Category: Authors

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The Self-Publishing Success Formula


self publishing business

Are you looking for other ways to monetize your self-publishing business?

Wouldnā€™t it be nice to do the work once but be paid in more ways than one?

Then, you may want to consider diversifying your self-publishing business beyond Kindle Direct Publishing.

The Kindle Gold Rush

kindle publishing businessNot too long ago, everyone and their mother was publishing on Amazon KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing).

The barrier of entry was rather low, so naturally the Amazon Marketplace was flooded with new work.

Naturally, quite a few releases were great while most books sucked eggs.

The crappy books were due in large part to would-be writers, aspiring self-publishers and a few nefarious individuals.

While I could write an entire post on these fly-by-night crooks swindling the Amazon customers of their money, Iā€™d rather focus on the bigger picture.

The Truth About Kindle Profits

truth about kindle publishing

FACT: Kindle e-books make up a smaller share of the publishing business.

Heck, take a look at this boring data about the projected e-book global book sales for 2018 (Iā€™ll waitā€¦) >>>Ā link to stats & stuff.

Okay, now that youā€™re backā€¦

Wait a minuteā€¦you didnā€™t look?

Damn it!

That really well-crafted article by Statista stated the 2018 e-book sales projection is at a 25% share.

WTF?!

Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, indeed!

So, if that were to apply to current trends, then we can assume 75% of the book market is still unaccounted for.

And, I just ended a sentence with a preposition, so suck it, grammar snobs!

Show Me the Moneyā€¦In Self-Publishing That Is

how to profit in kindle publishingIn a recent interview with uber-successful self-publisher Jason Bracht, I asked him what advice he’d give to himself if he could go back to when he started.

The paraphrased answer is, ā€œIā€™d publish to paperback and audiobook on all my publication.ā€ (See the interview here)

Jason stated that heā€™s made upwards of $10,000 to $20,000 per month in e-book sales alone. (see his videos here)

So, why would he suggest publishing to paperback and audiobook?

Because those two streams are highly viable and under-utilized.

Createspace: Paperback Books on Amazon

Createspace (an Amazon Company) is one of many online resources for publishing your work to paperback.createspace paperback books

The neat part is you can publish your book to over 6 different channels.

So, whatā€™s the big hang-up?

Why arenā€™t more people using Createspace?

Okay, I get why some people donā€™t want to tackle paperback books.

The formatting alone is enough to drive you to drink.

But, if you donā€™t initially release your book to paperback, then consider a physical book as a good next step for a proven e-book.

Funnel a small portion of the Kindle profits from a book to hiring out someone to do it for you.

Come on; donā€™t be a cheapskate!

Think about this anecdotal evidenceā€¦

Sorry, Iā€™m too lazy to Google a reputable resource, so do it yourselfā€¦

Over 60% of global book sales comes from physical books.

So why the hell would you NOT convert your Kindle e-book into a paperback?!

In fact, I can personally tell you a large portion of my self-publishing income lies on the under-used platform, Createspace.

KDP: Createspaceā€™s Long Lost Twin Brother

If you havenā€™t heard yet, then Iā€™ll give you the scoop.

Amazon revealed that KDP is Createspaceā€™s long lost twin brother.

Okay, okay. Thatā€™s horsesh*t, butā€¦

The truth is KDP recently unveiled its paperback option.

And, the best part is the format and layout are nearly identical to Createspace.

Now you can kill two birds with one stone.

If you are leery about putting all your eggs in one basket, then simply ignore what I just shared.

Either way, publish your stinking content on e-book and paperback.

Otherwise, youā€™re leaving money on the table!

Audiobook: The Red-Head Step-Child of Self-Publishing

how to make audiobooks

Hey, you know where else youā€™re leaving money? ACX!

ACX (Audiobook Creation Exchange) states this on their website:

We have 1,611 titles open for auditions, 43,083 producers to choose from, andĀ 78,843 audiobooks on sale at Audible, Amazon, and iTunes. (as of February 23, 2017)

Say what?!

They only have 78,843 audiobooks?!

But, there are millions of Kindle e-books on Amazon alone.

Why aren’t they available on audiobook?!

Here’s where it gets juicy!

If someone purchases your audiobook and signs up for an Audible membership, you get a bounty.

Do you wanna know what that bounty is? Huh, do ya?

Give up?…$50!

Holy crap! Fifty-freakinā€™-bucks simply for putting your content on the market.

And, the best part is you still get royalties for that book! WHAT?!

ACX KISS: Keepinā€™ It So Simple

Last thing to note about audiobooks on ACX.

It’s zero risk. ZERO.

You find a narrator, they do all the work and you split the royalties.

Done.

ACX kicks you an additional 25 promotional codes which essentially is money in the bank.

I develop raving fans from gifting copies of my audiobook.

The cool part is when someone claims the gift, I get a small royalty.

Nice, right?

I put together a series of videos about ACX and how to do it step-by-step (click here to see the playlist).

If you are outside of the US or UK, then don’t sweat it.

If KDP offering paperback as an option is any indication, then Amazon and ACX will open up to more regions in the near future.

Whatā€™s the Self-Publishing Success Formula Anyways?

self publishing successOh, sh*t! I didnā€™t think you were actually interested.

The self-publishing success formula isnā€™t some inside secret.

Nor do you have to opt-in to an email newsletter for a downloadable PDF of it.

Iā€™ll give it to you simply for reading through this entire postā€¦

Except for you skimmers or speed-readersā€¦

Nah, Iā€™m just kidding; you get it too!

This is it:

  1. Produce the content
  2. Release it on all platforms
    1. Amazon KDP
    2. Createspace
    3. ACX
    4. Heck, be brave and go for these alternatives:
      1. Smashwords
      2. Draft2Digital
      3. NookPress
      4. Pronoun
      5. Babelcube
      6. Amazon Video Direct ā€“ thatā€™s right, repurpose it to a featured film, why not?!
  1. Collect the profits

So, for you algebra nerds:

  • b = book
  • d = online distributors
  • $ = money
  • x = 1-9 different distribution channels, choose your number

The Self-Publishing Success Formula

b + d (x) = $

Now, go write your own paycheck, you savvy self-publisher you!

 

Till later,
Dale L. Roberts

#1 International Best-Selling Author

SelfPublishingWithDale.com

Bio:

Dale L. Roberts is a full-time self-published author, former professional wrestler and personal trainer. He lives in Columbus, Ohio, with his wife Kelli and cat Izzie. You can find more from Dale at YouTube.com/SelfPublishingWithDaleLRoberts.

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Finishing the book

Many authors think they have to start with their author career by doing a lot of things. Some argue they have to take this class in creative writing, while others argue they don’t have a grasp on the industry, or my favorite is – they don’t have time.

None of that matters when you desire to become an author. The first thing you do is finish the book. When I say finish the book, I mean the first draft. There are many steps that follow – revisions, edits, more revisions, more edits, proofreading, editing, and the list goes on. Nothing will move forward without the first part – the book.

The best way to know you’ll finish it is to start it and commit at least 2 hours each week to the progress of the story. This could be fantastic. Most prolific writings commit to a daily writing goal. It doesn’t matter if the content created will be removed later, as long as the daily writing goal is reached. Even books filled with the need to edit, are completed books ready for the chain of work that follows.

Another great way to know you’ll finish the book you want to write is to imagine where you want the story to end – write that first. Once you’ve got a clear vision of the end of the book, writing what comes before it flows much easier for many authors, new and experienced.

What else can you do to help your book along? What do you think about ‘writer’s block’? What would you like to know?

We will cover these questions and others in future posts. What else should we add to the list?

Have fun today and always!

 

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Authorly Beginner Stuff

There’s a lot of things an author needs to know before they start creating. A basic grasp of the language they are writing inĀ is probably the most essential part. While you may have grown up speaking one way, writing for readers is a whole other thing. Learning to adapt your natural speaking style to a proper writing style will determine if a reader will finish your book or not. This applies to all genre, markets, and stories.

What can you do to help yourself better understand what type of writing is needed for a book? Read. Read daily in the genre you want to create in. Pick up a book on language style and read it thoroughly. For English, that would be a guide to AP style and a guide to Chicago style. Read it a lot and learn what you can. When you begin writing, apply your best lessons to your first draft.

The next most important thing you must do when you are writing a book is to finish that first draft. It doesn’t matter if that draft is 5 thousand words or 105 thousand. Write it in full. Know you’ve completed the work and feel good you have. Then, put it down. Walk away. Come back to it after reading more and see what you like, adjust what you don’t, and refresh the manuscript. Keep reading.

When you believe you’ve created a book worth publishing, read it out loud or get a service to read the book to you. Make changes where you missed something. It’s a great thing to see your product ready for the next step. When you think you’re there ā€¦ watch for our next post.

 

Are you an experienced author? We would love to read your tips for beginning authors. Share some in the comments or visit our page on Facebook.