You have a fantastic idea for a book. Now, what should you do?
1. Pick up a book
Look at it, feel it, flip through its pages, is this a book you would be proud of? Get a piece of paper and write down the books that you found eye-catching. Books that just by picking up you know you would want to read. Write down what attracted you to this book in the first place. Was it the cover design, the paper color, the size? Make sure you keep this list for later on in the process.
Then, remember this book took thousands of hours to write, produce, and market. Do you really want to do this?
2. Once you’ve written your book, do you self-publish?
You have decided to put the time and money into creating your book. Self-publishing is easy (well easier than it used to be), but it still means you will have to devote the time necessary to publish the book. In most it takes hundreds of hours just for the to your finished manuscript to published book.Many writers prefer to find a publisher to do this for but to get a publisher requires an extreme of its own.
Are willing to publish your book by yourself?
You have the option, for very little money, to publish your book and sell it on Amazon or with some effort on your part, in local bookstores. It’s relatively straightforward to self-publish books today.
3. You are ready to self-publish
You may want to write a book for your family, your history, a family story, or a recipe book. That is great, writing is an enjoyable hobby, and a book is a great keepsake for your family. If you want to sell your book, remember it is a lot of work. Writing can be fun, but it takes a tremendous amount of effort to produce a professional-looking book that people besides your family are going to want to buy.
4. Build your social media platform while you write the book
You have put the time in, now what do you need to do? While you’re putting the time in to write your book, you also need to build an audience. As a self-publishing author, you need to market yourself and your writing. What are social media sites you on now? What sites should you be on? Think about where your target market hangs out and start to make yourself known in that community before your book is done.
Check List
Come up with idea for a book.
Look at other books
Decide whether to self-publish
Build your social media platform