Learn how to safely self-publish and promote your e-books, print-on-demand books or audiobooks
Read on to learn 10 tips to help you safely self-publish, promote, make & save more money
“Many writers fail to realize that it is absolutely FREE to self-publish books on major websites like Amazon. They have never even heard about options like Print-On-Demand that make life so much easier. If you’re an author using On-Demand, you just sit back, relax and watch your book sales roll in. You don’t have to do anything! While you’re relaxing, factories in various countries are automatically assigned to print your books. These are then shipped to buyers, bookstores, and libraries, everywhere—on your behalf. The lion’s share of the royalties can accrue directly to you. Only the printer’s and retailer’s (e.g., Amazon) shares are deducted; you’re paid directly into your bank account. So, now you don’t need to print thousands of copies of your book, nor sign contracts with traditional publishers that give away your book rights.”
As the author of the sci-fi fantasy book, Path of the Necromancer, James has learned that self-publishing and on-demand generate a higher percentage of royalties than traditional publishing. By comparison, Ebook self-publishing earns around 50% more royalties, and on-demand earns around 32% more royalties than traditional publishing.”
10 Tips for the safest and most profitable ways to self-publish:
1. Copyright
By self-publishing your book via safe websites, you, the author, retain the copyright (if your work is original), and no other action is required. But be extremely careful to publish only on safe websites!
2. Safe websites
Self-publishing is fast, but formatting, converting and uploading files is tricky and time-consuming. It is advisable to seek expert assistance as to the layout, so that all your book formats appear neat and presentable to readers. Royalty-Free Self-publishers like PerpetuityPublications.com and jhillmark.com upload your books to safe websites. They provide most of the services offered by traditional publishers/publicists. But you are not required to sign a book deal contract or give them any royalties. However, other traditional publishers do and so you give away your book rights/royalties to them. So, take care!
3. ISBN barcode protection
It is important to use an ISBN barcode to safeguard your book. You’ll need a different ISBN for each e-book, paperback or even hardcover print versions.
4. Kindle books
If you want to publish a Kindle Book, it is better to submit your book directly to Amazon Kindle. They pay you a 70% royalty (in some cases—see number 5). You might be paid less if you go through third-party e-book distributors, but these distributors may give you the option to “Distribute” or “Opt-out” for Amazon Kindle.
5. Pricing your book
It is better if your book price ends with __.99 (i.e., $2.99, $9.99, etc.) so that most retailers will accept it. For Amazon Kindle, it is best to choose a price from $2.99-9.99. Kindle pays 70% commission on books within that price range. They pay 35% on books priced more than $9.99 or less than $2.99.
6. Change the price or cover
If you experience low sales, then consider changing the book’s cover or lowering the price. This might make a huge difference!
7. Reviews – the more you get the better
Some retailers use algorithms to push hot books with many reviews/star-ratings. Amazon even uses a “verified purchase review.” I promoted my book free online via book communities for readers and writers. This allowed me to gather thousands of followers and fans who read and wrote reviews. Some of my fans also informed me that my book was stolen and re-published. It is also not advisable to pay people to write your book reviews or give you top star-ratings.
8. DRM and Kindle Select
When publishing with Kindle, Amazon usually gives you the option to opt out of DRM as well as choose to select or ignore Kindle Select. Be sure to weigh up the pros & cons before you decide on both. DRM stops the unauthorized redistribution of your book and restricts the ways someone can copy the content. In addition, checking the box for Kindle Select gives Amazon exclusive rights to distribute your e-book. Therefore, you can’t sell your ebook on other retailer platforms, like Apple iBooks or Google Play Android.
9. Android books are open for business
Android stopped accepting e-books for a while, but as of now, they are accepting e-books again for self-publishing. Readers may prefer to read your book on their android phone/tablet, rather than on their iPhone/iPad or even Kindle. The more options you provide, the better!
10. Plug your other books
Insert cover images and/or sample chapters of your other book(s) at the end of your book. For e-books, you have the option to insert your links into your ebook at the start and/or end of your book. Links can include your social media pages, websites, author profiles and retailer links to buy your other book(s). This allows readers to click or send the links to their friends; write reviews and buy your book series or different language versions and even hard copy versions (libraries particularly like paperback/hardcover copies and even audiobooks).
Order Path of the Necromancer
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Photo by César Viteri on Unsplash
