Mateja Klaric - How to Self-Publish Your Book: The Fast, Free & Easy Way ()

HOW TO SELF-PUBLISH YOUR BOOK

2nd Edition

Also by Mateja Klaric

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You Self-Published, Now What? How to Promote Your Book

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The Story of the Fox and White Rabbit (not your ordinary fable)

HOW TO SELF-PUBLISH YOUR BOOK

The Fast, Free & Easy Way

2nd Edition

Mateja Klaric

How to Self-Publish Your Book

(The Fast, Free & Easy Way)

Second edition, December 3, 2018, published by Mateja Klaric

First book in the series Self-Publishing Made Easy

Author: Mateja Klaric

Proofreading: James Reeves

Cover & book design: Mateja Klaric

Copyright Mateja Klaric 2018

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever, including Internet usage, without written permission from the author. Publications are exempt in the case of brief quotations in critical reviews or articles.

Dedicated to all those who have stood by my side in the time of need. Thank you for your invaluable help and support.

Special thanks to James Reeves, my patron on Patreon.

TABLE OF FIGURES

WHATS NEW IN THIS 2ND EDITION

T he first edition of this book was published less than a year ago, in mid-December 2017. Things change so fast in self-publishing, though, that its already time for a new edition and I ended up almost completely rewriting the original book. Ill just mention the biggest changes here.

Among many other changes, CreateSpace and Amazon KDP finally merged into a single platform. This was expected to happen sooner since Amazon acquired CreateSpace in 2005 and it brought welcome changes to Amazon KDP, such as expanded distribution of paperbacks.

Draft2Digital implemented some welcome changes too. They improved the design of their universal links and added new features to author pages, which made them even better than they already were. I also tested the Draft2Digital partner company Findaway Voices and have successfully published my first audiobook there.

The competition in self-publishing is growing fast and is becoming more and more challenging. I was shocked when I invested twice as much in promotion and sold three times as many copies of my third book than the previous one but couldnt even achieve the same overall rank on Amazon as I could a year ago with far fewer sales!

On the good note, the book You Self-Publish, Now What? How to Promote Your Book nevertheless became 1# New Release in several categories on Amazon while still on preorder. But, as said, the overall rank was still lower than expected and that means that the competition is fierce.

As for other changes, there have been upgrades of both MS Word and GIMP (a program I recommend for design and images). I thus updated the instructions and created all new print screens that will guide you through the tasks.

I also included a few additional resources in case that you are tempted to try the traditional route and get a publishing deal instead of self-publishing. I completely understand why this option might seem more and more alluring, but its nevertheless far from easy and it certainly isnt fast.

WHO IS THIS BOOK FOR?

T his book was written for those who would like to self-publish on a budget but cannot afford to invest much. It was also written for those who are cautious and want to test the waters before devoting a large budget to the endeavor.

Even though the book glances over all stages of the self-publishing process, its focused mostly on technical aspects of it, such as paperback and ebook formatting, design, print, and distribution options. Technical aspects can be confusing, and these instructions will make them much easier for you.

You will also get formatting tips, recommended free tools for cover design, instructions on how to turn low-resolution pics into the 300 DPI needed for print and how to create a print-ready PDF. All of this is presented as a simple, step-by-step guide with pictures that show you exactly how to do it, so that you wont need to pay for any services.

Among other things, I also wrote this book to give you an idea of what it takes to self-publish and how much time, work, and money youll need to put into it. You will also be able to estimate how much you can realistically expect to earn by selling your books.

NOTE:

You will have to install free software and have access to MS Word. If you dont have MS Word, the section on formatting might not be useful to you.

WHO AM I TO WRITE IT?

L ike many before me , I started my writing career by trying to get a deal with a traditional publisher. It didnt take me long to realize that this was going to be a far bigger challenge than self-publishing. Its so much faster and easier to self-publish that I ended up doing that instead.

I successfully self-published my first three books using the tools and approaches described in this book. My ebooks [] are available in all major online stores, the paperback editions and audiobook have been published on Amazon and are available through expanded distribution as well. The books have also received good reviews.

Most self-published writers suffer financial loss with their first book(s). By doing most of the work myself, I was able to avoid that to a significant degree but still had to pay for promotion, which did set me back. I wrote more on that in the second book in this series, You Self-Published, Now What? How to Promote Your Book [].

Am I a best-selling author? Yes, my third book became #1 New Release and then also received a Best Seller label in several categories on Amazon. In terms of sales, however, we are talking about 170 copies sold on preorder. With the preorder price at $0.99 (that would be 35 cents in royalties) the Best Seller label didnt exactly make me rich.

Among other things, I wrote this book so that you can avoid scams and promises of huge self-publishing success if you only pay hundreds or even thousands of dollars for certain services. This book will help you self-publish at little or no cost and see what a beginner can realistically expect from self-publishing.