SELF PUBLISHING
Diana Mylek

It's not the black sheep of the publishing world anymore! Many authors are finding that, since it's up to them to market and sell their books even with a publisher, why pay them for what you can do yourself? Especially if your book is non-fiction and you are able to give speeches on your subject. People looking for advice will want your book, or you can sell books at appearances and speeches. It’s good to have a stack of books on hand when you go anywhere and you see your book in print which is very satisfying. Printing your own book gives you complete control over the content—a double edged sword—you submit a book that is edited by you or a professional and if you have a typo IT STAYS THERE which can be embarrassing. However, you design the book jacket, the way it’s printed, all of that. Or the publishing houses help you. I had them design my cover and it’s “Okay”. Also, once your book is printed, that’s it for better or worse. To fix or change things can get expensive.

There are two kinds of self-publishers, on demand and vanity. If you just want to publish your family’s history and it’s for your own enjoyment, vanity publishing is for you. If you intend to sell books and make a profit you can go with on demand publishers but you will need to research them carefully to make sure you’re not getting something you don’t need. Again you can turn to the Writer’s Market to see what is there but be very careful! There are many companies willing to take your money, print out a jankety book and call it a day. I have used I-Universe which was very cheap ($500 and 20 free books—you pay for your books along with the printing fee.) They offer packages that include artists for book jackets, marketing services, editing and advice but then again, you are expected to do most of the work yourself. This is your book, your future. They are merely a printer. *some do more, but that is for a fee*, I-Universe is owned by Barnes and Noble and you have access to a book distributor who will place your book in a store, if you are accepted and if you buy the books to do it. So that is good and bad. Xulon press is a self-publisher in the Christian industry and can get books into all the major Christian bookstores; for a fee.

Like I said, research these carefully. There are warning sites on the web like “preditorsandeditors.com” but they are biased slightly too. Best to Google the book publishers and see what other authors have experienced.

If you are approached by a publisher who says new authors encouraged, don’t take the bait. They are ONLY out for money and will add on must have services that are a crock and will not send your book to publishers, or if they do, they will never follow up and are scammers.

Diana Mylek is a Christian Fiction author who believes that God has a wonderful sense of humor and she uses this to guide and encourage her readers to a new or deeper relationship with the Lover of their souls. She has written and published quite a number of uplifting Christian novels. We have her permission to post her articles and we recommend that you visit her website.

www.dianamylek.com