Hello friends, welcome back to my blog. I hardly write blogs about different topics unless it is something worth discussing. But today I am going to share some of the things I learned about publishing a book like my debut, A Forever Summer, which came out a year ago. If you are new here, let me introduce myself. I’m Havelah McLat, the author of A Forever Summer and When You Returned. I'm a self-published author. I write clean fiction, like romance, but it is not the only genre I like. I’ve written some fantasy stories, some children’s stories, and a couple other fictions. A Forever Summer came out last year on June 7, 2022, and When You Returned released seven weeks ago. It has been quite a journey from being a writer to independent author.
In this blog you will learn some things you may or not know about self-publishing. Four things I truly believe are important. It is okay if you didn't know. I didn't know either when I started off self-publishing. We all make mistakes. There is some stuff we have to learn and grow and see what’s best for our books. We all are going to learn things differently but hopefully you will get something from this blog.
Nowadays you can publish anything you want. You write a story and boom there you have a book. Publishing is easy. Too easy for sure. Now there are several POD (print on demand) and there are sites just published ebooks. This is one of the mistakes I made. Now I have been a writer for long time and share some stories with close friends and family. And I made some books privately. In 2018 I published couple stories on Smashwords for free. It was simple and easy. But that wasn’t a problem. Publishing a book wasn't an issue. It was the cover, lack of editing, and awkward formatting issues and marketing. Those are things you got to watch out for. Without those important elements, you probably will have trouble selling and reaching new readers.
First you need to hire a professional editor:
At the time I knew editing was important but didn’t want to spend money to hire an editor. I ended up having someone who knows how to spot grammar etc. For A Forever Summer and When You Returned hired an editor. Yes it can be costly, but it’s worth the investment. You have to find the right person who understands your voice and writing style. And most important they understand what you are trying to share and make it better. If you are afraid they will change the story or writing style, I get that. I'm the same way. They shouldn't change the story, however their job is help you strengthen the story and point out the weak areas for you to improve. Just remember you can always ask for sample edits if you want to see what they do and once you find the editor you trust, then you are heading off a great start. If you can’t hire an editor, then have a good handful of beta readers or critique partners to help you with the story. Again, it is something to think about if you want to hire one in order to have a professional book. I don’t want you to end up like me avoiding hiring a professional editor.
Second you need a professional looking cover:
Having a good eye-catching cover is super important. It is what grabs readers’ attention and makes them want to buy it. I wrote a blog about my experience with cover design. Here to read the full article, but that’s one of my first mistakes I made. They are going judge the book by the cover. You don’t want that. Without a good cover that tells a reader what genre it is and it doesn't catches their attention, it will be hard to convince them to read it. I encourage you to look at other published books in your genre and see what can be improved. If you have experience with graphic cover designs, great. Go ahead. But if not, then you might want to hire a cover designer. I understand hiring a cover designer is expensive but there are some that can fit in your budget. You can ask other authors for recommendation. I hired a cover designer on Fivver and recently worked with GetCovers for my second book. You can definitely check them out. I had good experience with both of them.
You need a professional looking formatting:
For my debut novel, I hired a formatter. Actually I have hired a formatter in the past before A Forever Summer. Just for ebooks. Even though it is great to have someone who can do that, but I find it is a bit difficult. I didn’t have much control to make any changes. Every time I reach the person to make the changes I have to wait. Plus each new revision costs a fee. Soon enough I knew it was time to do my own formatting. I took some time to practice with Word (even though it is not the best software for formatting but it is enough that I understand how to use it. I use it to create paperbacks and Kindle Create for ebooks. I actually enjoyed doing it. I formatted When You Returned. I can’t say it was a mistake but it is one of things I wish I spent more time learning. But things happen. We all live and learn. I’m not saying hiring a formatter is a bad thing. It can be easy and quick for some authors who don’t have the time to do the formatting themselves or doesn't like to doing them. And some of us like doing it. With a proper interior and professional formatted book, you are ready to publish it.
You need a Street Team:
If you never heard of this, you are not alone. I didn’t know street team was a thing. When I published three ebooks in the past I had to do all the marketing myself. But when I did a street team for A Forever Summer it made a huge difference. They can help you to spread the word and let people know about your book. Word of mouth is a powerful tool. You don’t have to do it alone. But after the book is out you will have to continue marketing it to keep going. Yes, marketing is hard. There will be days you feel like nothing is working or feel you are doing everything wrong, I get it. I struggle with that. But we shouldn’t give up. There are many strategies on how to get more sales etc but remember you have to try find what works best for your book. It is a matter of time and do the best you can. Someone will see your book, check it out and even support you.
Those are things I learned about publishing a book. I will always learn new things about publsihing. Every book will have challanges. But those are the most important things I want to share with you. I hope you find it somewhat helpful.
Thanks agian for reading the blog. If you like to ask me questions about anything, you reach me out on Instagram @havelahmclatwriter. I will try my best to answer your inquieres. If you like to see what I have published so far, you can check out A Forever Summer and When You Returned on Amazon. They are available in paperback and Kindle.