7 Reasons to Self Publish!
You have written a book and no one wants to publish it. Why would you do it yourself? Here are 7 good reasons to self-publish your own book.
1. You design the cover. All trade publishers have their own designers and you have no control over what your book will look like.
2. You choose the title. The editor assigned to your book will choose the title and you have will have no input or control over what they choose.
3. You choose the price. You know who your readers will be and what they are willing to pay. You can afford to sell for a bit less than a trade publisher because you control the costs.
4. You decide how to market your book. You have to do it anyway, so you might as well be marketing your own product.
5. You know who your readers are and can make decisions based on this knowledge. Publishers don’t always ‘get’ your book or your audience.
6. You don’t have to wait a year or two for your book to be in print. You can have it in the hands of your readers within months (I don’t recommend weeks).
7. You make the profit. Instead of a small advance and even smaller royalties, you make all the money from your books.
It feels good to DIY and be in control of every aspect of publishing your book. Why not give it a try? Self Publishing in Canada: A guide to designing, printing and selling your book will help you every step of the way. Purchase your copy today. Available at any independent bookstore or through the website.
26 thoughts on “7 Reasons to Self Publish!”
I am planning on writing and self publishing a walking tour of nova Scotia. Thank you for the reasons why i should self publish, I didn’t think I was going to, but now I defintely am. Thanks once more.
Thanks for the informative article. I have had a self publishing disaster in the past. That story is on my website. I’m looking around for another self publisher for my third book…any suggestions?
I suggest Createspace. I’ve been extremely satisfied with the service and how easy it’s been to publish. Avoid iUniverse.
Createspace? How does that work? Do you have to set it all up, or do they? Meaning would I just send in the manuscript?
Les,
These so called “self publishing firms” are usually expensive. They charge their clients a lot of money to produce a book. You can do it yourself. Read my book Self Publishing in Canada to find out how. And have a look at today’s Blog post.
I just signed a contract with Xlibris, to publish my memoir. However, I think I am going to cancel it, because there are 115 complaints on the Internet towards this self publishing company.
Do you have any suggestions what I should do. I might be charged $150.- if I cancel the agreement, as I have also paid them $750 for publishing my memoir.
Thank you very much for your advice!
Irene
You need to speak to a lawyer. I have never done business with Xlibris.
I’ve considered CreateSpace but the part that I wondered about is the shipping. It sure adds a lot to the cost of the book for readers since it ships from the US. Is there a Canadian option or equivalent? Thanks.
I have used CreateSpace and the shipping and bond fee and taxes does add to the cost. But it is so inexpensive to produce books with CS, that these fees can be factored in and your book should still be reasonably priced for your readers. At this time, there is no Canadian equivalent. CS is a product of Amazon.com.
I’m just starting my research on self-publishing. Just wondering, do you use CreateSpace to simply produce the books, then buy finished quantities from them directly, do you then turn around and distribute/sell them privately to bookstores and such?
Yes Tess, you have CreateSpace print your books and then buy them at your cost. Then you distribute or sell them to bookstores and gift stores that take books.
I would like to write abook with the poems my 14 year son wrote, after his passing in 2003. The book will title STAMP OUT BULLYING. CAN YOU SEND ME SOME ADVICE.
Hello Rosalie,
We’re a non for profit publisher. I caught your post about the poem book
Feel free to get in touch, while we specialize in creative book, I’d be happy to create and publish this book under our umbrella and help you promote. I would have to ensure that the text follows within out policies.
Marcin Migdal (Founder & Editor-in-Chief)
madartistpublishing@gmail.com
http://www.madartistpublishing.com
I am very sorry for the loss of your 14 year old son. I can imagine that was devastating for you.
Self-publishing is not as daunting as it might seem. I have self-published a children’s book, 2 memoirs, an anthology, 12 poetry books and 1 novel (as a hired publisher).
I would be willing to help you with your project, if you run into problems.
I use Blurb, Createspace, Lulu, Tango, WordPress and Xlibris. For any beginner, I highly recommend Createspace. Even as an experienced person, I still like Createspace for many of my projects.
Rosalie – There are many posts about self-publishing at my BlogSpot site that give information about what to do.
http://selfpublishingincanada.blogspot.com
I write children’s poetry with art pictures I have 7 books.
how much does it cost to get them published, and what about copyright, who does the printing!!
Debbie,
The cost depends on book size, number of pages, cover design, type of paper, and many other variables. You can learn about self-publishing, copyright and printing a book by reading my book Self Publishing in Canada. Look at the Testimonials on this site and you will see that the book has helped many authors publish their own book.
Hi Suzanne,
Our friendly librarian at the Duncan library loaned me your book about self-publishing for one week but, because I am mostly blind, I haven’t been able to read much if it.
I have not had a good experience with publishing my book of some 40,000 words entitled Claim your Power, Gain your Freedom – a Journey from Conventional Thoughts to Unconventional Dreams”.
After much research (I thought) I signed up with Schiel & Denver Publishing Ltd. located in Houston, Texas, in January of this year. They set the publishing date on May 25th. After getting no real information at all about progress made I finally demanded information which resulted in me receiving an extraordinary email from them, accusing me of trying to damage their computer network, sending emails with trojan horses, and abusive phone calls! After contacting the Houston police I learned that the whole thing is a scam. So now I am back to square one. . . The librarian suggested that I contact you for some help, so here I am.
My major handicap is that, at age 81, I am legally blind. I can read this email easily in 18 pt. font, but books are mostly out of the question. My mind works pretty good but, not being 20 anymore (God forbid) my energy level isn’t what it used to be, and starting again from square one isn’t as easy as it may sound.
My question to you: where do I from here? What services do you offer? If you are interested and available, can we meet and pursue options? Shall I send you a copy to scan and see if it is really worth bothering – I think it is but then I may be less than objective.
Sounds so simple – hope it is.
Looking forward to your response and to meet you.
Rob.
Robert,
I am so sorry you have been caught up in a scam. I will email you with information about my book coaching services.
Suzanne
I have gained a lot of great information from everyone’s experiences, and have a question of my own. I am almost ready to self publish a cookbook and am wondering if I can further cut costs by self printing and binding. I have access to a binding machine and was considering collating and spiral binding the books myself.
It’s difficult to find experienced people on this subject, but you sound like
you know what you’re talking about! Thanks
Hi Krisa,
I belong to several good groups on LinkedIn for writing, publishing and ebooks. Check them out. A LinkedIn page would benefit any author.
You have described iuniverse and friesen as vanity presses. Which self-publishing houses are not such, according to your definition?
There are no actual self-publishing “houses” because you self-publish yourself. The rest are subsidy or vanity publishers. Vanity publishers charge you to publish your books. All AuthorSolutions presses are vanity publishers. There are too many other businesses claiming to be “self publishing publishers.”
Have you had any experience with First Choice Books? They are out of Victoria, BC. Thanks!
I don’t use a subsidy company when I do print books. I have the cover designed, do the interior layout, and send it to Printorium in Victoria or Friesens in Manitoba for printing. I have heard no complaints about First Choice Books except that they are expensive. If you want to us a subsidy publisher, also check out Friesen Books in Victoria. It does not hurt to compare what they offer and the cost.