The Internet and print on-demand (sometimes called publish on demand) companies have created a myriad of new opportunities for self-publishers, both for publication and promotion.
Different Types of Self-Publishing
Roughly speaking, there are three different ways to self-publish book, each with its own advantages and disadvantages:
- Traditional self-publishing
- Print on demand (POD)
- Electronic publishing
Self-publishing used to require purchasing a large print run of copies, hundreds or more commonly thousands of books. This involved a significant risk, as most self-published titles do not sell very well.
Print on demand companies like Lulu have changed the scene. Books are printed as orders come in and often there are no sign-up fees. Lulu no longer charges for ISBNs and Amazon's Createspace is also free, meaning anyone can get their books on Amazon and other online stores at no cost.
Electronic books used to be synonymous with Adobe's PDF format, but with eBook readers like Kindle, Sony Reader and Nook as well as the iPad, the market has expanded tremendously - which means increased opportunities, but also increased competition. eBooks (including Kindle books) can be published for free using services like Smashwords.
For those rejected by traditional book publishers (or not happy with their terms) there is also a fourth way of getting published:
- Founding a book publishing company
Launching a publishing company is obviously financially risky, but may give the titles a more authoritative aura than straight-up self-publishing. It is also possible to publish books by other people to cover up the costs.
Earning Money with Self-Publishing
While print on demand involves no financial risk, production costs tend to be much higher than with traditional self-publishing, especially for large books and illustrated titles. For a few thousand copies of a black-and-white novel the printing costs are usually a few dollars per copy, but a print on demand book can cost the author $10 to $20, even a lot more for full-color or hardcover books
Electronic publishing offers the most money per copy sold. Those selling books on their own website can pocket 100% of the cover price (minus web hosting and other website maintenance costs). Even with services like Lulu and Smashwords taking their own share, the royalties are still considerable.
With eBooks one can often make a lot more money per copy than with printed books. Others rely on aggressively low pricing of eBooks to sell large volumes. Some self-published authors have earned good money by selling their books for Amazon Kindle editions for just $0.99.
Advances and Royalty Payments
Traditional publishers usually pay royalties yearly, sometimes twice a year. The author may not get the royalties from a book sold in January until the spring or even autumn of the following year! Self-publishing companies often fare better: Lulu pays royalties every month and Smashwords quarterly.
Obviously self-publishing does not yield any advances - however, many small publishers pay no advances either.
Self-Publisher's Budget
Zero or nearly zero budget publishing is possible by opting for electronic publishing or print on demand. There are, however, other important aspects to consider:
- editing
- book design, formatting, typesetting
- marketing
Even though many self-published authors take care of editing, formatting and indexing their books themselves, an external editor is always advisable. Book cover design should preferably also be trusted to a professional designer, especially with printed books.
With the Internet and social media marketing, book promotion can be inexpensive or even free. Still, services like web design and SEO (search engine optimization) can be very useful. Review copies of print books are also important: bloggers may accept PDF copies, but an electronic copy is not going to get a book featured in the New York Times.
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