How to write format publish promote your book without spending any money : a Creativindie guide

165 Pages·2014·4.34 MB·English

by  Murphy

Thanks for purchasing this book!
If you need help with anything, feel free to get in touch.
A short review on Amazon would be hugely appreciated.
Sincerely, Derek Murphy
www.creativindie.com

Twitter: @creativindie | Facebook.com/creativindie

“For books are not absolutely dead things, but
do contain a potency of life in them to be as
active as that soul was whose progeny they
are; nay, they do preserve as in a vial the
purest efficacy and extraction of that living
intellect that bred them.”
—John Milton, Areopagitica
“This is the cusp of an age at least as exciting and as brimful of potential as
the early days of the printing press.” — Sara Sheridan
“Only a few short years ago, the average stay-
at-home mom spent her relaxation time reading
Jackie Collins and staring at the pool boy. Now,
half of them are outselling Jackie Collins writing
porn about the pool boy.”
—Pete Morin, Surviving in
the Amazon Jungle
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Welcome
What this book isn’t about
Can I really do it for FREE?
My Story
Part 1
WRITE
EDIT
COVER
Part 2
FORMAT
Part 3
PUBLISH
Part 4
PROMOTE
LAST WORDS
FREE POSTER
THANKS
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
WELCOME
So you want to publish a book, eh? That’s great! There’s never been a better
time. The Internet and the rise of social media have made publishing a book,
growing your audience and becoming a successful author a possibility for
anybody. Getting an agent or publishing through a mainstream company is no
longer required (and in some cases, disadvantageous). You really can self-
publish, connect with readers, inspire hundreds of thousands of downloads and
make a lot of money. But it isn’t easy.
For a first time author, writing and publishing a book can be a daunting
prospect. There’s so much to learn: how to finish writing the book and get it
ready for publication; how to format it for print and ebook; how and where to
publish the book and distribute it to online and offline bookstores; how to get
your book noticed amidst hundreds of thousands of others. For many authors, the
entire process of writing and publishing is such a steep learning curve, with so
many confusing variables, that it can lead to frustration and stagnation, which is
sometimes overcome by throwing money at whoever promises to do everything
for you.
Unfortunately, many author publishing services and small presses know how
to manage the publishing process, but don’t have the talent or skill required to
make your book look good and ultimately find success. Therefore, DIY
publishing is not just about saving money; it’s also about making sure you end
up with a well-designed product that sells. However, if you don’t have much
experience with book design, marketing or sales, making the right design
choices can be difficult. I hope this book will help with that, and inspire you to
make smarter publishing choices, no matter your budget.
Does the world really need another guide to publishing and formatting? There
are dozens of books like this popping up, how is mine different? For starters, I
think most guides are written by authors who have learned these skills to publish
their own books. While they may be valuable, a lot are saying the same things;
and although they know how to publish (the mechanics) they aren’t really versed
on the art (the aesthetics). As a book designer who’s helped publish over 1000
books, I focus my attention on making products that sell. It’s not enough to just
put your book out there. If you want it to be successful, it has to look and feel
professional, powerful, and captivating. It needs an air of authority. It has to be a
thing of beauty.
To that end, I’ve spent the past several months building free tools and
resources that will help you take more control over your publishing and create a
beautiful book. This should make the DIY publishing journey much easier,
should you choose to brave it. What follows is a guide to using those resources,
which as an added bonus, should drastically reduce publishing, formatting and
marketing costs.
WHAT THIS BOOK ISN’T ABOUT
There are other books that are more in-depth about writing and publishing, and
much longer. However, many of them seem padded with personal biography and
plugs for the author’s books and services. Others are heavy on inspiration and
motivation, which may leave you pumped up about writing, but in no way
ensure that energy translates into publishing success. I’ve been told my writing
is pessimistic; I prefer to call it pragmatic. In my experience, optimistic,
positively charged authors are not necessarily better writers, nor more successful
authors. Too much empty enthusiasm can even be demotivating, if not supported
by the right skills and a lot of elbow grease.
Because I don’t base my books on a prerequisite word count (a pre-planned
decision to make a book a certain length) this book contains no padding or fluff.
I get straight to the point. This is a practical guide meant to traverse specific
publishing related barriers with targeted solutions. That way it’ll be easily
referenced and utilized; so you can spend less time reading and more time
writing more books. That said, the purpose of this book is mainly to introduce
you to some free tools I’ve made to assist you in DIY publishing. Parts of it are
very technical and possibly a little boring. If you aren’t happy with it, please ask
for a refund.