Welcome to Self Publishing Tips

The Key To Online Book Sales

Book Royalties

Reasons for Registering the Copyright

Registration establishes a public record of the copyright claim. The U.S. Government's copyright web site notes: "Before an infringement suit may be filed in court, registration is necessary for works of U.S. origin. If made before or within five years of publication, registration will establish prima facie evidence in court of the validity of the copyright and of the facts stated in the certificate.

If registration is made within three months after publication of the work or prior to an infringement of the work, statutory damages and attorney's fees will be available to the copyright owner in court actions. Otherwise, only an award of actual damages and profits is available to the copyright owner. Registration allows the owner of the copyright to record the registration with the U.S. Customs Service for protection against the importation of infringing copies."

*There are many reasons for officially registering the copyright when you self publish a book. It simply is another protection of your rights.

Adding Text Color to your Trade Book

The most cost effective self published book uses only one color text in the book printing. Adding color to your text will kill the unit cost of your book unless you print thousands of copies. Printing cost is made of two items: setup and run.

The setup on an offset printing press is high (compared to a digital printing press), but the running rate is low. This "setup" is fixed and is amortized over the number of copies printed. A $5000 setup spread out over 1000 copies is significantly higher than if you spread it out over 10,000 copies or 50,000. Most books that you see in the store with two- or four- color text print significantly high quantities (which you are probably not going to do).

Book Cover Bleeds

My book is bleeding! If you have an image that you want to print to the edge of the book, then that image "bleeds." This is often done on book cover designs. For the printer to be able to trim the books so that the image is at the edge, there must be some part of the image that gets trimmed off (or else you will have a white stripe of the paper showing). The amount that gets trimmed off is the "bleed," and printers require a minimum of 1/8" (¼" is preferable).

*If you want an image to bleed, be sure that you set up your files so that you have enough image to go beyond your trim. In other words, a 6 x 9" book cover that bleeds all 3 sides on the front will really be a minimum of 6-1/8 x 9-1/4."

Choosing Between a Distributor or Publisher

Book Investments

Self published books require two kinds of investments: investments in capital and investments in yourself. As in any businesses, there must be enough money to print the book, send out review copies, sustain a successful advertising campaign, etc. The amount of investing you will have depends on many factors:

• How long will your book be?
• Will it have photographs inside?
• Will the cover be full-color?
• Will you type it, do it on a computer, or have it typeset?
• How many copies will you print and on what quality of paper? Generally, to produce a professional-quality book and promote it properly, you'll be in the range of $3000-15,000 in today's marketplace.

*$3000 is closer to the minimum, however, many people get into the game for under $1000.

Creating a Budget

Is White a Color?

How many colors are there on my book layout design? The white of the paper never counts as a color in book layout design. White is the background and each individual color after that actually counts. For example:

• A one-color cover is one ink-color on white paper
• A two-color book design cover is two colors on white
• A three-color book cover is three colors on white The more colors you use, the more expensive your book layout design will be.

Here are a few hints to help you cut costs:

• Ask a designer to use screens to get other tints or colors without having to pay for them ( a 50% screen used with black will yield a gray in the area screened, and a 50% screen of red will yield a pink, etc.)
• The combination of two screens gives you the effect of a third color. (blue plus yellow equals green, yellow plus red equals brown, etc.)

*In today's digital world, there is no reason to design anything but a four color process cover (a one or 2 color cover is going to actually be printed four color if you run quantities under 500).

Fulfillment

Am I a Publisher?

Having an identity crisis? If you have paid for an ISBN number for your book, you are a publisher. That's the bottom line in self publishing.

*Many people believe they are a publisher if they pay to have their book published, but if the ISBN number belongs to a vanity or subsidiary publisher, then they are the publisher, and you are simply a consumer.

The Cost of a Book Cover

You can afford a great book cover! A basic book cover design from an experienced designer can cost as little as $200. However, the cost goes up as the complexity of the design goes up (and it also goes up with the designer's experience). Keep in mind that making the investment will pay off in the future.

*A bad book cover that does not entice buyers can be much more costly in the long run, so it pays to invest in a qualified, experience graphic artist for your book cover design.

Buying your ISBN

ISBN book number ownership is perhaps the most misunderstood aspect of self-publishing your own book. The Internet is full of misinformation on the subject. Every book that is going to be sold commercially must have an ISBN book number -- period.

*NOBODY can assign, give, lend or sell you an ISBN except for the US agency, RR Bowker. So, when self publishing books, just visit http://www.bowker.com/ to find out all the information you need to obtain an ISBN.

Hire a Book Coach

Layout Design for Children's Books

The book layout design for a children's book is a bit different than many other books. Children's books tend to be smaller, use bigger text, and almost always include color graphics.

*It's a great idea to use a "san serif font" for children's books, because they have clean straight lines that are very easy to read (some of the most common slab serif fonts are New Century Schoolbook, Classic SSK, and Clarendon).

*Keep in mind that trade books and children's books are worlds apart when it comes to design. The most talented trade book designer might be a horrendous children's book designer.

Why Not Deal With a Local Printer?

Definition of an E-Book

An e-book is a book designed and marketed to be sold online and downloaded directly to the buyer's computer as soon as they pay for the book. E-books are quick and convenient for the customer, and many e-book manufacturers sprang up seemingly overnight when e-books first became popular.

*Many are no longer in business, so if you plan to sell or market your book through an e-book publishing company, check out their reputation and longevity first.