Self-publishing is a journey that can feel often complicated and intense, but is also exciting and rewarding. I have personally always been a big supporter of writers choosing to self-publish and I like that writers have these sorts of freedoms and options nowadays. However, self-publishing definitely comes with a steep learning curve and it’s not always so easy to figure out how to self-publish on your own. There are many things I personally wish I knew before I started self-publishing my own books. So, if you’re thinking about self-publishing a book, here are ten things that I personally wish I knew before I self-published a book so that you can avoid these same mistakes!
New to self-publishing? Check out this post → How to Self-Publish a Book: A Full Guide
(affiliate disclosure: some of the links in this post are affiliate links which means that I earn a small commission at no additional cost to you when you purchase something through my links).
1. Self-Publishing Isn’t Really “Free”
When I first started out with self-publishing books, I heard a lot of people talk about how it’s free and things like that, which is definitely enticing for a lot of people. Now, I had a feeling that there were definitely hidden costs that nobody wanted to talk about, and I found out about what these hidden costs really were.
Firstly, self-publishing requires a time investment and an investment of money. You have to either pay for a person to make your cover or you have to pay for something like a graphic design software to make your cover. You also need to pay for marketing and things like ISBNs if you aren’t just using Amazon KDP. Plus, even if you use Amazon KDP, you still need to order proof copies and you need good formatting software for the book’s interior (Google Docs doesn’t really work for this stuff much).
You should look up what you think you’ll need to spend money on and try to figure out how much you will actually have to pay. It adds up fast!
2. Editing is Most of the Work
I know that seems weird, but writing is only the first part of the self-publishing process. Writing the story is honestly the easy part because you want to write the story. Where it gets difficult is editing.
Editing a book is a complicated process and you honestly will need some outside feedback to help you. You can try to get your friends and family to help edit your story or you can pay for a professional, but you also need to get comfortable learning how to self-edit on top of these things.
Editing is important because it shows when a book is edited and when it’s not, since readers will likely see more spelling errors, inconsistencies, plot holes, and more when it comes to books that have not been edited much.
3. Marketing is VERY Important
As a self-published writer, you’re not just an author but you are also a marketer and it’s important to understand that before you jump into the self-published books world. Before you even publish your story, you need to work on building some type of platform, whether it be a website, social media, a newsletter, etc…
You also want to think about paid marketing more than just organic marketing. Organic marketing often takes significantly more time to reach people and you are competing against a lot of people who are also organically marketing, so you need to think about the benefit of paid ads. A marketing budget is definitely something you’ll need to set aside before you start the self-publishing process.
4. Yes, Your Cover Matters
The world today is definitely more visual than it used to be and books do get judged based on what type of cover they have. If your book’s cover is not very well-done, then you might not find a lot of prospective readers who are interested in your story. The thing is, if you’re not an established author yet, readers are investing into your story and they may not do that if your cover doesn’t appeal to them.
You can design your own cover using a software like Canva or Photoshop or you can hire somebody online to design your cover. I personally have a graphic designer in my family (my sister), so she was the one that helped design my covers. It takes time though, so just keep that in mind.
If you want to learn more about why book covers matter, check out this post!
5. ISBNs and Copyright
IBSNs (International Standard Book Number) are basically codes that uniquely identify your book and associate them to you. A lot of self-publishing platforms like Amazon let you get a free ISBN and this will allow you to pretty much sell your book through Amazon only, but if you want to distribute your book onto other platforms, then you might want to consider buying your own ISBNs. Though, Amazon does have global distribution and my book is sold in places like Waterstones.
Copyright is basically the assertion that your book is your original work and cannot be copied or used without your permission. Once you publish a book, most platforms basically automatically copyright them for you. You should include a copyright page in your book though.
6. Book Distribution and Printing
The most popular choice for most self-published authors these days is basically Amazon and that’s because it’s one of the biggest platforms for online shopping, has a full service for Print-on-demand (POD) and offers marketing solutions and more. It’s got pretty good quality books and honestly, if you’re new to self-publishing, Amazon is pretty much your best bet.
You can go through a traditional printer in your local area if you have your own ISBN and choose to sell your book yourself, but I think that print-on-demand like Amazon KDP just makes life easier because you won’t have to worry about all of these little details and things.
You also want to think about how you want to distribute your book and where you want it to be sold. Amazon has global distribution and IngramSpark does as well. Different companies have different solutions, so you’ll want to compare them before you pick. I have a list of the best self-publishing companies out there, so you should definitely check that post out for more help.
7. Reviews Make a Difference
Self-published books don’t have a big publishing company to distribute copies to famous people to give reviews, but that doesn’t mean that you don’t have a chance. You’ll just have to work a bit harder to get books out to people and get reviews. There are things like offering ARCs to bloggers and reviewers and you can also try to get your readers from your platform to support you and give you reviews on your book.
One thing I will say is that you can’t let negative reviews bring you down. There are PLENTY of very famous books out there that have super harsh 1-star reviews and those books also have super glowing 5-star reviews. At the end of the day, your book will not click with everyone and that’s OK. Just keep writing and take some of the feedback into account so that you can grow as a writer.
8. Do not Skimp out on Formatting!
One of the things that I think books definitely need to be is well-formatted. There are lots of software options out there for formatting the interior of your book and you should look into them because Microsoft Word is OK, it’s not my favorite though.
You need to be sure that you are formatting a separate version for your eBook and paperback, because the way books are formatted on e-readers is not the same as a printed book. A printed book has more flexibility for creative designs and things of that nature, but an eBook doesn’t really have that same luxury, which is fine, you just need to keep that in mind.
If you want to learn how to format an eBook, check out this post.
Be sure your formatting is great because that can really make your book seem more special and unique.
9. Royalties and Earnings
One thing you need to know about is the idea of royalties and earnings. In the publishing world, this is also relevant. Now, the nice thing about self-publishing is that you have more control over your royalties.
Royalties are the percentage of sales revenue you receive from your book and different platforms offer different rates. The printer or the platform you use will just take a cut of the sales, which is expected.
You want to be reasonable when you set the price for your book so that you can actually make money but aren’t pricing your book in a manner that is unreasonable. If your book is long and complex, then a higher price point makes sense. If your book is shorter or made for younger readers, then you might not find it easy to get readers to pay for a higher priced book.
10. Be Patient, Things Take Time
One thing I definitely think a lot more people need to understand about self-publishing is that it’s not a fast process and it’s not a get-rich-quick sort of thing. It takes time to grow as a self-published author and you may not necessarily see immediate success, even if you have a platform.
However, if you prepare before you hit publish and you are working on building your platform, then you’ll find the success is a bit faster than without these sorts of things.
Either way though, you should keep in mind that it takes time to build an audience, get reviews, and generate lots of sales. Be patient and persevere! It definitely is not impossible.
Conclusion
Self-publishing is a great thing that many authors now have access to, but it’s not as easy as it may sound. You still have some costs to incur, you have to be your own marketer, and you need to keep in mind that there are lots of factors that go into the success of a book in the self-published world.
Before you head on out, be sure to check out my series, The Fallen Age Saga and don’t forget to sign up for my newsletter so you can get updates on all my latest posts, WIPs, book releases and more!