6 Things You Should Know Before Self-Publishing

6 things I *wish* someone told me before I self-published my debut.

Hiring an editor is important

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While you're furiously typing up your manuscript, you're going to make typos and grammatical errors. After proofreading your draft a million times, you're still not going to catch them all. That's why you need an editor. I did not hire an editor because I thought that it wasn't worth the investment. Truth is, people do catch those little mistakes and some people are very bothered by it. So, save them and yourself some aggravation; hire an editor.

Getting people to read about your book will be a challenge

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You want to sell a million copies? Ha. Try getting ten people outside your family to read the book. That's going to be first challenge. People aren't going to know about your book because you're indie, you're probably not paying for ads, and you likely won't be featured in any major publications. (at least, initially). They also aren't going to know about you unless you're a celebrity or have successfully authored another book. Therefore, virtually no one is going to read/buy your book, at first, unless you reach out to them directly and tell them why they should. Offering free digital copies to bibliophiles directly through Instagram, Twitter, or Goodreads will allow you to make connections within the bookish community and it might even earn you some positive reviews online. Most importantly, it will simply get your book into people's hands.

Criticism should be expected and accepted

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Some people are not going to like your book. Some people are just going to have issues with certain aspects. Either way don't let the first bad review you get break your heart. Focus on the positive reviews and pat yourself on the back for simply finishing your book. Then, look for the trends with the criticism. Is there something a lot of people aren't liking? After reading reviews of my book online, I found two common criticisms. They were the use of the "not-like-the-other-girls" trope and the third-person storytelling. As I'm in the process of writing another novel, I'm taking these criticisms into consideration. Learning from criticism is an important part of becoming a writer, so I suggest you get used to the idea.

The competition is thick

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These days it seems like everyone is writing a book. That means the market is flooded with self-published books. Some are better than yours; some are worse. You're competing with all of them for publicity and readership. Make sure your book stands out and make sure you are ready to market and promote your book. Otherwise it will fall into the abyss of self-published books lying around on Amazon.

Getting rich is unlikely

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Not only getting rich is unlikely, but so is making over over $200 on your book in its lifetime. Printing is expensive, royalties are low, and selling is hard.

Holding your own book in your hands is the most amazing feeling

Emma Eggleston

Holding my paperback for the first time was one of the coolest experiences of my life as nerdy as that sounds. It kind made the whole process seem like it was worth it.

Author Bio

My name's Emma Eggleston and you can check out my book, Escape, on Amazon or Goodreads.