By Kaye George
I discussed small press publication when I was here two
weeks ago and will spill what I know about self-publishing today.
When I got my first small press contract, it was for trade
paperback rights only, and excluded e-books. This was in 2010, for 2011
publication, not that long ago. The book publishing business has changed so
much in such a short period of time! But even then, I had an e-reader and knew
e-books were the new hot thing. So I was thrilled that I retained those rights.
I had a few months before my book would come out and I knew I would
self-publish the e-book, so I did a trial run.
Over the years, seeking publication for a mystery novel, I
had had a few short stories accepted in print and online magazines, some of which
paid me a bit, most of which didn't. One story garnered an Agatha nomination. The
thought had been rattling around in the back of my mind to collect them
someday, and the time had come. I got permission where I thought I might need
it, although many publications had gone out of business. I especially wanted
the illustrations for the stories that had been illustrated, and was able to
get permission for some of them.
Looking over my stories, I realized some were light and
fluffy, some were rather dark, some were barely mysteries at all. What would I
use to unify them? I puzzled over this for awhile, then my eye was caught by photos
of a patchwork quilt that a good friend made for my first baby years ago, and
which I was giving to my daughter's son. I had taken photos of it before I gave
it away. That was it! My stories were a patchwork. I used one of my photos for
the cover and published it as an ebook. Knowing I would do this again for
CHOKE, I took careful notes. Then, because I knew others would have to go
through all of this, too, I published a short booklet of my notes (The Road to
Self-Publishing). The process was trial and error for me that first time. It
took a bit of persistence to get the e-books done, but not as much persistence as
it had taken to get a novel accepted by a publisher--by a long shot!
When the time came to do CHOKE, I knew, from my experience,
that I would do Smashwords first, then Kindle and Pubit. After I formatted for
Smashwords, I had a file almost ready to go for the others. I excluded distribution
to Kindle and Pubit on the Smashwords sites. I'd heard that books are easier to
find in those two places if you specifically publish there, rather than just
let the Smashwords versions migrate. I think that has worked well.
I've published several other things since then. A short
story anthology that three of us from Austin did (ALL THINGS DARK AND
DASTARDLY), SMOKE (the sequel to CHOKE), and a few separate short stories.
It's been a few months since I did an ebook, so my booklet
is probably out of date and needs additions. I've updated it every time I've
published something. But I'll be doing BROKE very soon and will tweak it where
it needs it.
Links to all of the above can be found on my website, http://kayegeorge.com/. While you're there,
go ahead and listen to the free short story on the home page. Or sign up for my
newsletter--hint, hint.
Image of book from Free Brown Clipart
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8 comments:
Kaye, publishing has certainly been a trial and error experience for many of us in recent years. Thanks for sharing your helpful and informative information.
You're quite welcome, Earl! Glad to share info if it helps prevent more errors. I think publishing paperbacks might be a whole nother blog, since I left that out mostly.
It's been nice to see your progression, Kaye. Not many people can write light and dark. It takes a versatile person. I know the coming year/s will be good to you. Your rise has already started.
What can I say, Polly? I'm flighty. Or maybe it's that I like to read just about everything. Thanks for coming by. Let's hope I have more than one good year. :)
Great information, Kaye. Thank you!
It really does help to keep track of everything you're doing when you publish. Even if some of the rules change, it makes it so much easier the next time around.
My only problem is finding my lists, and if they're on my computer, remembering what they're called.!
Morgan Mandel
Twitter: @MorganMandel
As a writer I spent enormous time, money, and effort trying to publish my books with agents and publishers. I finally decided on self-publishing and it was the best way to go. Ebooks has become a new market for authors, especially if you are self-publishing your own book. I presently have ebooks on KINDLE bookstore: BLOODGUILTY, SPOOKY MOON STORIES, and SECRETS of the UNIVERSE. All are available on KINDLE bookstore by RAYMOND THOR.
Thanks, Patricia and Morgan, for stopping by. Morgan I'm ALWAYS searching for files on my computer. Usually I eventually find them.
Ray, it's wonderful so many options are open to writers. Self-pubbing isn't for everyone, but it's perfect for some.
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