Why I Chose to Publish My Own Books

As promised, here's the story behind me opening my own publishing company, first to self-publish, then to publish other authors' books as well.

Around 1990, my writing partner, Bev, and I were on a creative tear. One of our projects dealt with dealing with the recession on the home front, and we needed an agent to present the manuscript to the Big Houses (the large publishing houses in New York). First we searched for one who specialized in nonfiction. Then we bent our brains around writing the most intriguing query letter we could create. (You have to convince an experienced agent to even read your manuscript. And the legitimate ones will not charge a reading fee!)

Mike S. in Massachusetts asked us to send "the book" to him. (Holy mackerel!) But there was a standard, fairly rigid book proposal format in which it must be submitted. Off I went to Barnes & Noble to buy the then-bible of formal proposal writing, and we embarked upon the long and I think grueling process of of producing said proposal which included:

• A brief summary of the book.
  
• Table of Contents with Chapters and subchapters.
  
• A brief author bio, emphasizing the credentials qualifying him/her to write this book.
  
• Two or three sample chapters.
  
• An exquisitely tasteful but irrestible sales pitch.
  
• A comparison, title by title, of similar books on the bookstore shelves and the popularity thereof.

Those were the primary points, and of course had to be the most near-perfect writing we'd ever done! It ran about 60 pages.

Then we had to take the whole thing to Kinko's and have 5 copies run and comb-bound.

After a couple of tantilizing nibbles, he finally got a letter from an editor at Fireside (Wow!) saying that it was "well done and marketable," but they felt they already had titles that would complete for the same customer dollars.

Did you get that? Fireside Press thought the book was well done and would sell ... but they still wouldn't take it! Well, friends, that just felt so wrong. If it had been poorly done or was otherwise a poor excuse for a book, it would have been one thing. But well done still wasn't good enough.

A few years later, I began writing the divorce books -- books that were meant to help people who were going through the painful and confusing process of ending their marriage. But it couldn't help anyone until it was on the bookstore shelves (or on the Internet). So I studied and went to seminars and meetings and read about a dozen books and learned how to set up a publishing company. Was it hard work? You bet. But it was the way I could get my helpful words into the readers' hands in a reasonable amount of time.

And that is the story of the birth of Pen Central Press, the publishing division of Pen Central Communications. I thought you'd like to know ...

Happy writing ~

Linda

Book Publishing & the Time Factor

This time we're going to look at a few aspects of the time involved in self-publishing your book. My thoughts are based on you wanting to produce a commercially viable book (classy enough for the local Borders) through basic self-publishing. That means opening your own publishing company and performing all the functions of a book publisher including paying for the printing and binding. Here are some of the primary preparations:

• Read authoritative books on self-publishing a top quality book. As mentioned earlier, the most thorough manuals are Dan Poynter's Self Publishing Manual now in its 16th edition and the Ross's book, Complete Guide to Self-Publishing, 4th edition. There are others, and I encourage you to read 2 or more in addition to those. Yes, there will be some repetition, but you'll pick up new lessons from each one.
  
• Write out your business plan, even a rough one, to include sending requests for quotation to at least 10 reputable book printers, figure out your company name, file that as a DBA (doing business as) with your state, and begin devoting a portion of your brainstorming time to producing and selling the book, on top of writing it.
  
• Hunt for and interview graphic artists who have experience in designing book covers. (More on that quest later.)
  
• Rewrite your manuscript a minimum of 3-4 times before you even think of sending it to an outside editor. Polished text is the name of the game.

In other words, study the business of self-publishing and put that knowledge into play!

X Major caveat: Having experience in the business world
will be more valuable to you than all the sparkling reviews
in the world! If you don't have it, invite a business-savvy
friend to guide you.

When I received my very first sizeable fax order from Ingram (book wholesaler), I danced and cavorted like a writer possessed - OK, that's exactly what I was. Then I realized I hadn't designed my company invoices yet or packing list. But I was doublely fortunate. I'd work in a purchasing department long, long ago, and remembered the documents and procedures I'd learn then.


Therefore, if you feel a strong pull to publish your own book as I did, plan to invest some time in learning the business. It's actually fascinating to some of us! But it does cost a lot of hours and days of personal study.

As you read the books and consider the time involved in setting up the business, taking and invoicing orders, shipping books, marketing and other duties, think about whether these activities intrigue and attract you, or if you run ascreaming into the great hereafter. Thsi isn't a pass/fail situation. Listen to your gut.


Next time I'll share my story of why I chose to open my own publisihig company, Pen Central Press.

Happy reading - and writing ~

Linda

Goals for Your Published Book

In the last post, I mentioned some of the factors you need to take into consideration in deciding on which avenue to book publishing is best for you for this book. The first of which is your goal for it.

Before I get into that, you might want to go back to my May 14thm '07 posting on this blog entitled What is a book? Most authors think first (and only?) of a standard paperback or hardcover book. But other formats and bindings may better suit your book. That post described alternatives.

Now back to Goals. Consider these questions:

1. Will this version of this book be only for distribution to family and friends?
   
2. Is it a church, community or work project for which there will be limited demand?
   
3. Will it be offered only as a back-of-the-room sales item at workshops and seminars?
   
4. Are you testing the market with this one, figuring you might want to go to a larger print run later after you get some reviews and reader feed-back?
   
5. Do you expect to place your book in bookstores alongside the ones from big publishers like Wiley, Writers Digest and Hay House?

Self-Publishing (by the highest professional standards) will accomplish all five. With POD (print on demand) online publishers like iUniverse and AuthorHouse, you can accomplish the first four very nicely. (It's my current belief that POD books aren't quite up to the quality of a print run on an off set press.)

Either high quality self-publishing or a traditional author-publisher contract with a "big house" will satisfy your needs.

If you are at all interested in self-publishing, I encourage you to devour Dan Poynter's fine Self Publishing Manual now in its 16th edition and the Ross's book, Complete Guide to Self-Publishing, 4th edition. Publishing is a business with it's own rules, quirks and terminology, and walking that path requires study.

Next time, I'll talk about the money angle.

Happy writing~

Linda

Publishing Choices

Book coaching clients and writing students often ask me what I think of Print on Demand (POD) printers and online publishers versus opening their own small publishing company (self-publisher) versus sending their manuscripts out to big publishing houses.

There are pros and cons to all of them, depending on (1) your goals for you book, (2) your patience, (3) the money you’re willing to invest, (4) the desired appearance of the finished product, (5)the amount of time and work you want to invest, and last but not least, (6) your experience in the business world.

That’s just a start. Which is my point. There are many aspects to the original decision on publishing. I teach a 3-hour class on self-publishing and am able to only address the primary steps. So …

I invite you to send me your questions about publishing. I'll answer those first, then I’ll fill in the gaps.

You can either send your questions as “comments” at the bottom of this post or you can write me directly at WriterLin@aol.com. No question is too dumb. No one is born knowing this stuff.

Tomorrow, I’ll look at the various goals different authors may have for their books.

Happy writing!





Linda