Self-Publishing – Page 35 – Self Publishing Advisor

Conversations With A Self-Publishing Writer: 08/07/2015

[UPDATE: Apologies for the posting error this morning! It should be corrected now.

– SPA Blogrunner]

WHY SHOULD I PUBLISH?

Isn’t the world turning to their iPads and Kindles for research and pleasure reading? WHY should anyone jump through all those book-publishing hoops these days? Last time I attempted to break through the walls and cross the motes to reach a traditional publisher every door slammed shut! No agent would take the time to even read my manuscript because “the main topic is too obscure.” The one publishing house editor who might have read the first few pages sent me a form rejection letter with a scrawled note at the bottom. “We’re packed to the gills with contracted publishing projects for at least the next five years.” OH, the cry of the writer who is unpublished today or who has barely stepped into the published author arena. Within my sphere of writer-acquaintances I have two examples to share with you today. One author was “accepted” by a small (yet mainstream) publishing house and one made the decision to self-publish with an established “press.”

The “house” author was so excited to have the backing of a known publishing house. However, as the months and years went by her enthusiasm dwindled. It was two months shy of three years before the book reached bookstores. The eBook and online presence came along much later. Then came the realities of marketing. Yes, this book wore the label of the mainstream publishing house. Yes, it was listed in their catalog of New Releases that went to bookstores around the world. Yes, they offered a helper to “get the marketing off and running.” However, (SURPRISE!) the actual marketing beyond their label and catalog would have to be done by the author—or a “contract” marketing team-for-hire.

The self-publishing “press” author held her finished book in her hand 98-days after submitting the manuscript with immediate availability to bookstores, major online book sites and as an eBook. That time-frame comparison alone has brought many new champions to the field of self-publishing. Here are a few other contrasts that will help all writers in making their publishing decisions.

PROS

Traditional Publisher (TP): There is NO upfront expense to the author who is accepted by and signs a contract with a mainstream publisher—and often there is an “advance payment” based on expected sales.
TP handles development (editing, rewrites, enhancements, etc.) of your manuscript as well as onset marketing, distribution and some traditional “warehousing.”
Self-Publishing Presses (SP) have developed priced “packages” of publishing options for authors to select from—from bare bones “print my book” to full-assistance Custom Cover and Interior design.
SP Authors maintain 99% of the control in developing their book. I say 99% because there still remains some printer guidelines regarding the finished “trim-size” of books.

CONS

The days of the 6-figure advances are gone. Plus, authors are beginning to consider their lost income due to the years it takes to get a book in print through Traditional Publishing.
There is also the very real concern that TP editors and book developers/marketing specialist will turn an author’s work into something it was never meant to be. TPs will deny this happens—yet too many authors tell a different story.
Because Self-Publishing presses consider their main goal is to get the book OUT and available to readers QUICKLY, many do not have a printed Galley Proof for authors to hold in their hands and actually “proof.” Although online Galley Proofing is an excellent way to manage corrections and changes, it is not always the easiest process for the Author.

These are the first of the Pros and Cons I will share with you this month. However, I will add here that for me personally, the biggest factor to overcome as an author is actually releasing my work into the hands of ANYONE else—whether traditional publisher or self-publishing press. Other eyes (professional publishing eyes) will be looking at what I’ve created. So, bottom line, I search for the right fit within current publishing options. That means research into the publishing field beyond what I ever expected so that the heart of my words will reach the hearts of my readers. ⚓︎

ABOUT ROYALENE DOYLE: Royalene has been writing something since before kindergarten days and continues to love the process. Through her small business—DOYLE WRITING SERVICES—she brings more than 40 years of writing experience to authors who need “just a little assistance” with completing their projects. This is a nice fit as she develops these blogs for Outskirts Press (OP) a leading self-publisher, and occasionally accepts a ghostwriting project from one of their clients. Her recent book release (with OP) titled FIREPROOF PROVERBS, A Writer’s Study of Words, is already receiving excellent reviews including several professional writer’s endorsements given on the book’s back cover.

Royalene’s writing experience grew through a wide variety of positions from Office Manager and Administrative Assistant to Teacher of Literature and Advanced Writing courses and editor/writer for an International Christian ministry. Her willingness to listen to struggling authors, learn their goals and expectations and discern their writing voice has brought many manuscripts into the published books arena.

from the archives, Kelly Speaks

From the Archives: “4 Myths About Self-Publishing Today”

Welcome to our new Tuesday segment, where we’ll be revisiting some of our most popular posts from the last few years. What’s stayed the same? And what’s changed? We’ll be updating you on the facts, and taking a new (and hopefully refreshing) angle on a few timeless classics of Self Publishing Advisor.

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[ Originally posted: December 2nd, 2009 ]

There is a lot of confusion, controversy, and questions surrounding the terms self-publishing, vanity press, print-on-demand, etc. As you decide the best publishing path for you, let’s clarify some misconceptions some may have propagated.

1. MYTH: Whoever owns the ISBN owns the rights.
FACT: This used to be true. Nowadays, it is no longer true. Good self-publishing options assign the ISBN for the authors’ convenience, but still allow authors to keep 100% of the rights to their books. Be sure to check the contract.

2. MYTH: Independent self-publishing is different from publishing with an established organization because that publisher owns the ISBN.
FACT: It is true that the ISBN identifies the publisher of record. With reputable options, authors can supply their own ISBN as an option. Of course, if an author prefers the publisher to assign an ISBN for them, that should be an option too. And that’s what self-publishing is about – author choice and author control.

3. MYTH: New York publishers promote and market all their books.
FACT: New York publishers usually devote the lion’s share of their marketing budget to the top 1% (Harry Potter, for example) of the books they publish. The other books published during that season are victims of the sliced marketing budget. The majority of traditionally published authors are referred to as “mid-listers” and don’t get much support from their publisher at all.

4. MYTH: Printing a book with an off-set printer is the same as self-publishing it.
FACT: Printing a book is one facet of publication. Before a book can be printed, it needs to be designed. Then it needs to be printed. Then it needs wholesale distribution through Ingram and availability online with retailers like Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Then it needs fulfillment of orders and invoicing.

Printing a book with an offset printer accomplishes one of those steps. Publishing a book with a leading self-publishing option accomplishes all of them. Almost anyone can “print” a book, but what about all the other stuff that is required?

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So how many of these facts, as originally written, still hold true today?

Myth #1 remains a myth.

This is because copyright laws and ownership rights act independently of ISBNs. Your book, no matter when you purchase the ISBN, is copyrighted as soon as it is written. You can buy the ISBN before, during, or after the book is written! An ISBN is, quite simply, a numeric identifier for your book that renders it both salable and more findable (creating an ISBN creates a whole lot of metadata!). Copyright is the larger issue when it comes to rights, so you always want to read the fine print of any publishing or self-publishing contract you sign.

Myth #2 remains … complicated.

With the explosion of both “hybrid” and “indie” publishing companies, there’s a lot more range in 2015 in terms of options than there was only six years ago, in 2009. Usually these companies offer “packages” or “bundles” that allow you to choose whether you want the company to handle your ISBN purchase or not. For most companies, an ISBN purchase is part of even the more basic packages–but you can usually choose to opt-out.

Myth #3 remains a myth, at least to an extent.

As indie, hybrid, and self-publishing firms grow more competitive, the traditional publishers have had to step up their game. Even mid-listers get some attention–usually, at least–if on a much more limited basis than those books which end up being the top 1% … and according to industry experts like Russell Smith, mid-list authors have more reasons to despair than ever.

Myth #4 remains a complete and total myth.

You might–might–be one of the lucky few authors who also possesses stellar design and printing skills, not to mention has a handle on ISBNs and copyright law. You might even be one of those dauntless authors who has woven together a rich and active following on social media, and who knows how to self-market using more than just a couple of websites. But most people aren’t. One also has to consider how absolutely vital a professional editor is to a successful publication. There are a lot of factors at play, and we’re not always the best judges of our own work. In fact, we’re often our own harshest critics!

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So there you have it–at least as far as those particular myths go. But I think it bears mentioning that we have some new myths these days! Here are my top two propositions for New Myths of Self-Publishing:

Myth #5: You will never make money off of your work unless you find a traditional publisher.

Uh-uh, nope! I think we’re far enough along in terms of industry development to see a range of stories from successes to failures, just as you do in any industry, traditional publishing included. And also farming, sheep-herding, graphic designing, investment banking … and the list goes on. But there are some big advantages that a self-publisher in 2015 has on a self-publisher back in 2009: namely, that self-published books are infinitely more findable now that there are enough resources and communities built around the indie, hybrid, and self-publishing concepts. No author is guaranteed success, it is true, but with a good game plan and a lot of energy, you will make money off of your work. How much is entirely up to you and whoever else you choose to bring on board the project.

Myth #6: No one reads, reviews, or notices self-published books when they share a (possibly digital) shelf with traditionally published works.

Oh, my. Where to begin? These days, with so many players dipping into the indie, hybrid, and self-published market, the production quality of many self-published books is on par with that provided by traditional publishers for even their A-list books (and we’re leaving aside the fact that they often neglect their mid-listers to a tragic degree). And as for the argument that nobody reads self-published books, look at the data: in 2011, one retailer alone distributed over 2.5 million self-published books. And that was in 2011! The fact that authors like Hugh Howey end up being poached away from self-publishing into traditional publishing just goes to show you that plenty of people read and take note of a good self-published book. Even Goodreads has dozens of book lists dedicated to self-published titles! If it looks good on the inside and the outside, and if it’s written well, and if it’s promoted in the most effective ways that you can manage, then your book will find its readers.

When push comes to shove, what lies behind many of these myths are two simple questions: Is it worth it? And, will I fail? The honest truth is that yes, self-publishing is 100% worth the work, especially if you’re passionate about putting the power and profit of reading into the hands of the people who deserve it most (and these people are of course, readers and writers). And while failure and success are both subjective measures we dream up for ourselves, you will never be a failure. You will simply be, as we all are, a work in progress. ♠

ABOUT KELLY SCHUKNECHT: Kelly Schuknecht is the Executive 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, kellyschuknecht.com.

Alternative Marketing Methods, Book Promotion, Book Promotion Strategy, Kelly Speaks, snapchat, Social Media Marketing

An Indie Author’s Social Media Primer | Snapchat

We’re five weeks into my unofficial primer for indie and self-published authors looking to master social media, and this week I’ll be examining what is often perceived as the most “faddish” social media platform of all, Snapchat! In past weeks, we’ve taken a gander at some bedrock philosophy for social media marketing as well as peered rather more closely at Twitter, Tumblr, and Instagram. But when push comes to shove, these three social media platforms–and Facebook, which I’ll get to in due course–are far more widely used by authors to reach their followers than Snapchat. Why? Because on Snapchat, everything is temporary.

Let me hit the “rewind” button for a moment. What exactly is Snapchat, for those of us who aren’t already familiar? It’s an app. Specifically, it’s an app(lication) that can only be used and viewed from tablets and smartphones running Android or Apple’s iOS platforms. Users take pictures or videos (“snaps”) and distribute them to a controlled list of recipients; these recipients (termed “friends” within the app) can view the snaps for only a few seconds (the length of time is determined by the snap-taker) before they are irrevocably lost to the ether (with a few exceptions). Snappers can customize their pictures and videos with a few filters and the addition of some (limited) text before sending them, but the app is about as streamlined as they come.

If you’re wondering why you haven’t heard of aggressive marketing through Snapchat yet, it’s probably because the app interface prioritizes privacy. Unlike Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, and to an extent Facebook, Snapchat was designed primarily for use between people who know each other in real life, and for use on the fly. Even Instagram can be viewed on a regular laptop or desktop computer by using an internet browser–but then, Instagram is a forum for the artistic and beautiful, and Snapchat is a forum for the wacky and weird and private and time-sensitive things.

Debunking the Great Instagram Myth: “It’s all about the nudes.”

We’ve all heard the stories: Snappers who find themselves in compromising situations when someone takes a screenshot of their latest snap, in which they are sans clothing, and distributes this screenshot without approval––and, apparently, a conscience. The fact that snaps don’t stick around has led some to––and I’m putting this indelicately––regret their choice of friends, but those who use Snapchat for this kind of exchange are in the minority (as they are with every other social media platform out there). Snapchat is not just about nudes, or even about the oft-reviled “selfie.”

If those who you follow with the app are the sort of people who spend their lives mountain climbing or heli-skiing, then you will end up watching a lot of GoPro camera footage. If you follow a librarian, bookseller, or author, you’re going to be seeing a lot of books and, very likely, clips of their favorite shows (with bonus giggles and voiceover reactions!). The sum of your Snapchat experience is determined by the people that you already like and trust. Snapchat does not promote narcissism or self-absorption––it helps friends share the texture and material of their lives with those who are physically absent. It also, importantly, promotes storytelling!

John Green on Snapchat

Top 5 Best Practices:

1. Let people know you’re on Snapchat. Because this particular app doesn’t operate on hashtags and a search engine (unlike Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and pretty much every other platform out there), you can’t quite make yourself “findable” on Snapchat the way you can elsewhere. You have the option of adding people by Username, from your Address Book, by Snapcode, or proximity (even if another snapper is “Nearby,” you still have to opt-in to this feature––so again, your privacy is protected). The easiest way to get others to add you is to make an announcement outside of Snapchat––on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and so on. You’ll receive notification that someone else has added you, and you can decide if you want to become “mutuals” by adding that person back.

2. Think of incentives that make use of Snapchat’s time-sensitive nature. A snap can only be viewed for 24 hours after you post it, and once someone taps their screen to view your snap, they only have 1 to 10 seconds to view it before it disappears (you determine how many seconds they have when you post the snap). Snappers can choose one snap a day to “replay,” but once they choose to replay a snap once they can’t replay it again, or replay any other snaps that day. This feature means that your followers usually only have one shot at getting your joke or viewing your behind-the-scenes footage. And while this may seem prohibitive to self-promotion, it isn’t!

Retailers can tell you that a timed incentive––like a 24-hour promotional discount, or a 24-hour giveaway competition, or a 24-hour scavenger hunt––is a great way to hook in new readers. Joe Warnimont writes that one streetwear company (Karmaloop) routinely grabs people, dresses them up with items from their clothing line, and then takes a snap of those people holding a picture of their latest promotional code. It might seem convoluted, but this kind of time-sensitive and exclusive material (only available to followers on Snapchat!) can generate a lot of buzz for a writer. You might take a leaf out of Karmaloop’s book and take snaps of strangers holding pictures of quotes from your book around town, or you might branch out and offer a one-day-only discount for your book on Amazon.

3. Take advantage of Snapchat’s “Stories” feature. One of Snapchat’s more interesting features is the way it allows users to build “stories” out of multiple snaps. Every snap you choose to post to “My Story” (an option visible in the “Send To…” tab) is compiled together. If you post five short videos (or three short videos and two still pictures) to your story, your followers will view them all in sequence when they tap your name on their “Recent Updates” feed. Some snappers go all-out with their stories, using the ten-second time limit as a jump cut to a new scene or clip, while others use their stories to quite literally tell stories(with illustrations, of course)! As an indie author, you’re used to telling stories in at least one medium. Why not try another? Statistics show that the majority of Snapchat’s users do, in fact, enjoy viewing their friends’ stories in addition to their individual snaps.

[ SIDE NOTE: if you have a particularly awesome day, you can save your stories to your phone. Just tap the ellipsis (“…”) to the right of your story and select the correct option to store it in your photo app. ]

4. Frame your content for Millennials. The average Snapchat user is young––in their teens or twenties––and female. This is painting with a broad brush, certainly, as there are plenty of snappers who do not identify as Millennials or female––but the statistics do create a big picture of who’s likely to find you Snapchat (as opposed to, say, Twitter). On the whole, snappers are more likely to be deeply engaged with the content they view than the average Facebook user, so it’s worth considering what sort of material a young woman is going to respond to.

5. Don’t panic. Snapchat feels different, so very different from the Big Five (Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram, and Pinterest). Its basic architecture and interface is alien to folks who sit in front of computer screens larger than three by five inches. It takes a while to get used to, and to figure out how to use, and to enjoy working with. It can also be highly addictive––which is one reason why it’s a good idea to give it a try. New readers might just become addicted to your book! Still, it’s not for everyone. (It turned out not to be for the King of Young Adult literature, John Green, who gave up on it within minutes of his first snap. (Although it’s worth noting that he was already so incredibly popular that he didn’t exactly need to try any new avenues for self-promotion.) Snapchat isn’t for everyone, but it is for the young and up-and-coming Millennial generation, which also happens to be one of the greatest per-capita consumer demographics when it comes to books––physical books and ebooks! Which is to say … give it time.

Most Overlooked Feature:

Live video. You heard me. Live video. If you’re in the midst of a Snapchat conversation with a friend or reader and your camera button flickers blue (it’s normally yellow) and you hear a strange noise, that means that both parties are actively viewing the conversation and you can start a live video chat. Essentially, you can do the Snapchat equivalent of Skype or Google Hangouts or FaceTime with your fans. All you have to do is tap and keep your finger down on the camera button. A circular image pops up––live feed from your smartphone’s camera––and you drag that circle to the bottom before releasing to keep the video going. Each party has to do this step separately in order for both people to see each other: which is nice, because you’ll never be forced to show your face, if you’re not in the mood or not free or not sure what’s happening. It is entirely possible to have a one-sided conversation as a result, which is slightly less fun than it sounds. Still! Imagine all of the possibilities for you to surprise your fans with quick hellos and insider information!

I hope you’ll join me in building this Social Media Primer! If you have any questions, comments, suggestions, or contributions, please use the comment field below or drop us a line at selfpublishingadvice@gmail.com. And remember to check back each Wednesday for your weekly dose of social media know-how. ♠

Alternative Marketing Methods, Book Marketing, Book Promotion, Book Promotion Strategy, Kelly Speaks, Marketing Your Self-Published Book, Self-Publishing, Social Media Marketing

An Indie Author’s Social Media Primer | Tumblr

It’s kind of a big deal. Such a big deal, in fact, that even the White House has one, and the President of the United States has done a Q&A on one. What am I talking about? I’m talking about Tumblr, the microblogging platform that quite literally causes and feeds a frenzy of conversations––many of them controversial. And with over 81 million new posts going up every day, spread across more than 243 million individual blogs, the potential heft of any given piece of content is massive––particularly since Tumblr’s graphic-driven interface makes “reblogging” the posts of others so incredibly easy.

So how does Tumblr work? As with its distant cousins, Facebook and Twitter, Tumblr is a hybrid blogging and social networking platform. Its structure is fourfold in that it allows users to:

Post new content, which will then appear on both their blog and in the “feed” of any other user who “follows” that blog;
View the blogs and “reblogs” of others, in a single streamlined and constantly updated feed;
Share or “reblog” the posts of others, all of which will appear––with attribution––in their feeds; and
Discover new content by searching Tumblr’s general database, using hashtags, keyword searches, and a variety of other built-in exploratory features.

In many ways, Tumblr’s user interface feels a great deal like Twitter’s––which we discussed in detail last week––in large part because in both cases the interface places great structural emphasis on the content of each tweet or post. Facebook, which we’ll discuss more in weeks to come, is structured to emphasize the relationships between users themselves; this isn’t to say that Tumblr and Twitter don’t allow for personal connection, or that Facebook doesn’t allow for the production of content, but there is a subtle shift in the warp and weft of each platform which determines what gets seen and what slips under the radar.

On Tumblr, who you are is less important than what you post, and the “best” posts hit a sweet spot in respect to visual appeal, cultural relevance, timeliness, tone, and length. (Don’t worry, I’ll expand on these five points in a moment.) You can easily see which posts are successful; they’re the ones with the most “likes” or “reblogs,” both of which are tabulated as “notes.” For self-published and indie authors looking for a bit of exposure, there’s nothing so handy as a website that is, quite literally, designed to take content viral.

Debunking the Great Tumblr Myth: “Notes are the most important thing.”

I’m not going to lie––notes are important. But they’re not the only important indicator of success on Tumblr, and they’re not even an accurate indicator of a piece of content’s popularity. Because likes and reblogs are conflated together into the note count, it’s impossible to winnow out how many people flat out “liked” a given post, and how many are commenting on it. As you may know from other websites, comments on any given social media platform where anonymity is guaranteed (Tumblr users do not have to divulge their names or personal information to set up accounts) can range from fans going wild over their favorite things to people being downright mean. Most of Tumblr’s many millions of users prefer to reblog content they like rather than content they dislike, but some use the “reblog” feature to elaborate upon, rebut, or otherwise respond to the posts of others. This type of feedback can provide other benefits to you as an author, but it cannot be equated directly to “Yes! My stab at self-promotion is a raging success!” No, notes are not the most important thing. Engagement is.

So how do you get the average Tumblr user to stop scrolling through the hundreds or thousands of blog posts and reblogs in their feed to look at your excerpt, or your book cover, or your “behind-the-scenes” video?

Top 5 Best Practices:

1. Make sure it looks good. Visual appeal cannot be over-trumped as the leading reason why a pair of eyes will fasten onto your post. Many of Tumblr’s most canny users won’t even bother posting any text at all if it isn’t accompanied by a pleasing graphic or photograph of some kind. In fact, most Tumblr users will lead with the picture, rather than slipping it in as an afterthought. Since Tumblr is a medium of fast consumption leading to speedy sharing, the image should be something that is easily comprehended after just a quick glance, so as to keep the reader’s eye moving, roving further into the text that follows. It’s also a good thought to break up dense text posts with a .GIF file or two––the “reaction .GIF” is a Tumblr specialty, and not one to be underestimated. (There’s nothing like a perfectly on-point .GIF to inject a text post with a dose of humor and personality!)

2. Keep it relevant. This should go without saying, but a wise friend once pointed out to me that my own (private) blog was a confusing mish-mash of my interests (which are many) and my own material (which is quite specific in focus). As an indie author looking to create a cohesive, effective methodology in dealing with social media, it’s a good idea to specialize. That is to say, you should keep your posts––both of original content and any reblogged material that might catch your eye––focused on you, your book, and the authorial process. If you become enamored of all of the different features that Tumblr has to offer, and if you enjoy reading an eclectic mix of posts by others, that’s wonderful! … Just make sure that you create a separate blog for your author-related activities so that you don’t accidentally inundate your followers with Shia LaBeouf memes.

3. Timeliness is key. Tumblr is the home of revolutions. More than half of Tumblr’s active users report being under 25 years of age, and the platform’s format encourages the Millennials’ activist leanings. The Occupy Wall Street crowd? It may have found a second home on Twitter, but its native land is Tumblr. Ever heard of the #BlackLivesMatter hashtag? Or #WeNeedDiverseBooks? One of teenage designer and activist Kyemah McEntyre’s handmade creations walked the red carpet at the BET Awards because of Tumblr. Petitions have been signed, flags taken down, flags proudly shaken, politicians heckled, and, quite possibly, laws passed on the momentum generated by Tumblr’s dedicated, active, and socially-engaged user base. They’re politically and economically diverse, and as feverishly clannish as any other group of Millennials, and if you can make them care about your work, you’ll never want for support. All of this to say, it’s best to keep an ear to the ground. If you’re willing to use Tumblr as a tool, you should “follow” as many other users as you need to in order to stay in touch with current trends, topics, and ongoing conversations. If you know what’s spurring interest, you can reframe your own posts to touch on these hot-button issues, and generate more interest in your work.

4. Watch your tone. I’m kind of holding forth here in this post, which I’d stress can be either the most effective approach, ever to Tumblr, or the most annoying thing, ever. There are four main speeds when it comes to tone on Tumblr: ranting, reflecting, ridiculous self-posturing, and photo essaying. Rants are passionate (and sometimes, though rarely, lengthy) attacks on the various injustices of life, whether humorous or serious in nature. Reflective posts usually consist of brief narrative bursts, retelling past events or unwinding the implications of some thought experiment (Harry Potter and other fictional worlds inspire many of these, I find). A Tumblr user might dip a toe into ridiculous self-posturing when looking to inspire a good laugh or let off some steam, and often these posts are spoken in the coded language of memes. Some users eschew text altogether and simply post photo essays of their adventures; many hikers, climbers, boulderers, runners, and artists of all disciplines use Tumblr as a sort of interactive portfolio or photo album. One of the many quirky realities of Tumblr is that a post which uses only one of these tones is more likely to go viral than another post that tries to use more than one tone. Tumblr users are looking for easily digestible, bite-sized pieces of life.

5. Keep it readable by keeping it brief. As with my last point, length is best viewed through a lens of digestibility. The world of Tumblr moves fast, and sometimes sideways, and content has to be focused, brief, and either hilarious or achingly accurate in order to collect notes. The most successful Tumblr bloggers post nuggets that are quick to read or view, and they post regularly. I find that instead of encouraging simplicity and generalization, Tumblr users’ love of brevity actually encourages complexity and specialization. The more direct the statement, the more likely someone else is to respond––and for a single sentence to provoke a snowball effect of comments and reblogs.

Most Overlooked Feature:

Most Tumblr users either upload text or photographs, but Tumblr actually allows for several other types of posts: videos, quotes, links, and chats. As an author, you should most definitely take advantage of the “quotes” feature to introduce your followers to your voice, characters, and above all––your book!

Book Design, Book Marketing, Book Promotion, Book Promotion Strategy, Cover Design, Editing Your Self-Published Book, Kelly Speaks, Marketing Your Self-Published Book

Self-Publishing & Merchandising : A Book’s Interior Design

When we speak of books, we mostly speak of them as one of two things: an object, made up of surfaces and contours and textures, or as a vehicle for ideas. We rarely pause to consider the interior design of a book, unless of course it is a book that draws attention with smart graphic design and accentuation. What readers and producers of comic books, graphic novels, and illustrated fiction take for granted, the prose community has by and large neglected; that is, when we crack open the cover of a new book by Hugh Howey or Rachel Swaby or Sarah Taylor, we forget that every letter on those pages, every jot of ink and swathe of white space, has to be carefully arranged in order to make for a pleasant––and submersive––reading experience.

For the self-published author, a book’s interior aesthetic can spiral out of control quickly. This is because a self-published author is not, generally speaking, a renaissance man with phenomenal powers of writing and artistry and graphic design. A beautiful cover may seem like a more worthwhile use of a self-published author’s limited time. Though there may be the rare exception, the average person who chooses (or is required by circumstances) to bypass traditional publishing also lacks the legion of highly specialized editorial staff who comb through manuscripts and ARCs looking for even the tiniest flaw––an orphan sentence, a snafu in line spacing, you name it. And believe me, even though we don’t tend to think of readers as detail freaks, they have a sensitive nose for anything that feels “off.” Your job as a self-published author is to keep your reader reading your book, not caught up in the intricacies of its design. For that reason, a book’s interior should look as polished as possible.

Here are a few tips:

1. Choose your typeface carefully.

Whether you decide to opt for a serif or a sans-serif typeface, make sure you know what it will look like on whole blocks of text at once––pages and pages of text. Also keep in mind that while sans-serif fonts have a sort of “cool” factor and are often evocative of popular science and science-fiction––and therefore add a dash of visual interest as well as genre resonance––serif fonts are actually easier to read at length. That’s what the serif tags are there for, to help your eyes track seamlessly from one letter to the next. Still, your choice will come down largely to preference (mine is for Monotype Bell and MVB Sirenne, both of which read well in multiple sizes, as well as in italicized passages and headings).

2. … And about those headings?

Not every book uses chapter headings on every page. Take a look at the books in your genre, to get a feel for what’s normal there. I’ve found in my collection that there’s a tendency toward headings in nonfiction and certain chapter-driven science fiction pieces, but that for the most part, fiction sticks with simple page numbers. Also keep in mind that your inclusion (or exclusion) of headers and the positioning of your page number will affect your margins. It’s absolutely essential that you leave extra white space on the edge of the page with a page number or heading––both of these things are considered extensions of your typewritten page, and they affect the eye as such.

3. Margins do deserve the attention, I promise.

Take a look at the nearest book. (In my case, it’s Howey’s Wool.) Compare the inside margins of the pages (the ones adjoining the binding) to the outside margins (the ones your thumbs touch as you flip pages). In the standard book, the standard traditionally published book, those inside margins are significantly larger. This is to allow the book’s binding to curve as you crack open the spine, letting the pages curl away and yet remain readable. It is not uncommon for self-published authors to forget this tiny detail, and for the book to suffer for it. If I have one piece of advice for authors looking to format their own books, it’s this: Don’t sacrifice your margins––for anything. Yes, it’s cheaper to pack in more words per page, and so to save on printing fees. But I promise, more people will want to buy your book if they pick it up and it feels gracious, spacious, and easy to read. It’s wise to aim for about 12 words per line of text––this is the standard in traditional publishing, for good and time-honored reasons.

4. Justify your paragraphs.

Take a moment to modify your text alignment from “left” to “justified.” This means that your text still begins at the left-hand margin of the page, but that it’s right-hand side also ends at its respective margin, creating a smooth visual block of text, all the way from the top to the bottom of any given page. Leaving that text simply aligned “left” will create a jagged line along the right-hand side of the page, wherever the words leave off. You want to check your kerning line to line before you release it to the printer, in order to ensure each page looks perfect, of course––that’s par for the course.

5. Leave no blank right-hand pages.

The first page of your book is going to be a right-hand page, and the first page of content––not the title page, not the copyright information, not the dedication––will be “Page One” and should be marked such. (Page numbers should only appear once the content of your book begins, and not before.) Every succeeding chapter should begin on a right-hand page, even if the previous chapter ended on a right-hand page. The solution is to leave a blank left-hand page, which you can utilize for illustrations, quotations, or other related material. The point, however, is to play to a kind of “psychology of reading,” which asserts that readers find it easier to begin new thoughts if there’s that reliable visual cue there. Blank pages should be left entirely blank, including of page numbers and page headers.

6. Go easy on illustrations, graphics, and other addendums.

It’s easy to get carried away inserting pictures into our books––after all, a picture is worth quite a few jots of ink, right? But there are a couple of dangers to watch out for here, as with everything else related to design. First of all, your images need to look every bit as polished as your text. If you’re inserting inexpert photographs, clipart, or hasty sketches, they’re going to negatively impact the reader’s opinion of your book’s quality. (We do judge ideas based on their presentation, for better or worse.) Secondly, they need to be important. If they’re not somehow integral to a reader’s understanding of your book, then they don’t need to be there, and they shouldn’t be there. Illustrations, like your words, have to work to earn their keep. And finally, your images need to be high enough in resolution that they hold up and read well at different scales, both large and small, and on multiple platforms, including tablets and e-readers. If readers can see pixellation, they’re likely to dismiss a book as amateurish.

And last but not least:

7. Fresh eyes are vital.

The best advice I ever received from a writing instructor was to work until I thought a piece was done, and then to walk away for days, preferably a week, and then to return for a final (or quarter-final) evaluation. Invariably, coming back with fresh eyes led to me spotting weaknesses and glitches and errors that I would never have seen otherwise. It’s also important to remember, as a self-published author, that there’s a promotional benefit to showing early readers advance copies of your book, with a plea that they give you feedback on what’s working and not working, in terms of design as well as content. Their advice will help you tweak your book to perfection, while also spreading the word that you have an upcoming publication on its way!

[ NOTE: If you’re looking for the first blog in this post, a general overview of merchandising for self-published authors, you’ll want to look here. If you’re interested in reading up on extras and special editions, take a look at my second post in this series. For last week’s post, on book cover and jacket design, follow this link. ]

I’m realistic, or I like to think I am. This topic is bigger than just me and my own thoughts. I’d like to open the floor to you, dear reader. If you have any thoughts to share on the topic of merchandising, or questions you’d like answered, send them my way via the comments box below! I want to hear from you, and I love nothing more than a good excuse to do a little research if I don’t know something off of the top of my head. Jump on in!

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