More Self-Publishing Tips by Samella McClary-Brown

A few years back, I self-published a romance novel (with a hint of a mystery to it). In a prior post, I covered the pros and cons of self-publishing. In this post, you will find tips on how I went about choosing a publisher along with some other tips that you might find useful.

Choosing the right self-publisher
There are a number of companies out there ready to take your money, so beware. Here are the factors I used to make my decision.

Get References:
Get references of authors who self-published by looking up the titles of the books, getting feedback, checking out their Web sites, reviews, and finding out how their books are doing. If possible, see if you can contact a few of the authors. Attend workshops and conferences and ask other authors who published their books and find out any pitfalls they might know about. Do this before you publish, as much as you can.

Know Your Market/Budget:
Who is your target readership? Are you publishing just for fun, or are you hoping to sell 10 million copies? The answer to this ties into how much your budget is. If you are hoping to print a few copies for friends and family, then you might simply want to go with a local printer, whereas if you are hoping to mass-market and sell to a wider audience, a larger self-publisher might be your best choice. Make sure your budget includes cost of printing book, paying an editor, printing promotional material, etc.

Customer Service:
Another important quality to me was the customer service; how knowledgeable the staff was, their professionalism and follow through in getting back to me with answers.
Take your time doing the research. Pick the place you feel most comfortable with. Lastly, ask questions–no question is dumb and no concern is too small. Use your inner voice–if good signals are going off, go with that publisher, if there are any alarm bells going off, even just one, beware.

Once you've made your choice
Once you’ve picked a publisher, make sure you get everything in writing; the cost involved, the time frame they expect to have it published, what services they may offer, such as press releases or what assistance they can help with marketing. And make sure any changes discussed over the phone are put in writing, either via email or snail mail. And also get suggestions and tips for marketing, what they suggest, what they worked for other authors.

Before sending your manuscript make sure that you have as many people as possible proof your work or if funds are available, have a professional proofreader look at your work. Remember, when you self-publish, your manuscript will be printed out just the way you give it to them. So, if there are errors, your novel will have errors. And if your manuscript is double spaced, your novel will be double spaced as well, which means more pages, a heavier book, more cost to print it. Whereas, a single spaced novel, it will cost less to print and you will be able to charge a lesser amount, comparable to a publisher, than if it was double spaced. Be very careful of everything.

Be prepared to promote your own book. This was perhaps one of the most difficult parts of self-publishing for me. I mean, initially, I did do some promoting, by telling friends and families and attending a few conferences, one as a vendor and another as an attendee. I called local newspapers, etc., but after a while this became challenging. If like me, you have other commitments, this can become difficult. I also became a little disenchanted with the whole thing, meaning, that now that the book was completed and done, I almost did not care and just did minimal work to promote. So in this area, it depends what your goals and ultimate dreams are. Bottom line, the more you promote, the more exposure you will get. And you have to keep this consistent, constant–period.

In the end, I feel as though it was definitely worth it. No matter how many books I sold or did not sell, to me, the ultimate joy and satisfaction was that I had a completed work of fiction printed. My friends, families and colleagues were able to read what I had written and also, it gave my life some sort of completion by taking on this task of first, writing the book and second, having it printed. What a wonderful thing to show and teach my daughters–that they can accomplish any task, if you just persevere.

Good luck–and let me know how things turn out!

Samella McClary-Brown, AKA Samella Trent, is an Assistant Editor with The Rose & Thorn. Suddenly is available for purchase at Amazon.com and BarneandNoble.com.

Book Review: First Draft in 30 Days

First Draft in 30 Days
by Karen S. Wieser
Writer's Digest Books

Reviewed by Jason Fryer

For some writers, ‘outlining’ is a nasty, four-letter word. So, when an author claims their outlining method will produce your novel’s first draft in a mere thirty days (no matter the genre), that’s a bold statement indeed. However, in her book, First Draft in 30 Days, Karen S. Wiesner does exactly that and, for the most part, she comes through on her promise.

Wiesner’s concise 30-day method breaks novel development down into six manageable and intuitive stages, each of which is discussed in detail. Each stage, in turn, is broken down into individual segments. Although I felt some segments would take far longer to complete than described (such as character development), the author allows the opportunity to go back and fix incomplete sections. In the end, the various segments are brought together to create a detailed outline, effectively the first draft of the novel.

Wiesner uses her writing experience, numerous examples, and a pleasant writing style to present her concepts. She also offers a plethora of useful worksheets and supplemental materials, as well as an abbreviated version of her methodology for use with projects already in production. For the most part, she does a solid job and offers an intriguing approach to novel development. I did have to question her claim that her method could be used for all genres, as I felt the book slanted more towards mystery and romance writers. Also, the highly regimented outline could make the addition of flashbacks and other narrative devices difficult. Even so, these complaints are minor, making First Draft in 30 Days an excellent resource for any writer.


Canadian-born, Jason Fryer never thought he’d end up becoming a Texan, but fate is funny that way. Although a writer at heart, he also enjoys eating. As such, he has worn many hats over the last few years, including security guard, test subject, editorial assistant, and donut maker. Most recently, he has become the grant coordinator for a cell biology department of a major Texas University. A freelance writer for over fourteen years, Jason has been published in a variety of magazines, journals, and textbooks. At the moment, he is finishing his second novel and hopes to have it ready for publication sometime next year. He also serves as the Content Producer for the Rose & Thorn newsletter.

Writer for Hire by Andrea Middendorf

WMFH. No, it’s not some new computer shorthand like LOL, LMAO, or TTFN; that’s a whole other discussion. WMFH stands for "works made for hire," and it is a phrase that every would-be writer should be intimately familiar with. As defined by section 101 of the U.S. copyright law, a work made for hire is “a work prepared by an employee within the scope of his or her employment,” or “a work specially ordered or commissioned for use as a contribution to a collective work.” A collective work can be anything from a compilation to a translation to answer material for a test.

Confused yet?

An easy and classic way to think of WMFH is to look at a newspaper editorial. An editorial writer prepares the piece within the scope of his/her employment; essentially, it is the writer’s job. The writer may have prepared the editorial, but does not own it. The employing newspaper or magazine owns all rights to the editorial. That means the newspaper can publish and republish the editorial, or even re-sell it to another paper or magazine, without permission from the writer.

This is why it is so important to read, and read thoroughly, any contract. Contracts are necessary evils in the writing business, but they can be mind-boggling with their difficult and archaic language. They are made that way--deliberately so--by publishers of all kinds. But we are writers, words are our milieu, our warm and fuzzy blanket, and we can carve our way through the labyrinthine depths and protect ourselves and our work.

"But no," you cry, "I’m just a writer. I must work on my craft! I can’t be bothered by all this legal mumbo jumbo."

If you want your work and your rights protected, you'd better be bothered by it. But never fear, there are many resources out there for the proverbial writer in the woods. The National Writers Union (NWU) is “the only labor union that represents freelance writers in all genres, formats, and media.” Their Web site, www.nwu.org, is a wonderful resource not only for any writer who has questions regarding contracts, but for information on any publisher that seems a little hinky. Besides alerting writers to the nefarious practice of unscrupulous publishers, the NWU also assists with contract advice, grievance assistance, a job hotline, and tons of other important help and advice.

The American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA) is another invaluable resource for writers, both new and seasoned. Their Web site, www.asja.org, also has numerous links, articles, and resources for the beleaguered author. While it is an organization for nonfiction writers, the ASJA is still an excellent resource for any writer looking for information.

They say that to be forewarned is to be forearmed, and knowledge is power, so don’t sell yourself short by skimming over that contract. Read it carefully, and if you need help deciphering all the legalese, know that there is help out there.

Resources:
www.copyright.gov --Works Made for Hire Under the 1976 Copyright Act
www.nwu.org --National Writers Union
www.asja.org --The American Society of Journalists and Authors


Andrea Middendorf, an editor for The Rose & Thorn Literary E-zine, lives in Minnesota, where she is currently working on her novel.