Self-Publishing for Indie Authors
We love self-publishing. Being a self-published author means keeping control of your work, being free of gate-keepers, and determining your destiny. Indie publishing has democratized the marketplace, and Independents authors now account for more than 40% of all titles and 25% of all revenue.
Being a successful indie author is not easy. Getting your book in front of readers is tough. Self-publishing puts you head-to-head with the Big 5, the trade press, and millions of other self-published authors eager to stake their claim.
To be a successful indie author means that not only do you need to write well, but you need to acquire or hire a slew of technical and entrepreneurial skills to successfully bring your book to market. We can do that for you, leaving you free to work on your next book.
What we can do for you
Help You Get a Great Cover
We’ve covered this in marketing, but we cannot stress it enough. Your cover needs to be beautiful, properly formatted, with well-written back copy and A/B tested artwork that appeals to your market segment. A perfect book cover is not an area to pinch pennies. We can point you to the best designers in the industry. You are competing in the big leagues, and your cover needs to flawless.
Professional Print and Ebook Formatting
Typography matters. A well-formatted book is essential to your success as an author. For Ebooks, you might use online tools available from sites such as Draft2Digital, Reedsy, Amazon. If you know a bit of HTML, you may wish to use Calibre. If you have the cash to spare, choose Vellum.
For print, however, interior design is essential. Though you CAN export your document to PDF and upload, it’s not going to be pretty. Beautiful books are a joy, and just as writing is an art, so is good interior design.
Publishing and Distribution
Independent authors have an embarrassment of choices as to where to publish and distribute their books and eBooks, and which you choose depends on your long and short-term goals.
Excellent, ethical companies abound, and each has advantages and disadvantages. For your Ebook, Amazon has powerful marketing tools and holds more than 80% of the US market. Kobo, Apple, B&N might be a better option for non-US authors. For your print publications, you may opt to use the tools offered by Amazon — or you might prefer the distribution networks at Smashwords, IngramSpark, Lulu, BookBaby, or Draft2Digital. Each of these platforms takes a percentage; they cannot do your marketing for you – but each is a viable option depending on your needs and preferences.
Is your head swimming? We understand. Don’t despair. We have a team of people at the ready to provide final formatting for both your ebook and paperback. We have a substantial list of cover designers (don’t skimp on your cover). We know our way around the most popular self-publishing venues and can assist you in distributing your book across all available platforms.
We’ll get you published. You keep the royalties.