As the internet becomes ever-more prevalent in our lives and older systemic structures fail to adapt with the times, people will obviously turn towards newer systems. This can mean an influx of individuals trying out new things without a firm grasp of how, which, in turn, can result in costly mistakes.
Publishing has seen a bit of a revolution in recent years. Fifteen years ago, the idea of self-publishing would have seemed daunting, almost foolish. But the rise of more self-publishing platforms, a decrease in the cost of self-publishing, and exposure of many inherent issues in traditional publishing has caused more authors to consider the indie publishing route. While some old biases exist towards self-published novels, the general consensus is that self-published books can and often are as good, if not sometimes better, quality than books that are traditionally published through publishing houses.
Unfortunately, with the rise of systems that support authors leaning this way, that also means there’s been a rise in predatory practices, as people looking to make a quick buck attempt to prey on those wanting to put their stories out into the world.
So, what is the point of this post? Well, as someone who has now published their first novel (and is working on the next👀), I’ve managed to find a TON of excellent resources that truly helped me to be successful. My hope here is just to provide some information that can be helpful to those starting on this journey, both through pieces of advice and by sharing some of the amazing resources I’ve found along the way. Let’s get started!
Travis Baldree’s Phenomenal Guide
I want to start by shouting out this fantastic post created by author Travis Baldree. If you don’t already know who he is, Travis Baldree is the author of “Legends and Lattes”, a cozy fantasy novel that has basically caused the cozy fantasy genre to explode in recent months. He goes through his process of publishing his breakout novel from beginning to end – it’s a must-read if you are planning on self-publishing, no matter the genre.
Temper Your Expectations (aka Don’t Quit that Day-Job)
This might sound a little contradictory: “Oh, here’s a guide to self-publishing by one of the most successful self-published authors in the history of ever…but don’t expect to be wildly successful!”
The truth is, self-publishing is hard. The truth is that Travis Baldree already had a big audience from doing voicework for audiobooks; most of us self-published authors are starting off with a small audience, if you have any audience at all. Building that up so that you can be financially successful is difficult and requires a ton of marketing. Nowadays, even traditionally-published authors have to put in a lot of marketing legwork (which is why some of them end up coming into the self-published sphere, because why not have full control of your work if you have to do all the marketing anyways?).
So go into self-publishing with a realistic expectation. My goal when I first published “Legend of Samantha Torres” was to sell just 10 copies within the first six months – working in a genre that is difficult to sell in self-publishing, I viewed that as my measure for success. Maybe that was a little bit of a lowball, as I’ve now sold close to 40 copies in nearly 6 months, but it also means that I’m a lot less stressed about how many copies I’m selling, because any new book I sell is a fun bonus.
That being said, I don’t want to sound discouraging. I published a middle-grade novel, a genre which is notoriously hard to self-publish. If you’re writing anything that is more adult – whether it be romance, fantasy, sci-fi, or any mix of the three – you will probably sell more copies simply because there are more adult readers seeking out self-published works in those categories. But at the same time, don’t look at the amazing success of others and think “oh I’ll obviously do that well,” because that will only lead you down a path of disappointment. Set a realistic goal, and keep to it.
Budget, budget, budget
When it comes to self-publishing, there are a million ways you can spend your money before you even begin to make it. You can hire an editor, purchase formatting software (more on that later), commission a book cover (again, more on that later), and spend money on online ads.
The key to being successful is keeping to a strict budget and knowing what is most important to you, especially for your first book. An editor can cost upwards of $1000 depending on their services; formatting software can be a couple hundred dollars; a cover artist can cost hundreds…so on and so forth. If you know you’ll need an editor, but that you can make your book cover in Canva, go for it! Or similarly, if you know you’ll need an illustrated cover but that you have the skills and resources necessary to format the book on your own, make that decision! The choice is ultimately up to you.
Part of this ties in with the realistic expectations. A first book, especially in self-publishing, typically doesn’t sell as well as your second or third. My recommendation is that you only focus on the purchases that are absolutely necessary so that you don’t dig yourself into a monetary pit you can’t get out of. If you continue to write and sell more books – especially if you begin to find genuine success – then go ahead and spend that money! But starting off, try to play it smart and set a realistic budget for what you think you can make back in a certain timeframe.
Books are Judged by Their Covers
If you’re like me, you probably read and heard the phrase “don’t judge a book by its cover” ALL the time growing up. When it comes to people, this is absolutely true and you should follow that, but when it comes to books, the reality is that potential readers ABSOLUTELY judge a book based on its cover.
This is one of those areas where self-publishing has gotten a bad reputation, partly because there are plenty of self-published authors who have chosen to skimp on their covers, generating the misguided belief that self-published works are of lower quality than those published through traditional publishing houses.
To get past this, my best piece of advice is to examine the covers of current books in the genre you’re writing, because that is the best indicator for what a potential reader will be looking for. For example, with middle-grade fiction, covers are typically illustrated and bright and colorful – if you’re self-publishing in that genre, you probably want to save some money in your budget for an illustrated cover. In other genres, a person who is half-decent at Canva like me can throw together a cover that looks professional and will attract a broad audience.
Once you’ve done that, then it’s just a matter of your typesetting. This means figuring out the fonts for your title and your name (or pseudonym, if you use one of those). Like with the cover, look at examples of works within your genre to determine what sort of fonts look good – even if you don’t use exactly what they do, you want it to look close enough so that people can know exactly what type of book they’re seeing at first glance.
This is a pretty good guide for figuring out some things about your book cover. Again, go with what works for your genre and budget!
Think About Marketing
If you’re someone like me who focuses more on the writing and the story than the actual money-making process, you probably dread even considering marketing. However, in order to find any readers at all (and stand a chance at actually making a living from this career), you have to market yourself and your book.
Personally, I hate marketing. I find the very concept of it icky, and if I could hide in my hobbit-hole and never come out, I would gladly do so. Unfortunately, it is absolutely necessary, so here’s some tips I’ve learned after six months of doing it.
Pick What Social Media You Are Most Comfortable With
Don’t try to do it all. There are many, many different social media platforms to choose from: Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok are the big ones that come to mind, but there are certainly others (Twitter technically still exists…sort of). It can be easy to feel overwhelmed by so many options, so the best way to start is to pick what you’re comfortable with.
Do you like making short videos and interacting with others in that way? TikTok, Instagram Reels, or YouTube might be your best bet. Are you more of a text-focused person? Go with Facebook or Threads or BlueSky!
The point is, if you are actually comfortable with the platform you use to promote yourself on, people will notice and your content will generally be better. Even if social media and marketing isn’t necessarily your thing, try to at least pick one platform and stick with it. The longer you are on there and the more you interact with others, the more people will start to take notice and might consider purchasing your work!
Don’t Only Post Marketing
If you’re using social media, a word of advice: people know if you are only there to market yourself, and they probably won’t pay much attention.
I started using Instagram and TikTok around the time I was launching my book, and I was bad about this (partly because I was just bad at social media in general). However, once I started doing video-form book reviews, I suddenly noticed I was actually getting views. Not only that, but I was actually having fun with it, getting to talk about things that I cared about. That’s the sort of thing that creates an audience.
Ads are…complicated
Honestly, I could probably do an entire post about my experience with paid ads, which is admittedly very little. Like with anything else in self-publishing, it is very easy to spend a lot more money than you actually need. Go to various indie publishing subreddits or Facebook groups and you’ll see horror stories of people spending hundreds or even thousands of dollars, only to generate a handful of sales.
Personally, I think that you should only go into creating paid ads if you’re genuinely good at creating eye-catching visuals. Even then, most of us nowadays are so inundated with ads that they hardly have an impact. So this is another thing where it is important to know your genre and your target audience, and take that accordingly. If anyone has any real success stories using paid ads, let me know! My experience is rather limited – I’ve spent under $50 total, and frankly I don’t intend to spend any more on them.
Find Local Bookstores
A fun fact: most indie bookstores really like indie authors! Many of them are happy to host author events (which is just a fancy way of saying that they’ll give you a table so you can sell your book) – all you have to do is call and ask.
For me, selling author copies at local bookstores has been a blast. Not only has it been a great way to meet other independent authors, but I’ve also gotten to meet so many other book-lovers and introduce them to my work! Honestly, I will probably create another post entirely about indie author events and discuss specific tips about the good and the bad, but to prevent this post from getting too long, I’ll just say this: don’t be afraid to do them! If this introvert can have fun doing them, you can, too!
Trust Yourself
At the end of the day, this is your journey. I certainly know I am not the only source of information out there, and while I hope to provide more information in additional posts, don’t hesitate to look in other places!
If you happen to have a question or there is something you want me to add here or talk about in another post, feel free to hit me up on my contact form.
Otherwise, good luck out there, and have fun!
Jacob Ryckman 