I want to write a book. Nonfiction.
I have never done this before. I don't know the ins and outs. I don't know if self publishing, old school, download only, etc, is the right answer. I want to maximize distribution and not necessarily maximize profit.
Tell me things.
Thanks!
I've published 6 or 7 fiction books so far, and around 20 short stories. Also been included in some compilations.
Self publishing on amazon is very easy and free. You can publish ebooks, softcover, and hardcover. It's the main way to go if you're indie, these days. I'll be glad to help however I can.
infinitenexus said:I've published 6 or 7 fiction books so far, and around 20 short stories. Also been included in some compilations.
Self publishing on amazon is very easy and free. You can publish ebooks, softcover, and hardcover. It's the main way to go if you're indie, these days. I'll be glad to help however I can.
If you self publish a physical book, do they just print them as needed or do you pay for a batch to be printed ahead? Is it still close to the "Buck a book" profit of a publisher?
First question is what the audience is. For the general public, a commercial publisher is still often the best way to reach a wide audience. But you will want one that fits your book. They have the marketing muscle to put your book not only on Amazon, but on store shelves where it can be an impulse buy.
But if it's a niche book where a lot of the people who would buy it already know who you are, self publishing may be better. In that case, you may know your target audience better than a corporation.
There are a number of self publishing and printing services that basically use book sized laser printing, which can get a book out there for minimal upfront cost. These days, offset printed self published books are very rare. The trade off is that offset printed books have a lower unit cost, if you expect to sell several thousand. It's like CNC vs stamping presses.
If it fits into one of their series, approach Quarto (aka Motorbooks). They're a bit formulaic but have done reasonably well for me.
Send me a pitch as well, I have an editor who's looking for new content for one of the other larger automotive companies whose name eludes me.
Unfortunately it's not a niche book, and has near zero motorsports content.
I need to understand how hard it is to get a publisher interested, and how much that sort of thing is going to work as compared to going it alone.
My publishers aren't Motorsports, they're automotive. Actually much wider than that (https://www.quarto.com) but my contacts are in the automotive side of the house.
You need a proposal. An outline showing what you'll cover, maybe a sample chapter, expected length and number of photos/illustrations.
Going with a publisher means you make less (figure about 10% for royalties for an unproven author) but they will get it out there for you. It'll show up in places you never expected. It's the easy option once you have their attention. You'll even get an advance :)
Going solo means you are battling with every self-published book out there and it's hard to get heard over the noise. You'll be the one sending out sample copies and chasing reviews, and you'll be working every step of the way. But you'll keep a much larger percentage as a result.
Fiction is a near impossible nut to crack. Far too much competition in the space. Getting noticed is nearly impossible.
Non-fiction is different because people will search the subject matter on Amazon and find you pretty easily. My dopey little Royal Enfield book sells an almost predictable amount of copies every month. It's a niche book, for sure, but those people find it easily. I keep the price point low to sell more copies vs make a killing per copy. Not really in it for the money anyway.
Amazon publishes copies on demand, so you have no inventory to keep or pay for. You also have the option of offering it as an e-book, which in my case sells more copies than the paper version (with a higher profit margin, IIRC).
You have to do all the formatting, editing, etc yourself but it mostly isn't hard, just time consuming. Adding photos complicates it a bit more but if I can figure it out, anyone should be able to. Pay attention to the physical size of the book as there are some standardized sizes that are cheaper to produce.
Lemme tell you, it's a pretty cool feeling to have that first physical copy of a book you wrote in your hand. Even if hardly anyone buys it, LOL.
I'm slowly writing a book on a niche topic- religious actually. I have some aquantainces as Uber famous authors and I've talked to them some. I have a series of books planned and really just hoping for side hustle money- really just need to get them out of me though. The issue is time. Sitting down and plotting chapters and then completing them is not in my natural wheelhouse. I'm planning on a couple of different solo trips next year to do some writing.
tuna55 said:Unfortunately it's not a niche book, and has near zero motorsports content.
I need to understand how hard it is to get a publisher interested, and how much that sort of thing is going to work as compared to going it alone.
In this case, you find a publisher that covers your niche, and write them a book proposal. This typically covers what the book is about, your qualifications for writing it, and a sample chapter. With nonfiction, you can pitch a book well before it's complete. Fiction is different - you need to have a complete book for a first time author, and your qualifications are not as important since your main qualification is "I wrote this story." As DDavidv noted, fiction is a bit harder to get into.
ddavidv said:Lemme tell you, it's a pretty cool feeling to have that first physical copy of a book you wrote in your hand. Even if hardly anyone buys it, LOL.
Much congratulations and, yes, there’s still something special about producing physical media, even if you're hawking your wares by campfire lantern in a dimly lit coffee house.
Related to David's comments about being noticed. It helped (a ton) once I could sum up my zine in one sentence.
It started as a zine centered about BMX and music. The universe for that project is rather tiny.
Then I realized that it's more than that: It's capturing the DIY punk rock ethos. The subject matter didn't change, but once I found a way to (quickly) explain it to a wider audience, I did sell more.
tuna55 said:infinitenexus said:I've published 6 or 7 fiction books so far, and around 20 short stories. Also been included in some compilations.
Self publishing on amazon is very easy and free. You can publish ebooks, softcover, and hardcover. It's the main way to go if you're indie, these days. I'll be glad to help however I can.
If you self publish a physical book, do they just print them as needed or do you pay for a batch to be printed ahead? Is it still close to the "Buck a book" profit of a publisher?
They tell you the publishing costs based on your page count and trim size and whatnot, then Amazon takes a bit above that. I have my latest book, about 185 pages 5x8 softcover, for sale for $12.99 and I think my profit off that is around $4 and change
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