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

Editor’s note: we now have an entire website dedicated to the self-publishing process!  Go on over to SelfPublishingChecklist.com, where we walk you step by step through the entire self-publishing process.

This is our comprehensive guide to self-publishing, which will help you to self-publish with as much (or as little!) budget as you want to spend.  YES, the whole process can be done for free– we’ve tested it!

For many writers considering self-publishing, cost is the first question and concern. The range authors spend to self-publish varies dramatically. You can choose to self-publish completely free doing everything yourself, or you can spend thousands upon thousands of dollars paying for printing, marketing and other services. The trick is finding the happy medium of buying what you need and doing what you can on your own. Read on to see three distinct budgets for authors that want to put their books out themselves, which is a great option!

A writer can easily spend a few thousand dollars getting books printed, only to have them become a permanent fixture in their garage because she has no idea how to get them into bookstores. Or, a writer can create an ebook completely on their own, and his mom and his friends will buy it, but then sales will stop completely because he is not a book marketer.

So where does the money go? Let’s assume you have a novel you’d like to publish. What will you spend? Let’s break down some possible scenarios, starting with the most-requested “free option.”

Budget publishing – Free

  • Developmental/ copy edit  – Writers’ groups, classes, beta readers
  • Cover Design – Barter or do it yourself on Canva
  • Book formatting and layout – Do the print version in Word, set up the ebook using Kindle Create or use Reedsy‘s free editor
  • Printing – free (KDP is free to upload and pays you royalties)
  • ISBN – Use Amazon’s free ISBN for the print version(s) of the book, your Kindle ebook doesn’t need one
  • Author photo – free (Your Facebook profile picture is fine)
  • Marketing – free (Set up free email list account using this guide, rely on social media to get the word out about your book), do the five free KDP Select days to try to push your book’s BSR down and grow your list for your next launch.
  • Website– skip it for now or use a free blog like WordPress.com

Considering that half of self-published authors earn less that $500, any amount more than this may seem disheartening. However, consider that a book a is a product. Quality products are supported by a whole team of services and experts. According to a survey reported by The Guardian, the average earnings for self-published authors is $10,000 a year. What separates those earning $500 from those earning $10,000? Visibility and quality of product. If you invest nothing in your book, don’t expect readers to be very impressed, or compelled to buy. While it’s easier than ever to get a book to market, readers are savvy and spot sub-par products easily. Even if you create a beautiful product, wonderfully written with professional presentation, if no one hears about it, your book will sit untouched online, gathering virtual dust.

Here is a breakdown I find reasonable for many authors:

Smart spender – About  $2,000 – 4,000

  • Developmental edit $1,000
  • Copy editing $800
  • Cover Design $500
  • Book formatting and layout $300 (One-time cost for Vellum, all subsequent books will be free)
  • Printing – free (Print on demand only)
  • ISBN – $200 (buy a block from Bowker)
  • Author photo – $100
  • Total marketing spend – $1000 (Review service, Promo buys, Amazon ads)
  • Website – $100 (For custom WordPress theme)

This scenario may be tweaked. For example, you can find brilliant marketing help for just a couple hundred dollars. Maybe you spend a reasonable $2,000 on a developmental edit, but then find a student to do your final proofing for just $500.

This is still a formidable amount of money for many authors. Few have $5,000 extra laying around. Luckily, there is much you can do to make this investment achievable. For example, you don’t need to be paying for editing at the same time you’re buying marketing. These expenses may be spread out over many months. Plus, many editors and marketers will work out payment plans with you as well.

Big spender – Upwards of  $20,000

  • Developmental edit $3,000
  • Copy editing $1,500
  • Cover Design $800
  • Book formatting and layout $1500
  • Printing– still free using KDP, $149 to put the book in with Ingram
  • ISBN – $100
  • Author photo – $400
  • Kirkus Review – $425
  • Google Adwords – $500
  • Facebook Ads – $500
  • Print advertising – $1,200
  • Marketing collateral – $1,000
  • Marketing consultant / PR  – $2,000
  • Events / launch party – $1,000
  • Website – $2,000

Just as there are few writers with extra cash lying around, there are few writers that are only writers. Most of us have a few other marketable skills as well. Perhaps you are a fantastic editor, or an illustrator. Maybe you’re a social media whiz, or can build webpages. Consider taking on freelance work, or even trading services with other authors, in order to get the help you need for your project.

Bottom line, self-publishing costs money. If you want readers to buy your book, you will need to make an investment in order to produce a quality product, above and beyond your beautiful writing. The good news is that with so many paths to self-publishing, there is a way to get the help you need without going broke.

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Amazon Bogus Reviews Part 2

The first time we looked at Amazon reviews, we dug into who can leave them and who can’t. To sum up:  consumers good, sock puppets or anyone who could be mistaken for sock puppets, bad.

Today let’s talk about what happens when you get a one star review that: 1) you know is a mistake 2) that is actually a criticism of Amazon or 3) where the reviewer admits to not having read the book.

Example #1: An actual live review for one of our books (a Booktrope book, Riversong by Tess Thompson). We have reported this review on a couple of different occasions now, and yet, here it still sits. Now, you can see that the author of the review comments on her own review and indicates that she had made a mistake and somehow left the wrong review. Clearly she is confused and does not realize she can delete or revise her review. In fact, it appears she feels she already left a positive review somewhere for Riversong and says it is “excellent”.

confused one star amazon review

Example #2: Lest we think this is an isolated incident, here is another example. Actually, on the same book: in this case a literal technical issue with a Kindle device and/or download or plain old user error. What I find fascinating here, is that there are actually four comments (from people I do not know, nor does the author) that follow on to the initial review. Note I only show two in my screenshot. These comments chastise and educate the reviewer for leaving the review and tell them to contact customer service. Wouldn’t you think that four comments telling someone to contact customer service might somewhere, somehow tweak a search bot on the site? I don’t know, but it seems to me like it should.

reviewer confused by kindle leaves one star review

Example #3: Just for good measure, let’s look at the last type of review that I believe should automatically be pulled from Amazon – one in which the reviewer literally states they have not read the book. This one is for another of our books, Memoirs Aren’t Fairytales: A Story of Addiction by Marni Mann. In this case, the review says they have only read the sample and gives it a one star (apparently) for being about drug use. Hence the title which, I think indicates that very clearly. Generally, stories of addiction involve, well, addiction (I suppose we could mean addiction to books or puppies or something, but that is unlikely). Again, a stranger comes to our defense. Which, again, leaves me wondering why Amazon does not clue in to this.

one star reviewer who didn't read the book

 

All of these have been reported to customer service yet still appear as valid reviews – dragging down the books’ star ratings. As an aside, this has not created a financial problem, as both of these books are best-sellers and do just fine in sales. I think that lends credence to the fact the reviews are ridiculous.

Now, just to be sure I address this, there are certainly people who will leave one star ratings that should stand. Not everyone will love every book. On several occasions, I have found that one star (or two or three star) ratings help me understand how to do a better job of hitting the proper target audience. In some cases it has made me realize that I needed to rework a book description to better portray the tone of the material. Some people are just grumpy and delight in leaving horrid reviews for their own angst-ridden reasons, but are not technically violating anything but the policies of human decency. What I have issue with, is a system that is widely policed for bogus positive reviews, yet not policed (seemingly) at all, for negative or erroneous ones.

Have another example for us? Please put it in the comments section! Maybe Amazon will pay attention if we can get enough of them.

 

Authors, Build Your Lists!

Without fail, the one thing I ask every author (or publishing company) when I start working with them on selling more books is this:  How many people do you have on your email  list?

I always cross my fingers that they say an actual number, but a surprising amount of people (and companies) have NO WAY of capturing people’s email addresses, or (equally as surprising), that they do have a list, but they have never sent a single email to the people on it.

Here’s what is wrong with both of these scenarios.  The whole purpose of having a blog, or Facebook, or Twitter, or really, anything where you interact with people is that you’re trying to build up an audience of people who are interested in your work.   You’re not trying to trick anyone or be a slimy salesman, ok?  You’re just collecting names of people who like you/ like your work and who will be happy for you when a new book comes out.   These people will go to the trouble of opting into a mailing list if you will just give them a chance.   You should give them that chance!!

Marketing people commonly say “The money’s in the list,” and this could not be truer for authors.  This expression just means that if you build a targeted list of people who buy one type of thing, you are most likely going to be able to sell them related products in the future.

Here’s why you’ll hear people say “the money’s in the list,” and why it matters so much for authors—presented in a friendly, conversational way, but with a few key points numbered for clarity:


1. You Reach Readers Directly

It’s so frustrating when social media algorithms keep changing and hiding your posts. But with an email list, you cut right through all that noise. You can pop up directly in someone’s inbox, which means they’ll actually see your book launch updates or behind-the-scenes stories.


2. You Launch Strong

Ever worry that your new book might get lost among a gazillion other releases? When you have a subscriber list, you can give your fans a heads-up the moment it goes live. That early surge in sales can help your book rank better on online stores (like Amazon), which means more people see it—and more sales follow.


3. You Build a Personal Bond

An email list feels kind of like having a VIP club for your readers. They’ve signed up because they genuinely want to hear from you, so it’s easier to share personal stories, writing tips, or bonus chapters. This one-on-one vibe also means fans are more likely to leave reviews or spread the word about your books.


4. You Get Predictable Sales

If your subscribers enjoyed your last novel, chances are they’ll want your next one, too. Over time, that loyalty can give you a pretty steady stream of income. You can even team up with other authors in your genre—maybe swap newsletter mentions—and everyone benefits.


5. You’ve Got a Long-Term Asset

Platforms come and go, and algorithms change all the time, but your email list is yours. Even if your favorite social network disappears tomorrow, you’ll still have a way to reach your readers. Plus, every time you launch a new book or do a giveaway, that list can grow—and so does your potential revenue.


Bottom line: An email list isn’t just a marketing tool—it’s a backstage pass to your writing life. It gives you a reliable, personal way to connect with readers, spark excitement around new releases, and enjoy that author-reader relationship that turns casual fans into dedicated superfans. That’s exactly why “the money’s in the list” is so often repeated—because it really works, especially for authors!

The other reason why you should be building your list is because (as Tim Ferriss will tell you), having a large list of people who are interested in buying things you write is the quickest way to get your book to go to # 1 on the bestseller lists on the day it comes out.    When you build your list and communicate regularly with its members, they will WANT to help you make your book successful.

If this is something you’ve been putting off, I think it’s something you should do today—really!   Keep trying things until you find something that works, because these days especially, an author is only as successful as their list.

Interview With an Agent: Vicky Bijur

headshot-1-200x300First of all, here is a little bit about today’s interview subject, agent Vicky Bijur:

Vicky Bijur runs the Vicky Bijur Literary Agency, which she started in 1988. Vicky has served as president of the AAR (Association of Authors’ Representatives) and is currently chair of its Ethics Committee.  Among her clients are NY Times bestseller Laura Lippman, whose novel EVERY SECRET THING was just filmed with Dakota Fanning, Diane Lane, and Elizabeth Banks; NY Times bestseller Lisa Genova, author of STILL ALICE, chosen for 2013 World Book Night; James Sallis, whose novel DRIVE was the basis of the film starring Ryan Gosling and Carey Mulligan; NY Times bestseller Larry Gonick, who created THE CARTOON HISTORY OF THE UNIVERSE; food blogger Ed Levine of Serious Eats.com; food blogger Kenji Alt of The Food Lab; Stella Parks of Bravetart.com; Steven Greenhouse, NY Times labor reporter; Margaret Maron, just chosen as Grandmaster by Mystery Writers of America; and the Estate of Patrick Dennis, whose AUNTIE MAME was just optioned for film by Tilda Swinton.

Q:  When taking on a new author, how important is their internet/ social media presence?   Is this now a “make or break” thing for you?

Whether or not a new client has a blog and website and Facebook Fan page and Twitter account is important.  I need to know how internet-savvy the writer is.  Is he or she aware of how much an author today has to do on his or her own?   Is he or she up for, if not tweeting and blogging and posting, then at least one or two of those activities?

Q:  When taking on a new author, do you look at sales/ reviews of their self-published books on Amazon? 

If someone has self-published of course I’m going to see what the book’s rank is on Amazon.  And ask the author about the sales.  I am less interested in readers’ comments on Amazon, although perhaps I should pay more attention.

 Q:  How much do you work with authors in the digital space?   That is to say, if an author can’t find a publisher, do you now consider it normal to help them put a book out themselves, or do you (like some agents) help your authors with that now?

 We are all doing more and more of this:  either working with digital publishers or advising authors on digitizing or sending out books ourselves to be digitized.

Q:  How has agenting changed in the past five years?

 Actually, I am not sure agenting has changed.  We still strive to represent our writers to the best of our abilities. What has changed is the rate of change of information an agent has to keep up with, whether it’s the DOJ suit against publishers or ebook pricing or the effect on authors of the shrinking number of brick-and-mortar stores or the constant evolution in internet marketing. 

 Q:  Are you seeing your authors selling more electronic books or print books?

 I am seeing the whole range:  fiction with surprisingly low ebook sales and fiction with more copies sold digitally than in print.  Ebook sales of non-fiction depend so much on whether a book is mostly text or is heavily illustrated or is design-intensive that it is harder to generalize about non-fiction.

 Q:   For the most part, are you finding that authors are being more business-like in their approaches?    That is to say, when authors come to you, do they already have their websites and networks in order, or do you help develop this?

 I think most authors have become much more savvy. Most have websites, many of them blog.  A lot of them tweet.  They mostly have Facebook pages.

 One thought:  I think authors have to educate themselves about metadata.  A useful exercise for authors:  plug in relevant keywords (whatever themes/subjects your novel discusses) to Google and see if the Amazon link to your title comes up.  Yes, other bookstores are important, but the Amazon link seems to be the litmus test.  If it takes more than two pages to reach the Amazon link to your book you need to talk to your publisher about updating the metadata.   Another exercise: plug in those keywords on Amazon to see if your book pops up.

Interview with an author: Stephen Elliott

Today we’re talking with author Stephen Elliott. In case you don’t already know his work, here’s a little about him:

urlStephen Elliott is the director of the movie About Cherry. In 2013 he will direct an adaptation of his novel Happy Baby.

He is the the author of seven books including The Adderall Diaries and the novel Happy Baby. His writing has been featured in Esquire, The New York Times, The Believer, GQ, Best American Non-Required Reading 2005 and 2007, Best American Erotica, and Best Sex Writing 2006.

He is also the founding editor of the popular online literary magazine The Rumpus.

For up to date information follow Stephen on Twitter or sign up to receiveThe Daily Rumpus, an email newsletter from The Rumpus.

BP:  How did you get your first book published?   How did you promote your first book?   I think it was out through a small publisher, so did you set up a tour?

My first publisher, Boneyard Press, didn’t really promote my first book. It was a very small publisher and the book, Jones Inn, was mostly only available in comic book stores. I did two or three readings, mainly as a featured reader at open mic nights. Also a radio interview at KUSF.

SE:  When did you feel like you were gaining traction as an author?

I had written three books— Jones Inn, A Life Without Consequences, and What It Means To Love You. I’d published Jones Inn with Boneyard but they’d misspelled my name so I was treating A Life Without Consequences as my first book. I sent them to the slush pile at MacAdam/Cage and they offered me $18,000 for each book. So that was a big deal. A month or two later I was awarded a Stegner Fellowship for emerging writers at Stanford. So it all really happened very quickly. Suddenly I thought I was a writer and this was something I could do with my life, which I had not thought before.

BP:  Any noteworthy successes/ roadblocks in your career?  For instance,  if you got rejected a lot of times or when your publisher went out of business, or if people said mean stuff to you about your writing.

You can’t publish a book without people saying mean things about it. If nobody says anything mean about your book then very few people are reading it. Since I didn’t use an agent and I didn’t do an MFA I wasn’t well connected and was frequently rejected. I had to rely on/have faith in the slush pile.

The biggest success might have been Happy Baby, my fourth novel. It was edited and designed by McSweeney’s but distributed by MacAdam/Cage. That turned out to be a really bad idea. The book was basically not marketed at all, with very few reviews. You couldn’t purchase it at Borders if you wanted to, you couldn’t even order it (that used to matter). To make matters worse I was writing a book about the 2004 election and wasn’t available to do readings or really promote the book.

But it kept gaining momentum. There weren’t many reviews but the one’s that ran were pretty over the top. People that liked the book really liked it. At the end of the year it made a bunch of best of the year lists. I learned so much. I learned the importance of writing someone’s favorite book, and how that’s different from writing a book that people like. And I learned that if you do that you can break through the noise.

I’m not saying people shouldn’t work to get their stuff out there, but you’ve got to create a piece of art that at least some people love. If you don’t do that then all the marketing in the world won’t help. I’ve written books that a lot of people like but nobody is deeply passionate about. Those books have a limited lifespan.

BP:  You have an organized presence online: a website, stephenelliott.com, Facebook fan page, twitter account, the Rumpus daily email. What’s your overall philosophy on marketing? 

I think you should approach marketing the way you approach writing. You have to be creative. There’s no point in doing something that everyone else is doing. Also, play to your strengths. Don’t start a twitter account if you hate twitter. Don’t try to sell your book to people you don’t respect.

Q:  Advice to authors just getting started?

Write every day, but don’t beat yourself up. If you write every day for at least 20 minutes you’ll become a good writer and people will want to publish your work.

Q:  Any advice to people going it alone, i.e. self-publishing or going with an indie publisher so they’ll need to do all of their marketing themselves? You seem to do a lot of readings/ signings. Do you set those up yourself?

I’ve set up a lot of readings, definitely. Mostly because I like being on a stage. On my last book, The Adderally Diaries, I chose a smaller publisher, Graywolf, over a larger publisher, Norton, because I liked the editor at Graywolf. He seemed very real and he wanted the book more and we had similar viewpoints. Graywolf gave me $10,000 less than what Norton was offering ($20,000 instead of $30,000). But if I believe the book is the best it can possibly be then I don’t regret leaving money on the table. I do think The Adderall Diaries is a better book for having worked with Ethan at Graywolf, though part of me feels he owes me $10,000.

Email Newsletter Tips for Authors

Sara ParetskyI’m often asked by my author clients if they should include email newsletters as part of their self-promotion strategy. The answer is always an emphatic yes—if done the right way. Below, I identify tips to help you choose the right platform, build your list, and send out emails that will engage your readers—and never annoy them.

Choosing the Right Platform
As with pretty much any Web service, there are no shortage of options for email newsletters. Campaign Monitor is, in my opinion, the best email newsletter management system available. Newsletters are built and sent all through a simple Web interface, and after sending a newsletter, you can access robust results about who is reading your newsletters and what they are clicking on.

But I think Campaign Monitor’s best feature is the control it gives you over creating a unique template. If you have Web design experience, you have complete control over the HTML structure and style sheets. If you’re not, their robust template builder is a powerful tool that allows you to create a custom template through your browser. You can choose to pay monthly or by campaign. And prices vary based on the size of your list and number of times you wish to send.

MailChimp is another popular Web-based email newsletter service. It offers many of the same features as Campaign Monitor, but I have found that it is a little bit more difficult to create a custom design or break out of their template designs offerings. But they are also less expensive than Campaign Monitor.

Building Your List
The key here is not to be a jerk. Because if you simply upload your entire address book into your email newsletter platform, that is exactly what you’re being. The CAN-SPAM laws define explicit rules for sending emails. Specifically, you must include a valid postal address, give the option to opt out of your list, and honor those requests promptly.

But most reputable email newsletter systems go further, requiring you to establish some sort of explicit permission before using their service. A good rule of thumb for whether your contacts are indeed kosher are if they are: obtained through a subscription form or an opt-in form; if they are emails from customers whom you have done business with during the past two years; or from business cards that you have received direct from the source. It might be tempting to dump in all the emails you can find, but keep in mind that you will do yourself no favors by sending people who haven’t given your consent unsolicited emails.

What Kind of Content?
HarperOneYour templates must be built around the content that you include. So, consider the type of information you want to include and remember that you should never have more than 300 words per newsletter.

Consider creating unique templates for different types of content. If you are sending out an announcement exclusively to promote an author appearance or promotion, this might be best handled by a no-nonsense one-column template, like this one that HarperOne created to promote their top 10 Easter books.

If you have a lot of different pieces of information to include, you might want to have a template that includes different blocks and columns, like this one veteran mystery author Sara Paretsky used to promote the launch of her new book (above). Front-and-center is the cover and description. News about a recent appearance is in the block below. To the right, she uses her portrait and description to orient subscribers to her site and brand. Below that, she promotes her tour dates. Remember that copy works best in short blocks accompanied by a link.

Gretchen Rubin - The Happiness PrjectGretchen Rubin has done an exemplary job communicating and connecting with her readers through her email newsletter. Rubin offers a variety of options for email communication, depending on the level of engagement her readers wish to have. There is a monthly newsletter (with content like hot topics, useful tips, resolutions, and always an invitation to connect). There are daily inspirational quotes. Plus, there’s the opportunity to engage further as a super fan, join the book club, or just receive blog posts by email.

Engage Your Readers
This is an opportunity to engage your readers beyond the written page. Write from the heart and speak directly to your readers. Include information they are not likely to find in any interview or publisher materials. Invite them to engage with you through social media or email. Done right, your newsletter will help you connect with readers on another level and inspire them to delve deeper into your work.

Lisa Hazen is a Chicago-based Web Designer specializing in author sites. You should totally subscribe to her newsletter. You can find her on Twitter, Facebook, or the WWW. [email protected]

Free Hosting vs. Self-Hosting in WordPress

WThe first step to creating a site is deciding how you will build it. The decision to use a content management system (CMS) is a no-brainer. A robust CMS will make it easy for you to modify everything from the site structure and navigation to styling, images, and content.

The following is a look at the pros and cons WordPress.com—the free version of the popular CMS and WordPress.org—the self-hosted version of the same platform. Although are many of other free and paid content management options available (Blogger and Squarespace, to name two), in my opinion, these two are the best in each class for authors.

Pros of WordPress.com

It’s free. This is the biggest pro, and for a lot of people, it’s a big one. Setup is incredibly easy. Simply visit WordPress.com and sign up for a free account. When you do, you will get a confirmation email that will permit you access into the dashboard of the account. Here, you will find all the tools you need to start building your site.

WordPress.com allows you just over 3MB of space for storage (which includes post copy and images). You are automatically set up to track statistics using the robust Stats tool. You can choose to build your site in posts or pages, with or without comments, and choose from free custom themes or elect to purchase a premium theme (more on that later).  Most themes offer some sort of theme customization tool that allows you to select colors, layout options, and more. You also don’t need to worry about performing software updates or backups—these are all handled automatically right on the WordPress.com servers.

One other nice feature is that when you sign up for a WordPress.com site, you are automatically part of the WordPress.com blog network. Which means that your site may receive extra traffic from network referrals.

Cons of WordPress.com
Every big “Pro” deserves a proportionally big “Con.” And in WordPress.com’s case, the biggest is the terms of service. Specifically this part:

By submitting Content to Automattic for inclusion on your Website, you grant Automattic a world-wide, royalty-free, and non-exclusive license to reproduce, modify, adapt and publish the Content solely for the purpose of displaying, distributing and promoting your blog. If you delete Content, Automattic will use reasonable efforts to remove it from the Website, but you acknowledge that caching or references to the Content may not be made immediately unavailable.

So, while you own your content, WordPress.com has full rights to it. Since what you are creating is your intellectual property, think long and hard about whether or not you would be willing to give up exclusive rights to it in order to have a free site.

Another big con is that WordPress reserves the right to display advertisements on your blog. Ads that you can neither approve nor control, much less make money from. You can purchase the No-Ads Upgrade for $30/year, which will prevent any ads from displaying on your site. But this obviously isn’t free.

If you have a site with sufficiently high traffic, you can elect to have WordPress.com host ads on your site, while you share in the revenue. You must apply for an account via WordAds and be approved through their service. Keep in mind that you still don’t have control over the ads served with WordAds—you are simply sharing in the revenue.

The next big downside is that WordPress.com has a lot of limitations to its usage. You cannot use custom plug-ins, only the suite of options that comes with the free service. You are also limited to the themes available under the THEMES > APPEARANCE tab. Although there are a variety of free themes available, premium themes range between $60 and $150. You are limited to that 3MB storage space (unless you upgrade and pay more). And no hosted video (again, unless you upgrade and pay $60/year for VideoPress). If you want your own domain name to register the site, it is $13/year. To get control over your site’s cascading style sheets (CSS), it is another $30/year. You can see that all this starts to add up.

What About WordPress.org?
When you self-host your WordPress site, you have pretty much all the freedom you want. You can host the site anywhere you want, install whatever theme you like—or build one from scratch. Whatever plugins you choose are only governed by any restrictions that your host might have.

Self-hosting for WordPress sites starts at about $7/month, and many hosts offer one-click installation, which means that you don’t need to worry about setting up databases, transferring theme files, or editing configuration files. Also, if ads are in your plan, you have the freedom to use them however you choose. In addition to increased costs, you are also responsible for backing up sites, and for keeping the WordPress software and plug-ins up-to-date. If you don’t maintain your free software updates, your site could be at an increased risk for hacks.

My Advice?
I have a friend who frequently quotes the following axiom, “You either pay. Or you pay.” (The latter said with the requisite gravitas and raised eyebrows.) In my opinion, there is no cost savings that could compensate for owning your content, controlling its use, and creating your brand. You want control over your personal identity, content and (most importantly) your books, and the extra work and cost involved is money well-spent.

Lisa Hazen has built countless author websites. You can find her on Twitter, Facebook, and the WWW. [email protected]

 

How I Did It by Brittany Geragotelis

rsz_brittoption1How I Did It, by Brittany Geragotelis

Rejection. That was what my writing life was full of for a solid 8 years. So when my big break finally happened, it seemed like it all happened very suddenly. But the reality was that success only came  for me after 17 years of hard work, dedication, perseverance and ego deflation.

When I moved to NYC in 2001 after graduating from college, I decided to start seriously pursuing my goal of becoming a published author. At the time there was really only one way of doing this: You got an agent, who found you an editor who convinced their publishers to take on your book. Only then were you found worthy of being a published author.

Luckily, I got an agent after only a few months of looking and he began to shop around my books. But after three failed attempts (and a few close-calls), he decided to drop me as a client. At this point, I’d been at it for over seven years and started wondering if it was what I was meant to do. It takes so much time and work to write a novel and if no one was ever going to read it….well, what was the point? So I took a hiatus from writing.

For six months.

But then I got the itch to write again and so I sat down to reevaluate my goals. I asked myself why I was writing. If I was being honest with myself, I write because I love it and I feel compelled to do it—and to hopefully get my books into the hands of readers who will be able to enjoy them.

If this was my ultimate goal, then sitting around and waiting for a publisher to deem my stories worthy of reading wasn’t working. It was around this time that I discovered Wattpad. Wattpad’s an online community writing site, sort of like a YouTube for writers. Anyone can join the site and users can either post or read original content for free.

So, I decided to give it a try, by writing an original story for the website, called Life’s a Witch. On January 1, 2011 I posted my first chapter of the book and followed each week with a new chapter. After six months, I’d finished writing the book, and had garnered 6 million reads of my book. At nearly a year of having it up, I had 19 million reads of LAW and kids were acting out scenes from the book in public and asking where they could buy the book.

At this point, because there appeared to be a demand for it, I decided to self-publish. Around this time, a lovely reporter at Publisher’s Weekly decided to write a story about me and my success on Wattpad, and because of this, the traditional publishing world came calling. Just a few weeks later, we went into an auction between four publishing houses for the rights to the series. In the end, I ended up going with Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers in a 3-book, 6-figure deal.

My first book in the series, a prequel/spin-off called What the Spell? came out Jan 29, 2013. A new and improved version of Life’s a Witch will debut July 9, 2013, followed by the sequel, The Witch is Back in Jan 2014.

 

Author Bio: Brittany Geragotelis, a former Olympic-bound gymnast and magazine editor, is a self-professed pop culture junkie turned author. Her paranormal action book, Life’s a Witch, received 19 million reads on the writing site Wattpad, before she sold the series to Simon & Schuster. What the Spell? is her first published book in the series. Brittany currently lives in New York City with her fiancé and two cats, Murray and Cohen. Visit her at www.brittanygeragotelis.com.

 

FIND HER ON:

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/BrittanyGeragotelis

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/TheBookSlayer

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/TheBookSlayer

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/TheBookSlayer

Wattpad: http://www.wattpad.com/BrittTheBookSlayer

How do you get started with book promotion?

Getting started with book promotion involves building a strategy that aligns with your goals, target audience, and resources as well as how much free time you have and what you actually like to do (or will do). Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you.  Some things are must-haves (like your website and email list), and some things you’ll need to just decide if you want to do.  It’s not going to do you any good if I tell you “make short videos to sell books” if you are never going to make a short video, know what I’m saying?

Here are the “basics of book promotion”


1. Identify Your Audience

  • Who are they? Define your ideal readers based on age, interests, reading preferences, and demographics.
  • Where are they? Determine where your audience spends their time online or offline, such as social media platforms, forums, or bookstores.

Not thinking about this is the first (and perhaps the worst) mistake I see authors making. Even if you only spend a couple of minutes going “Anyone who likes X book would like my book, and those people get their books from Amazon Kindle Unlimited” that’s better than nothing!  It’s a start!  Don’t write a book unless you have some clue about who your audience is and where to find them, or you will end up like so many sad self-published authors in the /selfpublish SubReddit going “Here’s my book!  Please buy it!”

In case you didn’t get that joke, the reason why that is funny is because a) other self-published authors are not the audience for your self-published book, and b) the /selfpublish subReddit doesn’t allow self-promotion for this very reason.


2. Optimize Your Book

  • Create a Compelling Cover: Ensure your book cover is professional and appeals to your genre’s audience. I really can’t emphasize this enough.
  • Engaging Description: Write a description that hooks potential readers. Focus on the benefits or emotional experience they’ll get from your book.
  • Keywords and Categories: Select effective keywords and categories for platforms like Amazon to help readers discover your book.
  • Interior Design: Ensure formatting is clean and professional.

3. Build Your Online Presence

  • Email List: Start collecting email addresses of potential readers by offering a lead magnet (e.g., free short story, bonus chapter). Can I say this more times? YOU NEED TO BE BUILDING YOUR EMAIL LIST.
  • Author Website: Create a website with an author bio, book information, and a way for readers to subscribe to your email list. We’ve done approximate two trillion posts/ pages about author websites at this point, so please go check those out!
  • Social Media: Establish a presence on platforms where your audience spends time (e.g., Instagram for visual genres, TikTok for trends, Facebook for groups). We recommend an “all, then one” strategy, where you have a presence on all of the socials (for reputation management purposes), then you focus your energy and attention on whichever platform you like the best.

4. Use Amazon Effectively

  • Optimize Your Book Listing: Include relevant keywords in your title, subtitle, and description.
  • Amazon Ads: Start small with Amazon Advertising to reach your target audience. Experiment with Sponsored Products and lockscreen ads.

5. Leverage Content Marketing

  • Blogging or Guest Posting: Write articles related to your book’s themes or topics to attract readers.
  • Videos and Podcasts: Share insights or stories behind your book through YouTube or podcast interviews.
  • Social Media Content: Create engaging posts, videos, and reels about your book, its themes, or your writing process.

6. Build Relationships

  • Connect With Readers: Reply to comments and messages from readers on social media or through email.
  • Network With Authors: Collaborate with other authors in your genre for promotions, cross-promotions, or events.
  • Engage With Influencers: Partner with bloggers, bookstagrammers, or TikTokers who promote books in your niche.

7. Execute Book Launch Promotions

  • ARC Team: Build a team of early readers to review your book on launch day.
  • Launch Day Plan: Organize giveaways, social media blitzes, or live events to create buzz.
  • Pre-Order Campaign: Offer bonuses to readers who pre-order your book.

8. Secure Reviews

  • Ask for Reviews: Request honest reviews from readers, bloggers, and influencers.
  • Utilize Review Platforms: Use sites like Goodreads, BookBub, or NetGalley to find reviewers.

9. Run Paid Promotions

  • Promotional Websites: Use services like BookBub, Bargain Booksy, or Freebooksy to advertise your book.
  • Social Media Ads: Target your audience with Facebook or Instagram ads.

10. Monitor and Adjust

  • Track Metrics: Monitor sales, website traffic, ad performance, and email engagement.
  • Refine Strategy: Adjust your tactics based on what works and what doesn’t.

Brittany Geragotelis Gets 3-Book Deal from S & S: Latest Self-Publishing Success!

Brittany Geragotelis is the latest self-published author to be snapped up by a major publishing house after selling a ton of books through WattPad (an online writing community).

Here are some commonalities of her success and the success of people like Amanda Hocking and Joe Konrath. Since stories like these are becoming more and more common (yay!), I am keeping a list of them, and every time I hear about one, I make notes on what they are doing right, so I can tell my clients (and my readers) to do the same.

No surprises here, this is the kind of thing we tell authors, agents and publishers every single day:

She’s smart: She blogs, she writes, she was managing editor at American Cheerleader magazine for 10 years.

She’s social: Geragotelis has engaged a large community of readers (this time over on WattPad, which I had not heard of until today, but which I am now totally going to check out). She is also active on Twitter and her Facebook Fan Page, at http://www.facebook.com/BrittanyTheBookSlayer.

She’s findable: Geragotelis is absolutely discoverable through her blog (http://www.brittanythebookslayer.blogspot.com/), on Twitter, and of course on WattPad.

She’s savvy: As if to illustrate the point of a whole different article I’m writing, Geragotelis engaged a real-live art director / designer to make her (super awesome) book covers. These covers are genre-appropriate, show that the author is savvy about her demographic (which indicates that her writing will appeal to them as well).

She put in lots and lots of writing hours. Before this “Cinderella” moment, Brittany Geragotelis was a writer just like you with SIX UNPUBLISHED NOVELS. This basically means if you have five unpublished novels, you are not allowed to get depressed.

Here’s the full Publisher’s Weekly article, in case you’re interested!