Self Publishing – Preparing your book
Self Publishing - Preparing your Book for Publication
There are many things to consider when self-publishing your book and the choices can seem overwhelming at first.
However, by breaking down the process into manageable stages and tasks it is amazing what you can achieve. In this article, we are going to look at the different tasks involved in preparing your book for publication.
We will cover such topics as ISBNs, formatting your book, designing your book cover and different pricing strategies you might use.
While we will cover self-publishing eBooks, there will also be information about publishing in paperback and the differences between these two formats.
Some of what you will read might be obvious when it is pointed out to you but not something you had thought about before.
Hopefully, you will learn something new as well to make your self-publishing journey easier.
ISBN Requirements
ISBNs can be confusing to many new self-publishers and prompt many questions. ISBNs (International Standard Book Numbers) originated from the SBN (Standard Book Numbering) which was created for WHSmith stationers by Gordon Foster in 1965.
Since then there have been many developments regarding ISBNs. Most notably, since the 1st January 2007 ISBNs have contained thirteen digits instead of the previous ten digits.
Each different edition and format of a publication must have a different ISBN. For example, if the contents of a book are changed or a new edition published then a new ISBN should be used for each version.
Besides, if you wish to create multiple formats (hardback, paperback, eBook) of the same book each format should have a different number allocated to it. There is no reason why an ISBN cannot be assigned to an eBook although some people might argue there is little point to it.
ISBN’s are bought from the dedicated ISBN Agency for the country of publication. For example, in the United States they are issued by Bowker (www.isbn.org) and in the United Kingdom they are issued by Nielsen (www.isbn.nielsenbook.co.uk).
Similarly, the cost of purchasing ISBN’s depends on the agency used but as a guideline in the UK, 1 ISBN is £89 and ten are £159.00. In the United States, 1 ISBN costs $125 and 10 cost $295. Whether there is a legal requirement for your publication to have an ISBN depends on the country where you are located. The best advice is to find the relevant agency details and check their website.
What ISBN’s do not do is give you any copyright protection. However, it does identify the publisher of the publication as well some other details about the publication including the format, size, weight (in some cases), cover image and publication category.
In addition, a number of online stores may use the information to update their websites and many traditional bookshops and libraries will search the ISBN database upon request.
The primary purpose of an ISBN is to allow publishers, distributors and resellers to identify and manage a whole range of publications by using the ISBN as a unique product identifier.
Many self-publishing platforms offer a free ISBN service. This can seem appealing particularly if you are looking at the cost of purchasing a single ISBN from the appropriate agency. In return for them providing you with an ISBN they will often be listed as the publisher and limitations are often put on the publication. For example, you may restrict to only listing that publication on their website(s).
If you are only ever likely to publish your book on one platform then this might be an appropriate choice. However, some people may argue that having a self-publishing company listed as the publisher might undermine the credibility of your publication and may limit bigger opportunities in the future.
Every publication that has an ISBN may be subject to Legal Deposit requirements. Legal Deposit is where you are required by law to provide copies of your publication to certain institutions.
In the United Kingdom, you must provide the British Library with a copy of your publication. Five other libraries can request free copies and this often happens when they check the ISBN database.
In the United States, you must submit two copies of each publication to the United States Copyright Office. As you can imagine this can become quite costly to you as a self-publisher so it’s important that you are aware of these legal requirements.
Book Formatting
Book Formatting can be a daunting prospect for the novice self-publisher. There are many decisions to be made from book size, the fonts to use, how to number the pages and many others.
We will consider some of these issues and others in a moment. However, if all else fails then why not look at books you already own for some answers?
Well, this can certainly be helpful but the problem is that the answers are often a matter of personal preference and there are rarely hard and fast rules. Luckily, when you look along the bookshelves of your local bookshop or supermarket you will see a LOT of very similar publications on the shelves.
With this in mind, another strategy is to find a book that appeals to you and use this as a guideline for your formatting and design.
The size of your paperback book will depend on a number of factors. Whether you are using a self-publishing platform or a printing company, you will be limited by the options they make available.
In addition, certain platforms will only support certain book sizes. For example, if you wish to use Createspace expanded distribution services you must use one of the ‘industry standard trim sizes’ detailed on their website.
If you were looking to use multiple platforms, e.g. Createspace and Lulu, it would be worth doing a little research to ensure they can all meet the same requirements. For novels, the two most popular sizes are 6 x 9 inches or 7 x 10 inches.
There is also an A-Format size (178 x 111mm) used for mass-market paperbacks and B-Format size (197 x 130mm) used more often for literary fiction but the 6 x 9 is in most cases your best choice.
Your choice of font style is a very personal one and there are no specific rules only guidelines. Probably the most popular and widespread font style used is Garamond.
As long as the font is not overly ornate and is easily legible then it is really a matter of personal choice. You will be somewhat more limited with your choice of font style when it comes to publishing an eBook although it is possible to use any font if you have the technical expertise to do so – not to suggest this is necessarily a good idea.
Most books will use a font size of 10 or 12 but different fonts vary in their natural sizing so this is only a guide. Line spacing is a matter of trial and error but 1.5-line spacing is a good starting point. The text in both paperback and eBook in my opinion should be justified for ease of reading and flow of the text.
Page numbering provides the self-publisher with another dilemma. Virtually all paperback books begin displaying page numbers on the first page of the actual story whether that be a prologue or chapter one.
However, some will number this page 1 and others will number it as the number of the page taking into account previous unnumbered pages e.g. Page 6 to signify it is the sixth page of the book but the first one that is numbered. The latter option is far more common than the first but neither are the wrong thing to do.
Copyright laws differ around the world but it is usually wise to include a copyright notice in any publication including the name of the copyright owner.
It is very easy to find good quality examples of copyright notices to use within your publications. You can also get advice from societies, self-publishing platform websites and other sources.
Cover Design
Cover Design creation can be very challenging for self-publishers for a number of reasons. Some authors have a very clear vision of how their covers should look and will know intuitively if the end result feels right.
Others will have no idea or interest in the cover design of their publication and that is just fine.
If you feel stuck when it comes to cover design there are a few things you could try out. As with book formatting, look at books on your bookshelf or in a bookshop or supermarket.
What catches your eye? Look at books in the same genre as yours and see if there are any similarities in colour, design, fonts used or layout.
Beyond this, there are a number of things to avoid with your cover design. The first is small text or ornate font styles as these will not stand out on a website or a bookshelf.
You have a split second to catch the eye of your audience wherever you are displaying your publication. As a rule if you are an established author and your name is going to sell your book then ensure this is more prominent than your book title.
Otherwise, ensure that the book title is more prominent and make doubly sure that the title is catchy or intriguing. Another thing to avoid on your cover design is page or spine borders. Many of us think that paperback books are created perfectly but the reality is very different.
Even small variations in the cut of the paper by the printer can make your border, and therefore the whole cover design, look amateurish.
You should take considerable time in perfecting your book cover blurb for maximum impact.
If you get this right, it can sell your book and be reused many times over for book descriptions, press releases and a whole range of other purposes.
If you are not excited to read your book after reading the blurb then you cannot expect the audience to be either. If you are going to obtain and use testimonials on the book cover make sure that you get permission from the person first.
Equally, make sure that the testimonial is from someone relevant to your book. If you are writing a book for children then a testimonial from JK Rowling will be far more powerful (and appropriate) than one from E L James.
Pricing
Pricing strategies can also be difficult to decide upon for self-publishers.
Personally, I do not believe that giving away eBooks or paperbacks free is an effective strategy. Although, I appreciate many people will disagree with this advice. The reason I say this is that being an author is not just about sharing your creations. It is about building relationships with your readers and adding some value (or valuable emotional experiences) to their lives.
By giving away your publications free, you are setting up an imbalanced relationship with your readers and undermining the value of your own publication.
One popular strategy that you might consider is to encourage your potential buyers to pre-order or purchase your book on a specific launch date.
This used to be an effective way to push your book up the Amazon website rankings (at least for a few hours) and therefore potentially secure your status as an Amazon Number One Bestseller.
However, audiences are wise to these illusions now and this is, at best, an added bonus. This aside, encouraging pre-orders or setting a book launch date is never a bad idea and if you wish to offer an introductory lower price then why not.
Mainstream publishers often use such strategies with offers like pre-order this new book and get another book free. Amazon seems to favour a pre-price guarantee with products such as Books and DVDs. Interestingly, if you purchase a copy of your paperback from Createspace there is no volume discount but if you use lulu.com then you do get a volume discount.
Pricing decisions based on royalties are straightforward for paperback books. There is usually a calculator on self-publishing platform websites that enables you to make the decision easily.
The decision can be slightly more challenging for eBooks. The royalty rate is generally between 35% (usually for higher priced products – to encourage lower pricing) and as high as 90% depending on things like the publishing platform you are using and the country in which your book is bought.
In reality, pricing decisions rely more on the market (i.e. the price of similar books already on sale) than royalties received in the majority of cases. If in doubt, you can always test different prices and monitor the impact it has on sales.
Moving Forward
You are not alone on your self-publishing journey. There are great number of support forums available and lots of advice, online tuition and support articles available to you. You have the option to do everything yourself and this would likely be the cheapest option.
However, certain tasks you may find more cost effective to outsource. For example, you may wish to do the formatting yourself but outsource the cover design. Your self-publishing journey should be an enjoyable one and many authors want to concentrate on their first love of writing.
Using an experienced support company to work with you on your project may alleviate stress, keep you motivated and enable you to focus on doing the task you enjoy doing.
Whatever path you choose, you should now have a better understanding of what is involved in preparing your book for publication.
To read more from John Pelling on the various platforms for self-publication click here.