Self-Publishing: 4 Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Self-Publishing: 4 Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them. This short video by John Bond of Riverwinds Consulting discusses avoiding self-publishing mistakes.
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TRANSCRIPT
Hi there. I am John Bond from Riverwinds Consulting and this is Publishing Defined.
Today I am going to talk about four common mistakes self-published authors make, and how to avoid them.
Self-publishing has exploded these past ten plus years. Starting in fiction and memoirs, self-publishing now affects every part of publishing from trade to academic. Many authors see the upside or advantages of self-publishing. There are, however, some pitfalls.
First, too much DIY or do it yourself. Some authors try to piece together the many parts of book publishing with their own work or using relatives and friends. This may work but sometimes it may be short sighted. This starts with the cover. My top recommendation is to use a cover designer and artwork created by an artist. This does come at a cost, but actually an affordable one, all things considered. People in publishing and your customers will constantly judge your book by its cover and you want one professionally done, not one done by a nephew in art school. This DIY part extends to self-editing. I recommend all self-published books be professionally edited. I have recommendations for freelancer for all these tasks if you are interested.
Second, not seeking outside input. To many, asking friends, families, or acquaintances for feedback is scary. But no scarier is when the book appears in its final form and it has flaws. I encourage everyone to show their manuscript, cover design, marketing materials and description to a dozen, if not more, people for feedback. When you receive comments, it is important their points be seriously considered and not just dismissed. You don’t need to change everything, but their comments need to be considered and changes made, likely for the better. Best of all would be hire a freelance developmental editor to give you feedback on the structure and flow of your work. These professionals can really help improve your work.
Three, marketing and promotion. I say to authors considering self-publishing that they need to love marketing and selling. If not, don’t do it. Of the self-published books that disappoint their authors, it usually comes down to lack of marketing and sales. I tell people you should be prepared to put in as many hours in marketing as you did in book writing and creation, if not more.
Finally, book publishing is not front loaded. It is a not dash to write, edit, and then publish. You don’t “win” at that point of publication. The printed or eBook is mile 13.1 of the marathon. You need to continue for the next two years to market, promote, and network. Staying power is key.
There are many small items: not adding an ISBN, not putting a barcode on the back cover, not getting testimonials for your work, not having a book or author website. BTW, see mine at BooksByJohnBond.com. Do your research, talk to other self-published authors, read books (including mine) and you will be more prepared for the road ahead.
Well that’s it. I am a publishing consultant and work with associations, publishers, and individuals on a host of content related challenges. Reach out to me at RiverwindsConsulting.com with your questions.
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