Tips From a Self-Published Author
I first started writing stories when I was in elementary school. I had a stack of ideas and papers shoved under my bed about people and places from all parts of my brain. That’s not to say that I always knew I wanted to be a novelist. Writing was the art form I couldn’t shake. Throughout my life, when things got hard, or if I felt like the world didn’t make sense, I always came back to words.
I didn’t stumble upon the Far From Home series until my mid-twenties. The book, the world of LeeChee, and its characters started out as a hodgepodge of ideas. This grew into a massive 100,000-word manuscript with no clear audience. The process of whittling the manuscript down to the books you see in the world was a years-long process. Drawing from that experience, I’ve pulled together some short tips for what I learned about the process of self-publishing.
Make sure you’re ready. Most successful writers have spent a lot of time honing their craft. If you’re interested in writing a book or short story or articles, I would recommend seeking out local workshops in your area. It's a great way to get feedback on your concept. The editing process, to me, is the hardest part of any art form, but it’s also the most important. Testing your own limits and being ready to receive (sometimes harsh) feedback will prepare you for the realities of self-publishing.
Self-publishing isn’t for everyone. I saw an article the other day that marked self-publishing as a ‘side hustle’ to ‘make extra money.’ In my experience, this has been far from true. Yes, some authors are able to throw up a few e-books on Amazon and make extra money, but the majority of us are grinding out name recognition and advertising just like you would with any other business. In the traditional model, a publishing company will pay for services like editing and marketing, and even give you a book advance to live on while you’re doing these tedious tasks. If you’re not ready to work a lot for very little right off the bat, self-publishing is not for you.
Find people to help you and listen to them. I have found that this step happens naturally once you’ve set the intention to move forward with a writing project and you start talking about it. My writing coach, the person who helped me bring these books into the world, fell into my lap through a friend. She has been one of the most valuable resources I could have ever imagined and is much of the reason the Far From Home series exists. If you have people around you who say your work is good and people will want to read it, listen to them.
Beware of people who only want your money. As with anything, you should expect to pay the people who work on your project. Editors, designers, and layout specialists are hardly ever cheap and they are never free, but they should be willing to work with you at reasonable, marketable rates. They also may request royalties (if you’re wildly successful), but they will not want the rights to your work. If you come across companies or people who ask you to pay a lot upfront with no guarantees of success, then it is too good to be true. Also, if someone offers for you to pay them, but wants to own your work, be extremely cautious. Actually, just run away.
Find an editor and a team that you trust. I have found that a good editor is harder to find, but just as valuable as a therapist or hairdresser. Not every editor works well with every writer. Look for editors who are not afraid to tell your their opinions and to push you to make your work better, while still listening to you if you do not want to take their advice. A great editor knows how to make changes that improve structure, grammar, and clarity without altering the artist's overall intent.
Be ready to market yourself to the ends of the earth. As my writing coach said the other day, “It’s hard to get people to buy a book.” This is absolutely true. A major downside of self-publishing is that you are essentially thrusting yourself into the giant sea of the written word and jumping up and down and screaming, “NOTICE ME!” One of the biggest advantages of traditional publishing is that they have all of the infrastructure in place to get your book in front of the right people from the jump. If you’re not ready to spend years of your life making inroads into social media, advertising, and the like, self-publishing is not for you.
Don’t give up. I mean this one the most. Self-publishing has been soul-crushing at times, but every day I watch my little stories get teeny, tiny footholds in the world. Remember, it’s not always about the money. Sometimes just knowing that your story has reached one or two people has to be enough to keep going.
As with all things, I hope these words find you well and encouraged. I truly believe that most people have one great story inside of them that they could share if they only wrote it down. Some people have many. I hope you find yours.
