How to publish an independent book

In this article, I will show you all the steps on how to publish an independent book. Before that, however, I need to explain something important. You have an original ready and you want to see it published in a book, but not just to have your friends and family as readers, right?

Your interest is to get your book to a wider audience, but having control of the process yourself, because you have already had one or more exhausting experiences with traditional publishers.

The motivation to publish an independent book

You sent a manuscript to a publisher and never heard back, and naturally you felt unmotivated. He even questioned the way this market works. With so much secrecy surrounding him, he imagined that only a privileged few have the chance to publish a book.

In fact, the difficulties are so great that many writers give up. So, you have come to the conclusion that you need to publish your book through other means. So, stay with me and I'll give you more information about how to publish an independent book, without the interference of publishers, whether traditional or service providers.

Your objective, therefore, is to escape schemes in which you feel tied to a group that determines the way your work is published, disseminated and marketed. To begin this task, some steps are necessary and I will describe them below.

From originals to book production: several stages

All steps in this editorial production chain aim to turn what you wrote, your originals, into well-organized reading material, a book. To do so, there are a series of services that you will need to hire and I will now tell you about how to publish an independent book:

• The first step to take in relation to your original is to critical reading. You will have to hire this professional who will survey the strengths and weaknesses of your text, pointing out changes that could make it more attractive and elaborate. As the name says, it is a review.
  In general, we don't deal well with criticism, we feel diminished or we tend to give up on our goals. This phase, however, is essential to improve the text, accepting as much as possible the ideas of the critical opinion as a form of contribution to your work.
• Afterwards, you will have to request a text edit – if the writing is well finished and coherent, there will be no need to resort to a text editor. You can skip to the next step.
• The next step to self-publishing your book is to hire a text preparer or proofreader.
  He is a professional expert in making adjustments in accordance with the standard of the Portuguese language, which involves checking and adjusting problems of textual cohesion and coherence and grammar, such as verbal agreement, nominal agreement, verbal and nominal regency, just to give some examples.
  But all this while maintaining the style of your writing.

Other steps to be taken

Once the textual part is finished, it is time to carry out the book layout. Without a doubt, there will still be this phase in which you will need to invest:  work with a professional to carry out the layout of your book with quality, giving it the most elegant appearance possible.

Afterwards, the book cover, and at this point you will need to research and find a good cover artist.

Preferably, someone very sensitive and experienced who is capable of translating your ideas into a precise image, at the same time who knows how to use the best combination of fonts (the letters that are used in writing, such as those in the title, the subtitle, on spine).

You also cannot forget to write the text for the fourth cover, or ask a third party to do so, in addition to asking them to produce the “ear”, if you choose to include such a resource in your book.

There is also a need to ask for the ISBN – stands for International Standard Book Number.

It is the record of the work that identifies, through numerical sequence, the title, author, country, publisher, etc. It is, after all, a standard that must be met so that your book can be sold.

How to publish an independent book: the physical format

Here we are still talking about a physical book, which you intend to publish independently, printing between 200 and 500 copies. More than that means running the risk of having to store a large volume on shelves in your home, or having another space that you may even need to rent.

A printing of 1.000 copies is usually made when the author has a large readership, so it is wise to make a first publication with a smaller print run.

The launch of the book and the possibility of publishing an eBook

Once the steps we mentioned have been completed, the author can hire a professional to launch the book at a book signing, a moment of enthusiasm and joy long awaited to share with readers.

In addition to having independent publication of your book (printed, physical book), if you want in the support of e-book,  It will be necessary to complete another stage of the specific layout in this format.

 Promoting the book independently

Furthermore, authors who publish independently will still have to worry about publicity, for example at points of sale (marketplaces).

Without forgetting that it is important to include the book on digital platforms, such as Amazon (she accepts independent authors).

You've no doubt realized that publishing independently involves several work steps. At the same time, it's a great solution for those who don't want to try the traditional route, which is sending their originals to publishers. In fact, you've probably gotten tired of this experience and now want to change.

The advantage of publishing independently is the possibility of having more control over the stages (closely following the phases of critical reading; preparation/revision; layout; conversations with the cover writer, etc.), as well as publicity, distribution and the financial return obtained from the sale of books.

Well, that's it, I hope you enjoyed reading the information I presented about how to publish an independent book and, at the same time, try to write a lot and be encouraged to publish your book on your own.

If you still have questions, contact me via WhatsApp or budget section of this website.