I’ve Written a Book, How Do I Publish It?

Congratulations! You’ve written a book. What comes next can be confusing, overwhelming, and daunting. But it doesn’t have to be. Asking how one “goes about publishing an independent book” is rather like asking “how does one build a house?” There is a universe of variables and solutions.

First and foremost, we cannot stress enough that you take the time to put out a quality product, and that you protect yourself from publishing predators. They abound in the publishing jungle, and they lie in wait to take advantage of and money from unsuspecting authors. Do not pay to get published. (You can read about scams here.)

Here at Indies Unlimited, we’ve tried to simplify this process so that beginning authors can see a direct path to follow. Please keep in mind, there is much more to it than this, including story fact-checking, pre-publication social media platform building, advanced reviewer coordination, post publication marketing, book promotion, etc. What you see below is the barebone book-producing process. We hope the following checklist with corresponding articles provides some guidance for you.

This page will be in a state of continuous evolution and growth as we add more information. We will also be making a free companion book available.

Please note that some of the articles carry SNARK alerts. This means only that those articles are written in a light-hearted satirical way. In these articles, you will still find useful information, but also a little humor. We think you’ll find this a welcome change from heavy and serious scholarly approaches.

My Book Is Done. Now What?

Introduction:
Advice to a First-time Indie Author (Snark Alert!)

#1 – Proofread your book.
Misadventures in Wordcraft
Why Proofreading Matters
Self-editing, A Helping Hand

#2 – Set your book aside for a few months. Then proofread it again.
Tips: Top Ten Common Book Mistakes
Typopotamus
Do Not Self-edit but When You Do…

#3 – Get some beta readers. Have them read your project.
Does This Story Make Me Look Fat?
The Basics of Beta Readers
Six Ways to Drive Beta Readers Crazy (Snark Alert!)

#4 – Take Beta input; make changes as you feel are advisable.

#5 – Find/Hire an editor.
How to Hire an Editor
Choosing the Right Editor for You
Oh Editor Is It Getting Drafty in Here?

#6 – Take editor’s input; make changes as you feel are advisable.
Working with Your Editor’s Edits in MS Word

#7 – Find ARC (Advanced Review Copy) Readers.
ARC Reader Basics
An ARC Reader Reward System

#8 – Take ARC Reader input; make changes as you feel are advisable.

#9 – Prepare your “front matter” for the book.
We Don’t Need No (Too much front matter)
Anatomy of a Copyright Page
Forewords, Prefaces, Prologues
Copyright and a Case for Why We Should

#10 – Write your book’s description which will be needed for the back cover & sales sites.
Book Description Basics

#11 – Write your biography if you want to include it in the back of the book.
Let’s Talk About Me: Writing Your Bio

#12 – Hire a cover designer/make cover art yourself.
The Case for Legible Titles
Judging a Book by Its Cover (Snark Alert!)
How to Work with a Cover Artist

#13 – Hire ebook & print book formatter/format book interiors yourself.
Check out our eBook Formatting Resource page here
eBook Formatting 101
Formatting: What an Author Should Do and Know

#14 – Upload book files to platforms of choice.
Choices for eBook Publishing
Choices for Print Publishing

#15 – Review sample/proof files to make sure formatting is correct.
How to Check Your eBook Formatting before Pushing the Publish Button
Avoiding Self Publishing Calamity

#16 – Hit the publish button.

Congratulations, you are now an Indie Author!

Ready for the next steps? You can spend as long as you’d like here on IU searching articles for free, or you can download our Tutorials & Tools for Prospering in Digital World books through Smashwords. You can also find Volume I and Volume II on Amazon.com.

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