Self Publishing

In a recent post I alluded to a book I am writing. I’m happy to report that the book is complete and was delivered to the printer yesterday.

Today, and as this project unfolds, I’m going to talk about self-publishing as a business.

Many years ago my first book, a technical tome called “Application Programming in CTOS” was published by Prentiss-Hall. In total only 600 copies were sold – the royalties of which did not come close to compensating me for the time it took to write the book. Poor sales were the result of 1) A narrow topic with limited appeal; 2) An elapsed time from manuscript submission to publication of eighteen months; 3) No marketing.

In learning more about the publishing industry I have discovered that publishers typically take eighteen months or more after spending several months negotiating the book deal, and that it’s up to the author, not the publisher, to promote the product (unless you have a celebrity name or a blockbuster book).

So, as I set about to write “The Successful Home Business Guide” my priorities were to 1) write a relevant book with significant appeal; 2) self publish in order to compress the publication schedule, control the process, and hang onto the profits; 3) promote like crazy.

To date, in addition to doing the writing, I have engaged an editor who did a terrific job in editing the manuscript, been assigned an ISBN number, designed the book and cover, and negotiated to have the first run printed. Currently I’m in the process of completing a marketing plan and writing a sell sheet and other marketing material. It’s been, and will continue to be, an interesting process. I’ll keep you informed of the process and results.

A book that has given me great insight into self-publishing is  Dan Poynter’s Self-Publishing Manual. I highly recommend it to any author wanting to bypass the mainline publishers.

Will Limkemann