And now for the news!
This week in the world of self-publishing:
Many people think of writing as the first step to self-publishing, however, Trevor Crane flips this assumption on its head. Crane insists that “you must begin your pre-launch plans before you’ve written one single word.” A best-selling, self-published author himself, Trevor also owns a successful book marketing business “and the publishing companies Bestseller Big Business Publishing and the children’s imprint Super Kids Book Publishing.” Trevor’s daughter could be said to be one of his clients for the latter business, a stunning young girl who published five books in just three months!
Crane’s advice for authors considering the self-publishing route is to do a little reverse engineering and think about “the steps that precede the perceived onset” of actually writing the thing. Some useful tips Trevor provides for authors who want to ‘stay ahead of the pack’ are to first off, make clear what it is you want to promote and write. “Just like you can’t start building a house without a blueprint,” he says, “you can’t write a book until you know who you are writing for and what your marketing plan will look like.” He advises that authors try and step into the mind of the readers and ask yourself who your readers are and how you will advertise to them when your book is complete.
Secondly, Trevor recommends that you get on your social media soapbox and let the world know that you’re writing a book. This serves a dual purpose: one, it keeps you accountable and two, it gets the word out and builds anticipation for your audience. “One of Trevor’s clients sold 25 business sessions at a trade show before she had typed a single sentence”–now that’s effective marketing! She even ended up with a best-seller.
The counter-intuitive last piece of advice is to focus on the story, AFTER you’ve taken pieces of advice 1 and 2. He recommends researching the genre you plan to write in and see what works best, what is most popular and successful. Once you’ve gotten a feel for what works and what doesn’t, what makes top-sellers and what flops, try and craft a formula that will make your story a success. There’s a way in which you can repurpose popular works in a certain genre “in your own fashion, in your own words and with your unique take on your subject,” he says, “Your book should be readable, flow well, and adhere to creative guidelines: vary sentence lengths and set scenes, as an example.”
In his publishing and book marketing businesses, Trevor encounters a lot of authors who don’t like their books because they didn’t take the time to plan ahead before they dove straight into the writing process. Don’t make that mistake. Plan ahead, and plan for success!
As a self-publishing author, you may find it helpful to stay up-to-date on the trends and news related to the self-publishing industry. This will help you make informed decisions before, during and after the self-publishing process, which will lead to a greater self-publishing experience. To help you stay current on self-publishing topics, simply visit our blog every Monday to find out the hottest news. If you have other big news to share, please comment below.
Self Publishing Advisor 