have the drive and initiative to oversee the entire process yourself
• Are eager to learn how to publish a book yourself
• Are writing a book geared towards a niche market
• Have a timeline for when you’d like your book published
• Can afford to hire professionals to get your book ready to be published
• Are able to deal with less validation, and are okay with being the underdog in the publishing world

Making Your Decision on How to Publish a Book

Writing a book, and making the decision to publish it, is a huge milestone and accomplishment!

As you do research on how to publish a book, we hope this article was informative and helped you find a starting point in considering traditional publishing vs self publishing.

To illustrate, we’ll leave you with this fun analogy to help you decide how to publish a book:

Imagine this:

There is a road to the Castle of Book Dreams, a place where writers can achieve their dream of having their book published. The road is aged, as many before you have walked this road before. However, this road is very challenging to gain access to, since there are numerous gatekeepers that you must pass first. And if people do get access to the road, they often encounter so many setbacks and get so tiresome that they never actually make it to the Castle itself.

What’s worse, this has been the only road to the Castle for as long as anyone can remember.

But all of a sudden, a new road has sprouted up, and it also leads to the Castle. It is a slightly different course of direction, and it can also be tricky to navigate, but everyone has access to this road! There isn’t any guard that will deny you access, if you are ready and willing to embark on the journey yourself. Once you’re on the road, it will be up to you to trek on and continue the journey towards the Castle, where your book dreams await.

Are you ready to start TODAY?

Whether you’re considering self-publishing or traditional publishing, learning more about the process will only help because informed decisions, are the best decisions.

So, which road would you choose to embark on?

The post Self-Publishing vs Traditional Publishing: A Guide for How to Choose appeared first on SelfPublishing.com.

Until recently, writers didn’t have much of an option outside of traditional publishing.

But now, the game is changing, and it’s never been more easier for writers to self-publish their book.

If you’re considering self-publishing a book of your own, it’s important to get clear on the basics.

In this comprehensive guide, we’ll walk you through the major points you need to know about publishing a book on your own and how to get started.

Here’s all you need to know about self-publishing a book:

1. What is self-publishing?
2. The history of publishing
3. Self-publishing today
4. Traditional publishing VS self-publishing
5. Advantages of self-publishing
6. Disadvantages of self-publishing
7. How to self-publish a book
8. Cost to self-publish a book?
9. Self-publishing companies?
10. Where to self-publish your book
11. Self-Publishing trends in 2019 and beyond

What is self-publishing?

Self-publishing is the act of publishing a book on your own, without the help of an agent or traditional publishing house, most commonly through Amazon or other retailers.

As a self-published author, you will oversee it all, from start to finish.

Here’s what you’re responsible for when self-publishing a book:

• Writing the book
• Self-editing the book
• Editing the book
• Book formatting
• Illustrations (if you’re writing a children’s book)
• Book cover design
• Marketing the book
• Book maintenance
• Working with a self-publishing company if you so choose

However, this doesn’t actually mean that you will doall of those taks yourself, but rather that you will oversee and fund the entire process.

The history of publishing

Let’s embark on a quick journey through the history of publishing, which can help shed some light on how self-publishing came to revolutionize the modern author’s journey.

To start, think about the role of storytelling and writing books in our society, and it’s importance in human culture and history.

The earliest humans used storytelling and as a means of passing information down – and we continue to do this today! The importance of storytelling hasn’t changed, but the way we share these stories has.

First, early humans inscribed text and symbols on ancient clay tablets to share information. In fact, the oldest known published story dates back to 18th century BCE!

Then, humans began writing, and people copied stories down by hand to preserve and share them.

The birth of traditional publishing

Next, the printing press was created in 1440, which was a breakthrough technology in making books widely distributed. Thus, the traditional publishing industry as we know it came to be.

Traditional publishers buy certain rights from the author in order to publish the work.

However, this took the power away from the storyteller, since the traditional publishers served as a “gatekeeper” that decided which books would be widely shared.

But along came the digital revolution, and the internet. As with many aspects of our society, the internet revolutionized many industries, including publishing.

The rise of self-publishing

So, what is self-publishing and how has it changed? Well, it has evolved throughout the years, and there are a few important events that led to its rise in popularity today.

Here are the three phases of self-publishing:

• Self-publishing step 1.0: This phase began in the 1990s, when eBooks began to be sold online. During this time, desktop publishing and print-on-demand technology came to be.
• Self-publishing step 2.0: In 2007, Amazon launched the Kindle eReader and Apple released the iPhone. These two devices changed how people read books.
• Self-publishing step 3.0: The industry is headed towards this third wave, which is characterized by direct sales from author to reader. We’ll cover more about this in a later section.

Self-publishing a book today

Today, writers can use powerful technology and the internet to self-publish a book and share their stories with a global readership.

Traditional publishers no longer control the storyteller’s narrative.

The only one that decides when to write and publish a story is the author themselves.

In fact, the $1 billion self-publishing market is evidence that it’s become the first choice for many authors.

With today’s growing industry, the road to being a self-published author has widened considerably.

The difference between traditional publishing and self-publishing

It’s important to understand the differences between self-publishing versus traditional publishing as you determine how to navigate your own author career.

Traditional Publishing

In traditional publishing, you first need to land an agent, which can be very competitive and time-consuming. Once you have an agent, you need to find a publisher to accept your manuscript, which is also a very competitive and lengthy process. Then, the publisher will offer you a contract that essentially buys the rights to your book.

The publisher will take care of the publishing process from editing, formatting, and designing. You earn royalties based on how many books sell.

Some advantages of traditional publishing:

• Less upfront costs for the author. Since the publisher handles the production expenses, the author doesn’t worry about paying directly out-of-pocket so the cost to publish a book is less.
• Socal Prestige.  Having publishing connections means your book will be easier to get into major bookstores. It can also be validating for some authors.
• Less responsibilities. You write the book, and let the publisher deal with the rest (ideally).

Some disadvantages of traditional publishing:

• Extremely competitive. The chances of being traditionally published are very slim, and it’s very challenging to be accepted by a publisher.
• Less earnings. Royalty rates are often significantly less for authors in traditional publishing.
• A ton of rejection. To even be considered by an agent or publisher nowadays, writers often must have a social following or fan base.
• Not much marketing support. The publishers handle the actual book publishing, but marketing is often left up to the author.
• Less creative control. Authors typically don’t have any say-so in the final product. So, your book may be edited and designed without your input.

Self-Publishing

It goes something like this: You write a book, you have the book edited, formatted, and designed.

Then, you have a printer or publishing platform publish your book, while you market the book and do book maintenance.

As with anything, there are some advantages and disadvantages to consider, which we’ll cover in the next section.

What are the advantages of self-publishing?

When you choose to publish a book on your own, it can be rewarding for a number of reasons. In fact, many self-published authors chose this route simply because of its many benefits.

Some main advantages of self-publishing are:

• No gatekeeper. There isn’t anyone standing in your way of getting your book published. The only person that can stop you from sharing your book with the world is YOU!
• Your own timeline. Self-published authors can get their book to market quicker than the traditional publishing process.
• Complete creative control. You have the final say in how you want your book to be edited, formatted, and designed.
• Opportunity for greater earning potential. Royalty rates on publishing platforms like Amazon are significantly higher than traditional publishing rates.

What are the disadvantages of self-publishing?

For some authors, self-publishing can have its downsides. Be sure to consider your own needs and preferences as you weigh the possible cons.

Some common disadvantages of self-publishing are:

• Less support. It’s all in your hands, which can be very scary for some authors. It can also be lonely without a supportive community.
• No one is pushing you. It’s up to you to set your own deadlines and get the ball rolling on your published book.
• More upfront costs. Self-published authors hire professionals for publishing services like editing and designing.
• Stigma. Because traditional publishing has been the standard for so long, self-published authors are considered the underdog. The stigma often has to do with the quality of self-published books. This is why it’s so important for self-published authors to pay for professional services.

How much does it cost to self-publish a book?

Since the author oversees all aspects of the process, the costs to self-publish a book will vary.

Several factors affect how much it costs to self-publish and it really depends on each author’s needs.

This means that you can determine the budget when self-publishing your book. Just remember – don’t cut too many corners and lessen your book’s quality!

The actual cost to self publish your book is free on self-publishing platforms like Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP).

But at the minimum, self-published authors need to hire a professional editor and cover designer.

For example, the table below covers the average cost of common professional services used to self-publish a book.

Again, it all falls back on you as the author, and what your motive is for publishing your book.

Are you looking to build a career? Then you’ll want to invest in hiring experienced professionals that can provide the best quality, this may include investing in a self-publishing company, like Self-Publishing School, to help you do it right.

Other services you may need to budget for as you consider how much it costs to self-publish are marketing tools to promote your book.

How to self-publish a book

Successfully publishing a book on your own can be a time-consuming process, but it’s usually a lot quicker than the traditional publishing route.

While it does require time and effort, the good news is that the method can be pretty clear cut.

Here are the most basic steps for how to self-publish a book:

1. Write a book
2. Choose a title for your book
3. Hire a book editor
4. Finalize your manuscript
5. Hire a book cover designer
6. Decide where to self-publish your book.
7. Format & publish your book on the platform
8. Plan and launch your book marketing campaign
9. Price your book
10. Continue to promote, market, and & distribute your book.

Remember, this is a condensed process on how to self-publish. It’s important to dive in deep to each step when you are working through the self-publishing process.

What are self-publishing companies?

With today’s rising industry, there are several types of self-publishing companies available.

This isn’t a list of the best self-publishing companies, but rather an explanation of the types of companies that exist today.

• Self-publishing platform: This is the actual medium that you will publish your book on, which we’ll explain more about in the next section.
• Self-published author services: These are companies that provide author services such as editing, formatting, and designing. They’re like a one-stop shop for book publishing services. Please do your research before using these types of services since many can lack transparency and quality.
• Self-publishing education: These are companies that teach authors how to self-publish a book. Since successful self-publishing can be tricky to navigate, these companies exist to provide authors with learning resources and mentorship. Self-Publishing School, Self-Publishing 101, and Your First 10K Readers all offer guidance if you want to do it yourself, but need a bit of hand-holding.

Where to self-publish your book

Because there are many self-publishing platforms available, it can be confusing deciding where to self-publish your book.

First off, you’ll need to know the two different types of platforms: retailers and aggregators.

Self-Publishing Retailers

Book retailers are platforms that host and sell your book directly. With a retailer, you will upload your book and it will sell directly to readers on the platform. Examples are Amazon’s KDP, Apple’s iBooks, and Kobo.

Here are the most popular self-publishing book retailers:

• First, Amazon’s KDP has the most retail power. It dominates the self-publishing market with over 80% of the eBook market. When considering where to self-publish, KDP is a must. You will get paid 35% or 70% royalty rates, depending on which you choose.
• Next, Apple’s iBooks is steadily gaining more traction for self-publishing. It’s reported to have 10% of the market. If you use a Mac, this could be an option on where to self-publish. You will be paid 70% royalty rates.
• Then, there’s Kobo which holds a small but powerful percentage. But it has access to an international market, so don’t pass it up! To have your book available in Canada and over 190 countries, consider Kobo when figuring out where to self-publish. Royalty rates depend on the price of your book.

Aggregators

Book aggregators are self-publishing mediums that you submit your book to, and they send it to retailers and libraries all at once. While it may be more convenient so you don’t have to figure out where to self-publish, the cost may be higher.

Some book aggregator examples include:

• Smashwords
• Draft2Digital
• PublishDrive
• Lulu
• BookBaby

Decide where to self-publish your book after assessing which markets you want to reach, as well as your budget and needs. Some authors even use a combination of self-publishing retailers and aggregators.

Self-Publishing Industry Trends in 2019 and Beyond

All this talk about the past and the present, but what about the future?

It’s safe to say that self-publishing is not a fad – it’s here to stay as long as the internet is around, and will only continue to evolve.

In fact, the self-publishing industry is now entering Self-Publishing 3.0. This phase will be direct sales from author to reader by way of subscription models, crowdsourced funding, and other income streams.

To summarize, self -publishing trends focus on the increased opportunities for authors to use technology and the internet to build sustainable businesses and writing careers.

Some forecasted industry trends for 2019 and beyond are:

• Direct author to reader without any middleman
• The rise of the “authorpreneur” and indie authors
• Blockchain technology
• Decline of major publishers
• Expanded eBook subscriptions
• Less stigma
• Voice marketing as a new avenue for authors
• Increase in self-published books in the retail world

Self-Publishing is a Clear Best-Choice for Aspiring Authors

The key takeaway is that self-publishing allows authors to publish their writing and share their stories with the world.

In fact, you don’t even have to pass through the traditional publishing gatekeeper to become an author.

Today, writers and storytellers are more empowered than they ever have been in history.

Are you ready to start today?

Are you ready to take that hold of that power and begin your author journey?

The post Self-Publishing in 2019: A Beginner’s Guide to Self-Publish a Book appeared first on SelfPublishing.com.