Melinda Clayton's Blog - Posts Tagged "how-to-buy-an-isbn"
Self-publishing Made Simple: A How-to Guide for the Non-tech-savvy Among Us
The last few months have been a heck of a journey, and as I’ve found my way, I’ve periodically blogged information, tips, and hints to try to help others on the same path.
Perhaps what I found most challenging was the technological side of self-publishing. Keep in mind, I grew up in a time where communication was either face to face, through the U.S. Postal Service, or through phone carriers that charged extra for out-of-area calls (depending on the area, “out-of-area” was often just down the road).
I quickly discovered I wasn’t the only slightly-less-young person (how do you like what I did there?) trying to make sense of things. As I studied and researched, I decided to organize my notes, posts, and email and Facebook responses into a manual that others might find helpful. Self-publishing Made Simple: A How-to Guide for the Non-tech-savvy Among Us is the end result of that project.
From the introduction:
While there are many guides available to address the various aspects of self-publishing, my experience has been that the majority of them start a good three steps ahead of my level of comprehension. Create a TOC by bookmarking is only helpful if first, you know what bookmarking is, and second, you know how to do it.
As I schlepped my way through pamphlets, websites, books, blogs, and discussion boards (all while quietly cursing at my computer late into the night) I took copious notes, translating, if you will, techy-speak into language even I could understand.
After a couple of blog posts of my own and a plethora of questions from other writers struggling with some of the same issues, I decided to pull my notes and information together in order to help those who, again like me, were born well before the age of online anything. Know upfront this is not a writing guide, nor is it a marketing guide or a promotional recipe.
Instead, it’s a plainspoken, nuts and bolts instruction booklet to help guide learning, non-tech-savvy authors through the maze of confusing information. While tech-savvy folks may find much of the information useful, the simplified instructions provided in the chapters on formatting will likely irritate anyone with an above-middle-grade working knowledge of technology.
The information provided within is based on the steps I took as I transitioned from having a publisher to self-publishing, and it includes everything from avoiding questionable publishers to registering for an Employee Identification Number, choosing publishing and distribution venues, registering copyrights, and formatting the previously mentioned TOC (table of contents, for those unfamiliar with the acronym).
My own books are published and distributed through Kindle Direct Publishing, the Smashwords Premium Catalogue, and CreateSpace Expanded Distribution. I provide specific manuscript formatting instructions for Kindle Direct Publishing and Smashwords, and provide tips, clarification, and links to free templates to use in preparing your manuscript for CreateSpace.
Additional publishing and distribution channels discussed are Google Play, AllRomance/Omnilit, Lulu, Penguin’s Book Country, and Lightning Source. In each case, I discuss the pros and cons of each, and for the curious, I also discuss the decision-making process I used when choosing some platforms as opposed to others.
Additionally, I’m working in Microsoft Word 2010 so my formatting instructions are specific to that program. If you’re working in an earlier version of Word the terms and commands will be the same, but the locations on the toolbar may be different. If you’re working in HTML code or using a Mac, the chapters on formatting your document may not be very helpful to you.
Finally, links to the websites discussed in the ebook version of this booklet are embedded into clickable words or phrases. In the print book, links to the websites discussed are available on the “Helpful Resources” page in the back of the book.
The world of self-publishing is rapidly changing and growing; information and links contained within this booklet were accurate on the day of publication, but may be subject to change at some point in the future.
Now available on Amazon.
Perhaps what I found most challenging was the technological side of self-publishing. Keep in mind, I grew up in a time where communication was either face to face, through the U.S. Postal Service, or through phone carriers that charged extra for out-of-area calls (depending on the area, “out-of-area” was often just down the road).
I quickly discovered I wasn’t the only slightly-less-young person (how do you like what I did there?) trying to make sense of things. As I studied and researched, I decided to organize my notes, posts, and email and Facebook responses into a manual that others might find helpful. Self-publishing Made Simple: A How-to Guide for the Non-tech-savvy Among Us is the end result of that project.
From the introduction:
While there are many guides available to address the various aspects of self-publishing, my experience has been that the majority of them start a good three steps ahead of my level of comprehension. Create a TOC by bookmarking is only helpful if first, you know what bookmarking is, and second, you know how to do it.
As I schlepped my way through pamphlets, websites, books, blogs, and discussion boards (all while quietly cursing at my computer late into the night) I took copious notes, translating, if you will, techy-speak into language even I could understand.
After a couple of blog posts of my own and a plethora of questions from other writers struggling with some of the same issues, I decided to pull my notes and information together in order to help those who, again like me, were born well before the age of online anything. Know upfront this is not a writing guide, nor is it a marketing guide or a promotional recipe.
Instead, it’s a plainspoken, nuts and bolts instruction booklet to help guide learning, non-tech-savvy authors through the maze of confusing information. While tech-savvy folks may find much of the information useful, the simplified instructions provided in the chapters on formatting will likely irritate anyone with an above-middle-grade working knowledge of technology.
The information provided within is based on the steps I took as I transitioned from having a publisher to self-publishing, and it includes everything from avoiding questionable publishers to registering for an Employee Identification Number, choosing publishing and distribution venues, registering copyrights, and formatting the previously mentioned TOC (table of contents, for those unfamiliar with the acronym).
My own books are published and distributed through Kindle Direct Publishing, the Smashwords Premium Catalogue, and CreateSpace Expanded Distribution. I provide specific manuscript formatting instructions for Kindle Direct Publishing and Smashwords, and provide tips, clarification, and links to free templates to use in preparing your manuscript for CreateSpace.
Additional publishing and distribution channels discussed are Google Play, AllRomance/Omnilit, Lulu, Penguin’s Book Country, and Lightning Source. In each case, I discuss the pros and cons of each, and for the curious, I also discuss the decision-making process I used when choosing some platforms as opposed to others.
Additionally, I’m working in Microsoft Word 2010 so my formatting instructions are specific to that program. If you’re working in an earlier version of Word the terms and commands will be the same, but the locations on the toolbar may be different. If you’re working in HTML code or using a Mac, the chapters on formatting your document may not be very helpful to you.
Finally, links to the websites discussed in the ebook version of this booklet are embedded into clickable words or phrases. In the print book, links to the websites discussed are available on the “Helpful Resources” page in the back of the book.
The world of self-publishing is rapidly changing and growing; information and links contained within this booklet were accurate on the day of publication, but may be subject to change at some point in the future.
Now available on Amazon.
