Category Archives: Self-Publishing

Blog posts about Self-Publishing

Brilliant Strategy For Self-Publishers to Become an Amazon Best Seller

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With over 400,000 books being published every year its not likely that your book will make the New York Times Best Seller List. Now that’s not to say that you doesn’t deserve it, its just a numbers game as well as the fact that self-published books aren’t even eligible.

According to Edwin Diamond in his book Behind the Times, over 3,000 bookstores are surveyed as well as “representative wholesalers with more than 28,000 other retail outlets, including variety stores and supermarkets” to determine the Best Sellers.

So if you can’t make the grade for the New York Times how can you ever earn the title of being a Best Seller (BS)?

Go to Amazon, they are an equal opportunity seller, that’s how.

To begin with the Title of being a (BS) is an honor that no one can take from you however it doesn’t necessarily mean that you have sold tens of thousands of copies of your book. There are those who have earned this title by selling no more then 50 copies within a given time period.

Begin by crafting an email asking everyone on your list to buy a book at the same time, which will curve book sales during that peak time. The author usually creates Joint Ventures with complimentary companies to offer incentives – eBooks, downloadable audios etc. to the buyers for contributing to the (BS) campaign.

The Joint Venture partners will usually share the email list created from the (BS) campaign. The whole purpose is to have enough book sales to boost the Amazon rank to somewhere in the top 10 books, and preferably to #1, even if only for a very short period of time.

If you’re ready to go to learn more about how to write your own book and scale it into a Highly Profitable Teaching, Training, Coaching, or Speaking business than go to;  http://www.adaptonadime.com for your FREE “Fast Start Guide”

Paul Godines helps Authors with the Publishing Process, building the Authors Marketing Platforms (social media, products, coaching programs) Book Promotions (virtual book tours, amazon best seller campaigns, book award competitions) and receiving Publicity for your Book (Radio/TV and in Print.)

Author: Paul Godines
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Self-Publishing – What Does ISBN Mean?

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You have seen ISBN barcodes on book covers, but what do the numbers in an ISBN mean? Although it may appear to just be a random sequence of numbers, each portion of the ISBN provides information about the book to which it is assigned.

An International Standard Book Number (ISBN) is a unique 13-digit number assigned to each title, edition and format of a book, ebook, audio book or similar product. The ISBN is used to identify a specific book product, in much the same way a Universal Product Code (UPC) identifies other products.

There are five parts to an ISBN:

  • Prefix
  • Group or country identifier
  • Publisher identifier
  • Title identifier
  • Check digit

The prefix is a three digit number that identifies the product type or industry. For books, the prefix will be 978 or 979.

The group or country identifier indicates the country or language in which the book was published. English-speaking countries will be indicated with a 0 or 1, the identifier for French speaking countries is 2, the group identifier for German-speaking countries is 3, 4 for Japan, 5 for Russian speaking countries, and 7 for China. The group or country identifier may have as many as five digits.

The publisher identifier specifies the publisher of record for that title.

The title identifier is assigned by the publisher to a specific title, edition and format of the book. For example, the first edition of a hardcover book would receive an ISBN. If the book is also issued in paperback, audio book and ebook formats, each format would receive its own unique ISBN. When a second edition is published, each format of the second edition would receive a unique ISBN. New ISBNs are not required when a book is merely reprinted.

The last digit of the ISBN is a check digit. The check digit is a single-digit number from 0 to 10 (with X used to represent 10) that is computed from the other 12 digits in the ISBN. The purpose of the check digit is to catch errors in the entry of an ISBN.

Let’s take a look at a real-life example of how this works. The ISBN for my book, The Mystery Shopper’s Manual, is 978-1-888983-30-2.

  • 978 tells us that this number identifies a book.
  • 1 identifies the book as originating in an English-speaking country, in this case the United States.
  • 888983 is the code assigned to my publishing company, Special Interests Publishing.
  • 30 is the title identifier the publishing company assigned to this book: the trade paperback 6th edition of The Mystery Shopper’s Manual.
  • 2 is the check digit calculated from the other digits in the ISBN, using a formula established by the ISBN agencies.

The product identifier is always three digits, and the group identifier and check digit are always one digit each. The length of the publisher and title identifiers may vary. Together, they will contain eight digits, but large publishers will have shorter publisher identifiers than small publishers. That is because the large publishers will have more title identifiers in their block of ISBNs. Here is how that works:

ISBNs are assigned to publishers in blocks of 10, 100 and 1000. The ISBN for my book comes from a block of 100 numbers. That means that two digits are assigned to the title identifier and six to the publisher identifier. If the block of ISBNs contains 10 numbers, there would be one digit to identify the title and seven for the publisher. If the block contains 1000 ISBNs, there would be three digits in the title identifier and five in the publisher identifier.

It is important to know that the ISBN tells the book industry who the publisher is. That is why you only want to get ISBNs from the official agency and not borrow or buy an ISBN from another publisher. If you use their ISBN, it will appear that they, not you, are the publisher.

Although all of this may seem confusing, ISBNs help to keep book distribution orderly by making sure that each edition of each book has a unique identifier.

Cathy Stucker is the founder of http://SellingBooks.com/ where you can learn all about writing, publishing and marketing books. Learn how to get an ISBN and more at SellingBooks.com.

Author: Cathy Stucker
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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A Guide to Self Publishing

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Self publishing involves the act of an author publishing books or magazines at his or her own expense. If the author self publishes, the author has control over content, editing, printing, marketing and distribution. In traditional publishing, the publisher invests money prior to publishing for marketing, printing, binding and promotion of the publication. Because the publisher wants to recover the cost of the initial investment, the publisher researches to make an educated guess about whether the author and the book will earn enough money to recoup the initial investment after its release. The publisher will only select the author’s writings if a profit can be earned.

The author will assume all financial responsibility of the project from marketing to distribution and storage. The writer will receive all of the profit from the sales and maintain all rights to the publication. In this case, the author typically will not accept pre-prepared packages, but will submit a bid for each aspect of the publishing process. In some cases, because the author has full autonomy and receives all proceeds, the author can yield a much higher quality product.

Vanity publishers will publish the work of an author without regard to the quality of work or its potential to be marketable. The vanity publisher is only responsible for printing and binding the publication. Since, the responsibility lies solely with the author, vanity publishing is often more expensive than traditional publishing, but offers more autonomy. Vanity Publishers make their money from the fees charged to the author, rather than on sales from the publication. Therefore, it is the author’s responsibility to market and advertise to gain exposure.

Print on Demand allows authors who have a desire to self-publish to do so for a small fee and in some cases, for free. Print on demand companies typically offer to print and ship a book only when the book is purchased. Their services can also include collecting royalties, listing in online bookstores and in some instances, formatting, proof reading and editing. Because the process is digital, the initial investment required by the author is generally less than vanity publishing.

Print on Demand companies such as Lulu, xLibris, and Trafford Publishing all require a small initial investment for each of their packages. Companies such as Yudu.com, Amazon’s Booksurge and CreateSpace offer self publishing services for free. When publishing a work with these companies, the responsibility of getting a work to submission ready status generally lies with the author. These companies allow the author to design book covers, as well as, choose whether the publication will be an eBook, hardback or paper back.

These low cost services give amateurs, as well as, seasoned authors independence from publisher demands, editorial control and more profits or royalties than with traditional publishing.

With subsidy publishing, the author pays for the printing and binding of the book, but the publisher will contribute a certain amount to the author to cover expenses such as editing, distribution, marketing and storage. Because of the publisher’s contribution, the publisher possesses, owns the book and also has a portion of the rights, while the author only receives royalties on the copies that are sold. In this scenario, the author will possess little or no autonomy in certain production decisions.

Martin Alan enjoys writing on subjects such as literature, online publishing, digital magazine, publisher software, file sharing sites and how to self publish. He also enjoys keeping up-to-date with the latest developments and innovations in technology and online marketing. For more information on online publishing click here; http://www.yudu.com.

Author: Martin Alan
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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How To Publish Books Using Online Sites

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Let me ask you a simple question: How you ever thought about publishing your own book using online sites? Whether you have or have not, just take minute to read this short article to educate yourself on the process of online publishing.

A recent research study shows that many different factors determine how a book will be received and what impact it will have on society. What the study shows is that how the book is written, slanted or selected can have a direct impact on the number of sales it achieves. This means that how you write, edit, format and market the book will have a serious effect on how readers will perceive it.

Various publishing methods exist and there is much discussion about which is the best. All agree that writers must carefully choose competent publishers who will help the author achieve their publishing goals. Otherwise the entire process is a waste of time and money. Online websites can now help you publish your book successfully without the pitfalls of traditional publishing.

Lulu.com – Benefits And Advantages

Lulu.com is a website that allows authors to publish books themselves. One of the main advantages is that it allows you to publish as many titles as you’d like in a short period of time. You can also develop digital media and publish eBooks. The benefits to using Lulu are many.

In addition to publishing your works, you can also scan old books and photo albums in order to preserve them.

Once you publish your book on Lulu, you can choose among publishing options to either have it publicly available or only available to those you choose to access it. You also have the option of releasing the book in digital format, print format, or both. If you choose both, your readers can also pick which format they prefer to receive your content in.

Marketing And Selling Your Book

Publishing is about more than just writing, editing, and formatting. There is also marketing to consider, and this step can be quite demanding. If you don’t know how to handle your own book marketing, you could take a major loss on your titles. First time authors who fail at marketing their books often feel discouraged and many give up writing and publishing.

Lulu makes it easier for you to market and sell your book. After your book is published, you can choose groups to market it to. These niche groups have already been established on Lulu, so they give you a built-in audience. This is a great way to collaborate with other authors so that everyone benefits.

More Benefits To Publishing Online

Online sites really help when it comes to self-publishing your books. You can come up with absolutely any kind of book you want and it can be published. The only limit you have is your imagination. You can turn your old recipes or photo albums into published titles available to anyone.

As far as design and layout, they offer their own pre-made templates so that you don’t have to start from scratch. This is another task that most authors find difficult to handle themselves. There are also platforms where you can automatically sell your book once it’s published, such as Amazon.com.

When people are browsing books and they come across yours, they may find it hard to decide whether or not to buy. After all, you’re not an established author. To make the decision easier for them, you can offer the first few pages of your book for them to browse just like in any bookstore. They get a chance to read a little and if your writing pulls them in, they’ll buy.

For authors interested in self-publishing, publishing through online websites is easy and profitable. It’s more than worthwhile!

Want to become a published author?  Discover how one man went from ebook publisher to NY Times Best Seller by scoring $5.8 million in free advertising from the media… visit: How Do I Get Published?. Why are you still reading this?  Click Here Now:  http://www.optpages.com/howdoigetpublished/

Author: Marcus Blalock
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Five Things to Consider Before You Self-Publish

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It should come as no surprise that the allure of self-publishing has strengthened over the last year. The rise in popularity of digital book readers like the Kindle and Nook have inspired user-friendly publishing platforms for writers who wish to sell compatible eBooks. The simplicity of do-it-yourself print on demand sites allows writers to take charge of formatting and design for their books, and to make them available for sale rather quickly. While it’s true that an author contracted with a traditional publisher has advantages, a number of self-published phenoms have proven they can sell as well as the next New York Times chart-topper.

Bear in mind,however, that self-pub successes like Amanda Hocking and John Locke typically are not the norm. It doesn’t mean you don’t have the potential to sell in the thousands or more if you self-publish, but it’s important to decide if this is right path for you. When you make the commitment to write a book, you have the opportunity to share your voice with readers. Taking on the responsibility of publishing and marketing your work should progress in a way that attracts people to your sales pages. If you have become frustrated by traditional publishing or if you have wanted to strike out on your own, take these points into consideration:

1) How much time will I devote to the process? Self-publishing a novel may be accomplished full-time or part-time – you manage your schedule and put in the necessary hours. The same goes for marketing, too. How will you divide your time among social media, blogging, and making contacts for reviews and events?

2) Who will edit the book? You might think because you have so many years of experience in writing and literature, that you are qualified to self-edit. You may have edited well for others, but when it comes to your own work you risk letting your ego get in the way. You may also become so attached to your manuscript that you let errors slide. It is crucial to employ an editor to work with you to ensure that your work is polished and error-free, that characters remain consistent, and that the story makes sense. Your first book becomes the primary promotional item that sells your next book, so make it count!

3) Who will design the cover? Readers do judge a book by the cover, and often the cover and title are what prompt readers to buy in the first place. If you want to present your book in a professional manner, you need a cover designed by a pro. You may be tempted to cut corners with royalty-free stock photography, but think about the end result if you know little about design. Your book deserves a great cover, so make sure you know where to find it.

4) Who is the target audience? Who will read your book – men, women, teenagers? If your book is non-fiction, is there a certain market that would be more interested — music lovers, people from a specific geographic area, people of a certain faith or creed? How you market the book depends upon the demographics of your intended readership, so know your audience.

5) How will I sell the book? You probably have the plans in motion to distribute through Amazon.com and other retailers, but what else do you have planned? Will you sell through your website or social profiles? Do you have leads for book signings and book events?

If you are new to the publishing world and feel intimidated by the growing to-do list of a self-published author, here’s one thing to keep in mind: even if you are published traditionally through a house like St. Martin’s or Harlequin, you are expected to pull your own weight. Some decisions, like cover art and editing, may be handled for you, but unless you are the house’s mega-star, you will discover that you must schedule your blog tours and book signings, and order your promotional items. Moreover, you must write the next book.

Is self-publishing right for you? Only you can make that decision, but if you decide to do it be prepared!

Kathryn Lively is a freelance writer specializing in articles on self-publishing services and book editing services for indie authors.

Author: Kathryn Lively
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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