Four Publishing Options Worth Exploring
For many people, writing the book is the easy
part. Whether you have a body of work ready to repurpose (such as a blog you’ve
maintained for several years) or a ghostwriter at the ready, or you just really
like to write, getting your book on paper is simple.
Publishing and selling it is another matter
all together. You basically have four options when it comes to publishing your
book, and each one has its pros and cons.
PDF Ebook. Probably the simplest method to
publish a book, all that’s required with an ebook is to click “Save as…” in
your Word document and choose “PDF.” Then you can sell the resulting file on
your own website, list it on ClickBank or E-Junkie, or upload it to a number of
other ebook marketplaces online.
Ebooks don’t quite have the authority that
printed books carry, but if you’re on a budget and don’t have the skills to
format your book for print, then this can be a viable option to get you off the
ground. It’s also a great way to share your book with advance readers to get
those all-important testimonials.
Kindle. The darling of the
self-publishing world, Amazon’s Kindle marketplace makes it easy for you to
publish your book. In fact, with just a few minutes of formatting, and another
several minutes spent on their step-by-step uploading system, you can have your
book on their virtual shelves in less than an hour.
With its incredible popularity and the
ability to offer “free days” during which anyone can download your book at no
cost, Kindle is a great way to build a buzz quickly.
Print on Demand. The best
choice for self-published authors is a relatively new technology that allows
for a single book to be printed on demand. Until just a few years ago, if you
chose to self-publish your book you’d likely have to shell out for hundreds if
not thousands of copies up front, leaving you with a garage full of books to
sell on your own.
Print on demand is different. Buyers order
your book from sellers such as Amazon (whose Create Space arm is itself a print
on demand enterprise), and the book is printed and shipped the next day. This
makes it easy and cost-effective for everyone to become a published author.
Traditional Publisher. The most
difficult and time consuming option, getting your book published with a
traditional print publisher will also get you the most audience and press. The
drawbacks are many, though. To start, it’s extremely difficult to get a
traditional publishing house to take on a new author. If you do manage to get
the attention of a publisher, your royalties (the amount you earn from your
book) will be very small—maybe as little as 8% of the net cost. Finally, the
length of time it takes from manuscript submission to final publication can be
years.
All that said, a book with a traditional
publishing insignia on the spine does carry a bit more weight when it comes to
press opportunities than does a self-published book.
Many new authors initially choose the ebook
format, and then move to Kindle and print on demand. Given enough buzz and
sales, traditional publication becomes easier to attain as well. The important
thing is to get your book written, and then publish where you’re most
comfortable. The rest will come naturally.
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