Photo by Daria Shevtsova on Unsplash
With Christmas now just around the corner, welcome to the final roundup of 2023 posts. We've already brought you the best Alliance of Independent Authors Self-Publishing Advice Blog posts on marketing and business for self-published authors, so this week we're bringing together the best of the rest.
In last week’s round up, we included posts on both the marketing and promotion phases of the self-publishing journey, so this week we'll kick off by bringing together posts covering the previous five steps in the publishing process: Editing, Design, Production and Distribution. And… read on for a few more blogs we just couldn't resist sharing again.
The First Process of Publishing: Editorial
Editorial is the process of turning raw typescript into publishable text. The more ambitious your project, and the earlier you are in your development as a writer and publisher, the more editorial work your manuscript will need. This posts explores the steps in the editing process, the importance of Beta readers and the potential costs of this step in the publishing process. Find out all the information you need here: The First Process of Publishing: Editorial.
The Second Process of Publishing: Design
Getting a first look at your debut book’s cover is one of the most exciting moments in an author’s life. It’s often the first time your book feels real. The cover is the first thing the reader sees, the first thing that grabs their interest and draws them to pick up your book. So you want a cover that communicates to the reader what the book is about, and makes it stand out visually for the right reasons. Take a look at this post exploring great book design to help you get it right: The Second Process of Publishing: Design.
The Third Process of Publishing: Production
Before digital publishing, producing a book meant assembling physical covers and pages. The core format was print and book production required an interior designer and typesetter to arrange and format text to be visually pleasing and set up the jacket (cover) to put the book together. Today, indie authors use digital tools to produce books in three formats: ebook, print and audiobook and many of the steps to production can be undertaken by the writer themselves. Find out more in this post: The Third Process of Publishing: Production.
The Fourth Process of Publishing: Distribution
This post explore distribution, the process of making your book available for purchase. As a self-published author, you need to make decisions about your supply system — how you make your books available to book wholesalers and retailers in various formats. But getting your distribution channels set up across these three formats (ebook, print, audio) can be confusing to begin with, so take a look at this post before you get going: The Fourth Process of Publishing: Distribution.
What is Selective Rights Licensing For Indie Authors?
Rights licensing may be the last of the seven self-publishing processes to undertake, but it shouldn’t be rushed or overlooked. This post shares ALLi’s advice on building and implementing a strategy for selective rights licensing for indie authors, including our top five guiding principles. And look out for information about our new guide which launched on December 1st 2023, “How Authors Sell Publishing Rights: ALLi’s Guide to Working with Publishers, Producers and Others”. It is packed with advice to help you pitch, negotiate and close a deal. All you need to know can be found here: What is Selective Rights Licensing For Indie Authors?
Time, Space and Grace: 7 Success Factors for Neurodivergent and Cognitively Impaired Self-Published Authors
Self-publishing can be overwhelming. More so if you're neurodivergent. How then do neurodivergent authors adapt and continue publishing their work? That's the question that this post aimed to answer, with the seven success factors for neurodivergent and cognitively impaired self-published authors. Read more here: Time, Space and Grace.
Self-Publishing Literary Fiction: A How-To Guide for Litfic Authors
We've all heard the widespread false news that self-publishers cannot succeed in the literary fiction genre. In this post, Orna Ross, director of the Alliance of Independent Authors, and an award-winning self-publisher of literary fiction and poetry, dispels the myths and shares her guidance to any indie author looking to make a name for themselves in the world of Literary Fiction. With thanks also to Melissa Addey, Roz Morris and Hannah Jacobson of BookAwardPro. You can read the guide here: Self Publishing Literary Fiction.
Producing an Audiobook: A Quick-Start Guide for Indie Authors
If you’re considering getting started with audiobook production, there are many wonderful sources that can help teach you how. So many sources, in fact, that the vast quantity of info can be overwhelming. Don't panic! In this ALLi post, audiobook producer and narrator Sarah Beth Goer shares the steps she'd recommend for producing an audiobook, whether you are managing the process yourself or working with a producer: Producing an Audiobook: A Quick-Start Guide for Indie Authors.
Find out more and share your perfect blogs for 2024
Find out more and share your perfect blogs for 2024If you are looking for more self-publishing advice, remember you can search all ALLi blogs for free guidance for indie authors on the ALLi website.
And if there are topics you'd like to see covered in the blog in 2024, get in touch with ALLi's Blog Editor, Holly Greenland, to let us know: [email protected]
