Editing Your Self-Published Book, Wendy Speaks

Copyediting 101

You’ve spent weeks, months and maybe even years working on your book. You’ve read and revised the manuscript several times. Now it is ready for publication, right? Wrong. No matter how good of a writer you are or how many times you’ve proofread and revised your book, you need to consider professional copyediting if you want your book to be taken seriously. Here are three reasons why.

1) Copyediting is More than Proofreading

Most books are expected to adhere to the Chicago Manual of Style guidelines. (There are other styles  for certain books such as medical or scientific books.) The Chicago  Manual of Style has specific guidelines on everything from numbers to hyphens to spellings. The most important style issue is consistency. For instance, if you use the word “e-mail” in chapter one, you can’t later spell it as “email” in chapter six. While proofreaders can find obvious errors such as spelling mistakes or typos, they don’t find the larger errors a copyeditor looks for.

2) It is Almost Impossible to Edit Your Own Work

Sure, you can read your work several times and find mistakes, but most authors cannot thoroughly edit their own work. This is because you are so familiar with your manuscript that you look over mistakes a new set of eyes would find. Also, you may not have the skills needed to perform a copyedit. Copyeditors are considered professionals for a reason.

3) A Flawed Book Won’t be Taken Seriously

Yes, even books published by top publishing houses and well-known authors occasionally have errors. It is impossible for every writer and every editor to always catch every error, but professional books are almost 100% error free. If your book is riddled with errors, no one will take your book seriously. You will be subject to the harsh criticism that sometimes surrounds self-published authors. Prove to your readers and your critics that you value your book and you are a professional by hiring a professional copyeditor to review your book before publication.

If you are interested in hiring a professional copyeditor, find out what services are available through your self publishing company. You can also find professional copyeditors online or ask writer friends to recommend a copyeditor they have used.

I’d love to know, do you plan on hiring a copyeditor?

ABOUT WENDY STETINA: Wendy Stetina is a sales and marketing professional with over 30 years experience in the printing and publishing industry. Wendy works as the Director of Author Services for Outskirts Press. The Author Services Department is composed of knowledgeable customer service reps and publishing consultants; and together, they all focus on educating authors on the self-publishing process in order to help them publish the book of their dreams. Whether you are a professional looking to take your career to the next level with platform-driven non-fiction, or a novelist seeking fame, fortune, and/or personal fulfillment, Wendy Stetina can put you on the right path.
Self-Publishing Book Review of the Week

Weekly Self-Published Book Review: How to Live the Good Life: A User’s Guide for Modern Humans

Book reviews are a great way for self-publishing authors to gain exposure. After all, how can someone buy your book if he or she doesn’t know it exists? Paired with other elements of your book promotion strategy, requesting reviews is a great way to get people talking about what you’ve written.

When we read good reviews, we definitely like to share them. It gives the author a few (permanent) moments of fame and allows us to let the community know about a great book. Here’s this week’s book review by Midwest Book Review:

 How to Live the Good Life: A User’s Guide for Modern Humans

Arthur Jackson

Publisher: Outskirts Press

ISBN: 9781432767709

Reviewer: Joseph Yurt

Author Arthur Jackson is methodically passionate about helping humanity live a good life, as defined by him. I found the content of his book, “How to Live the Good Life: A User’s Guide for Modern Humans,” to be at once abstract and concrete, realistic and impractical, engaging and dissociating. In some instances, the author’s thoughts are brilliant; in others, enigmatic. The “good life” Jackson explores is far and away from the shallow pop culture concept of the “good life.” But, if you are an enlightened thinker and have a genuine interest in increasing your personal sense of well-being and in making the world a better place for humankind, the book merits your serious consideration.

The book is not an easy read. I imagine it was not an easy book to write either. Jackson’s forty-year journey to publication involved extensive research and study of religions, philosophies, social sciences and the natural order of the world. For Jackson, the obstacle, which he encountered all along the way, to achieving the good life was the conflict between traditional religion and the natural order. The necessity to resolve this conflict led to the author’s system for the science of religion and ethics. This combination of religion and science is at the core of Jackson’s work.

At the point in the book when Jackson begins to focus on the science of religion and ethics perspective, his ponderings and models became more concrete to me. For example, from this perspective, he reasons that “…the ultimate of reality is not the ULTIMATE that we have been led to believe in. The ideas we have been taught about ULTIMATE are as erroneous as most of the other basic ideas we have been taught.” The ultimate‟ we can reach is to develop ourselves as fully as possible to achieve a sustainable feeling that our life has meaning.”

The last ten of the book’s eighteen chapters are given over to Jackson’s presentation of his “eleven principles of the Way to Wisdom.” It is the author’s contention that an individual’s potential for wisdom is the key to developing moral character, a sense of personal well-being, and a thought process that will make the world better. Details and benefits of each of the eleven wisdom principles are considered and scrutinized in-depth.

In pondering several drafts of my review of this book, I concluded that by its very nature, the breadth and depth of the content included in “How to Live the Good Life” makes adequate summarization impossible. The reality is that this book must be read thoroughly and thoughtfully and in its entirety. And as with Arthur Jackson’s principles, comprehending the layers of this book is not for those among us who are unenlightened.

 

Book Marketing, Kelly Speaks

5 Ways to Promote Your Book in December

The holidays are here and while you are probably busy with holiday parties, baking, family gatherings, etc., don’t forget about book marketing.  Here are a few things you can do this month to promote your book:

  1. Give copies of your book away as holiday gifts.
  2. Add a Kindle edition (or other ebook format).  Many people will be giving away ebook readers as holiday gifts.  Make sure your book is available in at least one e-bookstore for potential readers who will be browsing for books to read after they receive their gift.
  3. Enter your book in the ForeWord Book of the Year Award contest.  Deadline is January 15th, so submit it now before it’s too late.
  4. Start planning for 2012.  As you make your new year resolutions, consider your book marketing efforts and how you will increase or modify them in the new year.  Reflecting on what worked well over the last year and what didn’t will help you plan for a bigger and better 2012!
  5. Enjoy the season!  Take a break for a few days to enjoy your family and maybe even begin writing your next book.

DISCUSSION: How are you planning to promote YOUR book in December?

ABOUT KELLY SCHUKNECHT:
Kelly Schuknecht is the Vice President of Outskirts Press.  In addition to her contributions to the Outskirts Press blog at blog.outskirtspress.com, Kelly and a group of talented marketing experts offer book marketing services, support, and products to not only published Outskirts Press authors, but to all authors and professionals who are interested in marketing their books and/or careers. Learn more about Kelly on her blog at http://kellyschuknecht.com.
Book Design, Cheri Speaks

What You Need to Know About Custom Covers

You’ve heard the cliché “A picture is worth a thousand words.” This is especially true in the publishing industry. The cover is the first impression a reader gets of your book. Therefore, it needs to be appealing and professional, but it should also reflect the tone and style of your book. If you have a specific vision of your book’s cover, you are probably considering a custom cover. However, there are two different types of custom covers. Here are the basics.

Regular Custom Covers vs. Illustrated Custom Covers

Regular custom covers are created with photos from a photo image site. Illustrated custom covers are drawn by professional illustrators. If you take a trip to the bookstore or browse book covers online, you will see that covers with photos and covers will illustrations are two very different styles. Also, illustrated covers offer more unique designs. The type of custom cover you choose depends on your vision.

Choosing a Cover

When deciding whether to choose a regular custom cover or illustrated customer cover, consider these questions:

  • What do I want my finished book to look like?
  • What do other books in my genre look like?
  • What insight has my market research provided about cover art?
  • What is my budget for cover art?

I’d love to know, do you plan on using a regular custom cover or an illustrated custom cover?

Cheri Breeding ABOUT CHERI BREEDING: Since 2005 Cheri Breeding has been working as the Director of Production for Outskirts Press. In that time, she has been an instrumental component of every aspect of the Production Department, performing the roles of an Author Representative, Book Designer, Customer Service Representative, Title Production Supervisor, Production Manager and, Director of Production. She brings all that experience and knowledge, along with an unparalleled customer-service focus, to help self-publishing authors reach high-quality book publication more efficiently, professionally, and affordably.
Wendy Speaks

Why You Should Consider Self Publishing

Like many things, self publishing has its pros and cons. I won’t lie; self publishing is not for everyone. However, it is a good option for many people, depending on your goals and values. If you have been considering self publishing, here are two reasons why self publishing may be right for you.

Control

One of the biggest benefits of self publishing is control. Unlike traditional publishing, authors have full control over all the details, including cost and design. With traditional publishing companies, authors typically have to give up rights and control. The traditional publishing company determines how your book is designed. The traditional publishing company determines the price of your book. While some authors have no problem giving up control and rights, many authors want to have more say in the publishing process. After hours, days, and maybe even years of writing your book, you may not be willing to surrender control to a traditional publishing company. If you want to make the decisions during every part of the publication process, self publishing may be for you.

Accessibility

It is no secret that traditional publishing deals are hard to come by. Authors who go the traditional route are often overwhelmed with rejection letters. Many spend years trying to get their book published only to discover that it is never going to happen. Often, it is not because the book has no merit. It is because the publishing company does not believe they can make money off of the book. Publishing is a business. Therefore, rejection is not always a reflection of talent.

Self publishing guarantees publication. You determine if there is a market for your book. You decide the value of your book. This option is especially viable for books with a niche market. Major publishing companies may not be able to make money off a book written for a niche market, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t. If you believe in your book, you can decide whether or not it should be published.

ABOUT WENDY STETINA: Wendy Stetina is a sales and marketing professional with over 30 years experience in the printing and publishing industry. Wendy works as the Director of Author Services for Outskirts Press. The Author Services Department is composed of knowledgeable customer service reps and publishing consultants; and together, they all focus on educating authors on the self-publishing process in order to help them publish the book of their dreams. Whether you are a professional looking to take your career to the next level with platform-driven non-fiction, or a novelist seeking fame, fortune, and/or personal fulfillment, Wendy Stetina can put you on the right path.