Your Self-Publishing Self-Evaluation

It is the nature of self-publishing that you have to do everything yourself. (That’s true even if you hire people to help you: you’ve still got to decide whether your editor is right about any given edit, or whether the the cover designer you hired has come up with something good or not.) You’re the CEO, and the CFO, and the head of the creative division and the guy (or gal) who takes out the recycling. And you’re also the one who has to evaluate how well you’ve done.

Self-evaluation requires commitment, self-discipline, and the ability to put up with things that suck, because self-evaluation sucks. Yes, self-evaluation is valuable. Yes, self-evaluation is necessary. But self-evaluation sucks, and everyone hates doing it, because nobody likes dwelling on their weaknesses and nobody likes thinking that their strengths aren’t so hot, either. Self-evaluation is brutal and you have to do it and it’s awful and stop crying about it and just do it already.

What I’ve done is put together a self-evaluation form for people who are getting ready to publish their first book and don’t have any experience in doing it. The only suggestion I would have for anyone who really wants to use this as an evaluation tool is total honesty. There aren’t any (or at least not very many) right or wrong answers. And you don’t have to share the results with anyone (although it would be cool if other people blogged about this, and tried it, and shared).

Obviously, if you don’t think this is helpful, or that it doesn’t apply to you, just ignore it or whatever. And, yes, there are a couple of jokes thrown in. If you have any suggestions for additional questions please leave them in the comments or tweet them at me or whatever.

SELF-EVALUATION FOR FIRST-TIME PUBLISHERS

Section 1: Book Quality

Who has read your book so far? (Select all that apply.)

Just me.
My spouse/partner/significant other.
A friend or family member.
My editor and/or proofreader.
A critique partner.
The people in my writer’s group.
People who’ve read sample chapters at my website.
One or more literary agents.
Another self-published author.
A traditionally-published author.
A.J. Jacobs.


Has the feedback you have gotten been positive? If so, do you think it was wholly honest?
Have you gotten any negative feedback from anyone about any aspect of the book? How did you address it?
Which of the following things have you done to prepare your book for publication?

Self-edited
Hired a developmental editor
Self-proofread
Hired a proofreader
Formatted e-book myself
Hired someone to format the e-book for me
Formatted print version myself
Hired someone to format print version for me


In what formats have you read and reviewed your book?

Just my word-processor.
Kindle.
E-PUB
Print


Does your book have grammar errors that you know about? Spelling errors? Formatting problems? If so, do you have a plan to address them?
If you were writing a book review of your book, how many stars would you give it? Why?
If someone else had written your book instead of you, would you be in a big hurry to read it? Why?
What’s the best thing about your book?
What’s the worst thing about your book?
Some people have characterized success in self-publishing as being like a lottery–that you can earn a lot of riches based on luck. Do you think your book is a winning lottery ticket? Why?
What makes your book different than anyone else’s?

Section 2: Initial Budget

How much money do you have available to spend on everything that you will need to do to get your book published?

I am so broke I can’t pay attention.
$1 – $100
$100 – $500
$500 – $1500
$1500 – $2500
$2500 – $5000
$5000 – $10,000
$10,000 – $50,000
Over $50,000
Would you be interested in a small investment in an existing publishing operation?


How much do you have to spend on the following items? (Note: this is a good article to read if you don’t have a good concept on what to spend.)

Editing
Proofreading
E-book conversion
Cover design
ISBN
Reviews
Promotion


Which of the above items is your biggest priority?
Which of the above items do you think you can use to maybe cut corners?
Was the answer to the last question “cover design”? If so, are you sure about it?
If so, have you looked at Lousy Book Covers? Or read this article about why you should have a decent book cover?
What are you going to do with the money you are going to make in royalties?

Money is a paternalistic construct that means nothing to the true artist.
A 99-cent e-book
A burger at Five Guys (mustard and relish, no bacon, no cheese)
Dinner at Red Lobster
Groceries
Rent
Quit my day job
Small private island, in the Caribbean, or the South Pacific, can’t decide which.
I really don’t know
Re-investing back into my book

Section 3: Sales Channels

Are you planning on selling your e-book on Amazon?
If so, are you planning on selling your e-book exclusively on Amazon through KDP Select?
If not, what platforms are you considering?

Smashwords
Barnes & Noble
Apple
Google Play
Kobo
Scribd
Wattpad
Some other source
On my website
Out of the trunk of my car

Section 4: Marketing Strategy / Platform

What is your book’s logline?
Can you put that logline into 140 characters (plus a shortened URL)?
Do you have a description of your book ready?
What are some books that are comparable to your book?
How is your book different than those titles?
What are some authors who have a similar style as you have?
Are you planning on using social media to help sell your book?
If so, what channels?
If so, are you planning on doing it all the time?
If so, do you think that you’ll be making a big nuisance of yourself?
How do you decide which books to buy?
How does your answer to the previous question impact your marketing strategy?

Section 5: Marketing Channels

Are you planning on hiring a marketing consultant?
Which of the following marketing tools have you considered?

Direct e-mail marketing to my mailing list
E-mail marketing through a service, like BookBub
Online marketing through sites like eBookBooster
Advertising
Goodreads
Giveaways (on Goodreads, LibraryThing, etc.)
My existing Twitter account
A new Twitter account (for my publishing company or the book)
My existing Facebook account
A new Facebook page (an author page or a publishing company page or a book page)
My existing website
A dedicated website for the book
Other social media
Organizations of independent authors (WLC, IAN, etc.)
A virtual book tour
Bookstore appearances
Conferences and/or conventions

Section 6: Reviews

Do you have a plan for getting people to review your book?
Have you submitted this book for review anywhere?
Are you considering a review service (like NetGalley)?
Are you considering submitting to paid review sites (like Kirkus)?
Are you considering entering any contests that provide reviews (like IndieReader)?
Will you provide free review copies to reviewers on request?
Do you have plans to contact reviewers and/or book bloggers?

Section 7: Metrics

In terms of sales, what is your goal for this book?

Information must be free. I’m planning on making this book free forever.
If all I do is sell one book, that’s a victory against the gatekeepers and their minions.
If I sell ten books, I’ll be happy.
If I sell a hundred books, that would be a nice thing.
If I sell a thousand books and make enough to make my rent one month, that would be emotionally fulfilling.
I want to sell ten thousand books and go from there.
If I sell a hundred thousand books, I can quit my day job.
If I sell a million books, I can retire.
How many did Agatha Christie sell? More than that.


Have you thought about doing a free promotion (through KDP Select or otherwise)? What would be your goal for that?

I wouldn’t dream of giving my book away.
I don’t even know.
A hundred copies? Would that be good?
A thousand copies.
Ten thousand copies.
Fifty thousand copies.
ALL MUST READ MY WORDS.


How many reviews of your book are you shooting for?

Reviews aren’t important. I don’t care what other people think.
If just one person likes my book, I’m happy.
Five.
Ten.
Twenty-five.
Fifty.
A hundred.
Five hundred.
I have no idea.


You realize that you’re probably going to get at least a couple one-star or two-star reviews, right?

So?
No one would do that. This is an amazing, powerful, compelling book and NO ONE WOULD EVER RATE IT JUST ONE STAR. SHUT UP.
I have no interest in the opinion of people who clearly aren’t qualified to read my sterling work of absolute genius.
You mean, other people will write reviews? Of MY book?
Give me a second, and let me bury my head in my hands and cry for a little while, and I’ll be right with you.
I have accepted the realities of a marketplace where consumer reviews are prevalent.


Do you have a plan for dealing with bad reviews?

Yes! My entire marketing plan is built around “The Streisand Effect.”
I will assume that they are just jealous of my success and move on.
I’m going to ignore all reviews anyway.
If the review is constructive in some way, and can help me be a better writer, I will use it. If it’s not, that’s fine too. Everyone is entitled to their opinion and not everyone likes every book.
Does stalking count as a plan?

Section 8: Knowledge

What books have you read about self-publishing?
What blogs do you follow about self-publishing?
Where would you go if you needed help with an issue?
Do you know the difference between KDP and KDP Select?
What is the difference between the 35% royalty and the 70% royalty on Amazon?
What are the pluses and minuses of putting your e-book on Amazon?
What is MOBI?
What is EPUB?
Should you put song lyrics in a book or not?
What is copyright?
What is fair use?
What is an ISBN? Do you need one?
What is an ASIN?
What does TL,DR mean? (Especially in the context of, well, this guide.)

Section 9: Technology

What software did you use to write your book?
What software did you use to edit your book?
What software did you use to format your book for e-book format?
What software did you use to format your book for print format?
Are you familiar with Calibre?
Are you familiar with Adobe Acrobat?
Are you familiar with Photoshop (or other photo software)?
Can you put together a website of your own?
Can you navigate social media online?
What are your biggest weaknesses in terms of technology?

Section 10: Attitude

Why did you decide to self-publish?
Do you have a positive or negative attitude towards self-publishing in general?
Do you have an EXTREMELY positive OR negative attitude towards self-publishing?
Does the thought of self-publishing your book make you excited? Nervous? Depressed?
Are you prepared if people don’t want to read your book?
Are you prepared if people REALLY don’t want to read your book?
Are you prepared if you get bad reviews?
Do you think your expectations are realistic? Unrealistic?
For this project, what’s your personal definition of success?
How will you celebrate if you reach your personal definition of success?
What will you do if you don’t reach your personal definition of success?
Do you have another project in mind after this book is published? Have you started on it?

I hope this was helpful. If this was helpful, please feel free to thank me by reading and reviewing my book.