
Have you got a book in you? For many of you, the answer will be yes. But which way should you go, traditional or self-publishing? For most, it will be the latter, but here’s a comparison between the two methods.
Find an agent and publish traditionally
Agents work on commission, so will only take on sure-fire hits; if you are not known (I.e. not a celebrity), you are very unlikely to get a publishing deal. However, if you have a very unusual or unique offering, you might want to follow this route. Here’s what you need to do:
- Finish (or start!) your book(s). Tip: there is a ‘dictation’ option in both Apple Pages and Microsoft Word which types as you speak (it needs editing afterwards).
- Carefully check/polish your book, but don’t hire anyone to copy-edit at this stage. My colleague Trish Burgess, who has experience both as a commissioning editor and a publisher, advises that it’s not necessary. A good agent will be able to spot potential, and a publisher will use their own editorial staff.
- Decide which genre your book belongs in (for example Educational Publishing).
- Buy a copy of the Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook and find agents who specialise in that genre. They give clear submission guidelines. Please follow them to the letter!
- Write a covering letter which includes a) why you have chosen this agent, b) your elevator pitch, c) a short bio. Keep it short and simple. Include a chapter list if appropriate.
- Send your letter to 5 agents and keep a spreadsheet of the results.
- Repeat with 5 more until you succeed.
NB: 0.1% of authors publishing traditionally become a best-selling author. (Source: Self-publishing consultant Mark Gedye).
Self publish your book
2% of people who self publish become a best-selling author. (Source: Mark Gedye). These are the steps you must take in order to successfully self-publish.
- Start your marketing and social media at the earliest possible opportunity (even before you have written the book).
- As mentioned above, fiinish your book.
- Find an editor to copy-edit the book.
- Find a designer who will design specimen pages, a full cover, and layouts.
- Find a proofreader to read and edit the layouts ( this should not be the same person who copy-edited the book).
- The designer will incorporate those corrections and finalise the cover.
- Do you need an indexer?
- The designer will prepare the book for press.
- A production controller will organise printing, or if the book is POD (print on demand) will upload to the platform of your choice and input all the necessary information.
- Printing takes place.
- PR and marketing.
You can organise all this yourself, but if you need help with items 1-10 we will be able to help you.
Once you’ve written your book, you’re only halfway there. Selling and marketing will take up a huge chunk of your time. If you are not prepared to do this your books will not sell.
There are lots of different ways that can help to sell your book: putting an email signature at the end of your emails, getting it into your local library, speaking in schools or at networking meetings, and much more.
There is an excellent book by Chantal Cooke, The Authority Guide to Marketing Your Business Book, which I think is valuable to all authors, not just business owners.
Whichever route you take, I wish you luck on your publishing journey.
About the author
Annette leads the team at Peppis Designworks, a creative hub of established publishing industry experts who create books, branding, marketing material and design templates for leading publishers and businesses. Keep in touch by to Annette’s bi-monthly emails.