10 Steps to Self-Publishing

Posted by Tekeme Studios in General Tips, Self-Publishing

Self-publishing is a lot easier than it seems. At first it’s information overload, but if you condense the steps into a simple process it’s a lot less overwhelming. Here is our short and sweet self-publishing guide:

Create a Publishing Imprint

A publishing imprint is the name that goes on your spine. The “publisher.” Even as a self-publisher who decides to go the easy route of CreateSpace, you still want to develop an imprint of your own so that book systems don’t register your title as published by “CreateSpace.” You want this to be professional, not cheesy. So start by registering a fictitious name with your local government.

Register Your Business

Once you have your fictitious name registered and ready to use (Winslet Press, for example), then register this name as a Doing Business As or Sole Proprietorship with your local government.

Purchase an ISBN

Go to Bowker.com and purchase an ISBN for your title(s).

Get an LCCN Number

You will need a LCCN number. You can fill out the application to get started here.

Make Sure You’re Copyrighted

Go straight to the government and get your work copyrighted.

Choose a Printer

You can choose a traditional printer, which will cost more upfront. Or, you can go with a Print-On-Demand service like CreateSpace, which only requires the upfront cost of one proof copy. Although with CreateSpace we recommend the Pro Plan, which is under $100 to join, but increases your profit per book.

Cover Design

Get a good cover designed! Check out our portfolio here to see some examples. This is important. A lot of services offer “create your own” book covers, but they end up looking as cheesy as can be. Spend the extra money to get a good cover designed. It’s worth it.

If You Choose A Traditional Printer….

You will need to set-up an Amazon Advantage account to sell your books on Amazon. You will also need to send your books to Barnes and Noble for review. If they accept your book, you will need a distributor (they will send you a list to choose from). You are then required to send your book to distributors for review. When they accept you, they will fulfill Barnes and Noble’s order for your book.

Setting Up E-Books

You want to make sure you have e-book versions of your book. Digital books are so popular right now. You don’t want to miss this opportunity. We offer e-book conversion services, and many other people do as well. Once your book is converted, sign up for an Amazon DTP account here and a Barnes and Noble PubIt account here, so that you can sell your books online.

Publish Your Book!

Once you have reached this point and have your cover design and interior layout ready to go, you can publish your book! You will add it to the above accounts, and for Advantage you will need to send them copies of your book. For CreateSpace and other POD programs, you simply enter all of your info, overview your proof, then PUBLISH!

It really is a lot easier than it seems. If this still seems confusing to you ask us about our self-publishing life-saver packages!