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Member only guide to the Australian book industry.
MIN READ
As a writer, you may be drawn to self-publishing for a wide variety of reasons. You might wish to have more control over the publishing and creative process, the genre you’re writing in might be well-suited to self-publishing, or you may have had difficulty placing your work with a traditional publisher. Regardless, it is essential to take the time to research your options and ensure that you are making the best possible choices for you and your book.
What are your goals for your book?
A useful place to start is identifying your motives for publication. Do you want to publish for personal or commercial reasons? Your priorities will differ depending on whether you want to print just a few copies to give to friends and family, versus a larger print run in the hopes of reaching a wider audience, including having your books available in local bookshops and beyond. Thinking about your potential readership before choosing your pathway can assist you in deciding whether to focus on a print or eBook, what types of retailers you want the book available in, and even the preferred layout and look of your book. The more you know, the easier it will be to make decisions that get your book into their hands.
It’s important to note that despite a handful of highly publicised success stories, self-publishing is not generally a pathway to traditional publication. For a variety of reasons, traditional publishers are unlikely to take on work that has already been self-published. If you’re hoping for a publisher, you should exhaust your options under the traditional publishing pathway first.
DIY or publishing services business?
Broadly, there are two options for self-publishing: the DIY model, or engaging a publishing services business. If you choose the do-it-yourself approach, you are responsible for coordinating every step of the publication process. Since publishing brings together professionals with expertise in many different fields, including editing, book design, and marketing, it can be an intimidating project to manage as an individual. However, if you remain undaunted, DIY self-publishing allows for the maximum amount of control over your work. In the ASA’s Book Industry Directory you can find links to the professional association directories for editors and book designers, as well as listings for freelancers and businesses you can engage to help you produce and promote your book: book publicists, sensitivity readers, printers, book review services, distributors, reading communities, and more.
If you choose to engage a publishing services business, you should know that the basic business model for these companies is to charge the author up-front for the production of their book. In contrast, traditional publishers do not charge the author, instead generate profit through their portion of book sales. This means that while traditional publishers are invested in seeing your book succeed, publishing services companies do not share the same incentive. The author should therefore typically expect to do the vast majority of marketing and publicity themselves.
However you go about self-publishing your work, keep in mind that the financial risk will lie with you, not a publisher. You are your own best advocate to protect your creative and financial interests.
How to choose the best provider
Like with any major purchase, it’s important to do your due diligence before signing on the dotted line. The ASA advises creators to exercise caution when deciding which publishing service business to engage. While there are legitimate providers with transparent pricing and services, the rise in the popularity and accessibility for self-publishing has unfortunately resulted in a proliferation of companies with poor or deceptive practices.
Before engaging any service, you should:
How to sell and market your book
Producing a book can be relatively straightforward compared to the difficulties self-publishing authors can face accessing channels to market and making readers aware of their title.
While online markets are broadly accessible and uncomplicated because of limited format options and easy-to-use platforms on major online retailers, making your work available at brick-and-mortar bookshops is far more challenging. Some bookshops are happy to stock self-published titles by local authors on consignment, however, this means the scale of your distribution will be small. To access bookshops across Australia, you need to have a distributor. These companies have a sales team (usually freelance representatives working on commission) and a warehouse. They handle the sales and invoicing into the bookshops, the receipt and storage of stock from the printer, delivery of the stock, and credit control. However, they charge somewhere around 70-75% of net revenue for these services and there are currently very few distributors prepared to represent individual authors. You should be absolutely sure about your ability to market your work and make a return on investment before going into distribution because not only is it costly and time-consuming, it is reliant on promotion and marketing to get bookshops to order your book!
The other significant challenge for self-publishing authors is how to make readers aware your book exists. The answer is to prepare effective and realistic marketing and publicity campaigns, and to do that you must know your readership:
The more you know about your readers, the more effectively you can promote your book to them. For example, if you’ve written a romance novel set in rural Australia, you may be more likely to generate sales promoting your book on a popular Australian blog about Rural Romance, than you would by placing ads on general book websites. While you might reach a smaller audience on the blog, you are ensuring your book is discoverable by exactly the kinds of readers who will buy and enjoy your book, rather than wasting time and money promoting your title to people who never read romance.
Self-publishing can be an excellent choice for some writers. On the ASA website, you can purchase and download resources to assist you on your self-publishing path. For example, the ASA offers guides on do-it-yourself promotion for authors and what to consider when paying for publication, along with template contracts for commissioning editors, illustrators, and ghostwriters. If you have specific questions, you can also submit a query to the ASA’s free Member Advice Service. By educating yourself and taking advantage of the many resources available for authors interested in self-publishing, you can give yourself — and your book — the best possible chance for success.
