Episode 17: Self-Publishing FAQs

Today on the show Jodi answers the five most-common questions she hears about self-publishing a book to serve your business. 

Why do entrepreneurs choose self-publishing?

Self-publishing is no longer “plan B.” Author-entrepreneurs especially choose self-publishing often for two reasons: creative control and time to market. As business owners, author-entrepreneurs are used to being the decision-maker for their business. A book is a tool to serve that business, so it makes sense that an author-entrepreneur wants to have final say over how the book looks, what it contains, and when it reaches customers. Traditional book publishing is notoriously slow (think 12-18 months before you have a finished book in your hands), and that simply doesn’t work for most author-entrepreneurs. 

How much does it cost to self-publish?

Author-entrepreneurs understand that a book is an investment in their business and treat it as such. They are willing to spend money on a book because they see it as another business expense. Most author-entrepreneurs I’ve worked with spend somewhere between $3,000 and $5,000. Check out Episode 14 for more detail about this.

Every area in which money is spent on writing, publishing, and marketing a book should have a budget associated with it. Each area can be accomplished by spending zero dollars up to tens of thousands of dollars, depending on whether the author-entrepreneur has a shoestring budget or a “done for you”-type of budget. Hire professionals like editors, cover artists, and publicists based on their zone of genius and then let them do their job. Once you set a budget, stick to it as much as possible so there aren’t any surprises down the road. If you decide you need to spend more in a certain area, revisit your budget and adjust elsewhere.

Can I really make money by publishing a book?

Yep! But not typically from book royalties. We dived into this in Episode 11, but here’s the gist: Money earned from a book typically comes indirectly. In other words, income comes from readers who become clients (purchasers of one-on-one services or a membership offering) or from speaking engagements.

Do I need a literary agent?

Unless you’re publishing traditionally, nope. Literary agents are not pieces of the self-publishing puzzle.

Who do I need on my “book team”?

Your book team and your budget go hand-in-hand.  Most author-entrepreneurs hire, at a minimum, a copy editor and designer (cover and interior). You might want or need more accountability and hire a book coach. You might decide to hire a ghostwriter so the book actually gets finished. You might hire a VA to handle project management and the tech piece of uploading to Amazon. One area that author-entrepreneurs don’t always need to budget and/or hire is marketing. As business owners, we’re used to marketing, so we “get” it!

As with anything book-related, everything starts with the writing. You can’t publish an unwritten book, nor can you market one. So, happy writing!

Listen here or on your favorite podcast player, and let me know what you think!