Clearing the Hurdles: The Challenges of Self-Publishing

In this guest post from Katie Young, she explains the hurdles to self-publishing, and why they’re worth it.

The traditional publishing system has developed a rather tricky catch-22: you can get published, as long as you already have a successful book on the market. There are ways around this roadblock, and the successful authors are often the ones who find those alternate routes.

Self-publishing addresses the basic problem: how to get a book published without a traditional publishing company. Because of this and the rise of ebooks and print-on-demand (POD) technology, it has become increasingly popular in recent years. Ebooks and POD allow an author to become self-published without printing hundreds of copies that may never be sold.

A quick explanation of ebooks and POD

Ebook: Ebooks allow you to read the book on your computer, most smartphones, and other devices called “ebook readers” (such as the Kindle). They cost very little to produce and distribute, allowing authors to sell their book for much less and still make a profit. This makes them a great option for publishing short stories and novellas that couldnʼt make much of a profit in print.

Print-on-demand: Rather than printing books in batches of 1000 or more, POD technology allows a print shop to produce one book at a time. This means you wonʼt end up with boxes upon boxes of unsold books in your basement!

With these routes to self-publishing, there are still hurdles to overcome, especially if youʼre using the process to maneuver around the catch-22 of traditional publishing. I have self-published an ebook, and Iʼm still jumping.

Hurdle #1: Format Your eBook

The best way to sell your ebook is through stores such as Amazon, Lulu.com, Smashwords, and the iBookstore. Problem is, stores like these often require your book to be in ePub format. ePub is a file format that nearly all ebook readers use. Unfortunately, ebooks and ePub are still new, so converting a file to the right format can take considerable technical skill.

There are some programs which can convert your file for you, but many of them have serious flaws and still require a lot of know-how to make it look professional. The best converter Iʼve found is the latest version of Pages, a word-processing program that comes with Mac operating systems. If you use a Mac, Pages is definitely the one to get. Just click “File”, then “Export…”, then “ePub”, and follow the wizard. Voila, you have an ePub file!

If you donʼt have a Mac, or Pages, then there are several other programs out there that can do it, but your final file might need some tweaking. I do not recommend Calibre. I tried it. It was a technical nightmare, and Iʼd like to think I have a decent understanding of computers, being the daughter of a software developer.

Once youʼve found a program you like and converted your file, preview it in Adobe Digital Editions, an ebook reader that you can download to your computer. Tweak until it looks how you want it, and you have your ebook!

Hurdle #2: Get It Out There

This oneʼs not as tough. There are several places you can easily sell your ebook, and a few that do print-on-demand. The biggest obstacle is the iBookstore, which doesnʼt allow individuals to submit ebooks for sale. To sell your ebook there, you have to go through another company. I recommend Lulu.com. It has a simple, streamlined process, and your book is available for iPhone and iPad users to buy within a few days (mine was up the same day).

Other ebook options are Amazon and Smashwords. I havenʼt had much experience with Smashwords, but I have heard great things about it from other self-published authors. I have used Amazon myself, and it was a simple, pain-free experience. To make your ebook available on the Kindle, go here and create an account. It takes about two or three days to have your book available, but you get a great royalty percentage (up to 70%) and itʼs available for anyone with a Kindle.

Lulu is great for print-on-demand. They do take a hefty portion out of your royalties, but itʼs arguably worth it for the user-friendly experience. The publishing wizard is simple, and creating a cover on Lulu is much simpler than on Amazon’s Createspace. The only benefit to Createspace is that they make your book available on Amazon. If youʼre tech savvy or have a friend who knows his or her way around Photoshop, consider using both Lulu and Createspace.

Remember: You donʼt have to pick just one method of getting your book out there. In fact, use all of them. Do both POD and ebook. Use Lulu and Createspace. The more places you can sell your book, the easier it will be for someone to find it and buy it.

Hurdle #3: Spreading the Word

Now your book is available in multiple forms on multiple websites. Your next challenge is telling people that your book is there. How, you ask? Start with your friends and family. Theyʼll often be eager to buy your book, especially if itʼs your first. A few dollars will trickle in from them. Now you have to persuade them to tell their friends and family. Hopefully, if your book has a compelling description and a great cover, theyʼll buy it. After all, youʼre a friend of a friend. If they really, really like it, theyʼll spread the words to their friends and family members, and youʼre in business.

Todayʼs world of social media makes this process a little easier. Got a blog or Twitter account? Got a good number of followers (who arenʼt your real-life friends and family)? Then you can promote your book there. Put it on your website (you really should have one) and post links on Facebook. You can even make a Facebook page all about your book!

This is, in my opinion, the biggest hurdle of self-publishing, and the most important if you want to get a traditional publisherʼs attention. The other two are easy enough to overcome. But if you canʼt sell your work, the publishers will think they canʼt either. Thereʼs no easy formula to get the word out and rake in the sales. It takes hard work, and a lot of self-promotion. In theory, self-publishing lets excellent writers rise above. In reality, itʼs excellent writers, the social media savvy, and those with the extra cash to take out ads (if you fall into that category, consider Facebook ads). If youʼre all three of these, and you work hard, the odds of success get much, much better.

If you get the word out and your book sells, youʼve just built a platform! You now have the key to the door of publishing: people who know who you are and will buy your books. Congratulations! Youʼve conquered the hurdles. Now go forth, and query many agents of a literary nature with your next masterpiece.

Images courtesy of n.kuzma, goXunuReviews and Ken Lee.