Self Publishing
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Self publishing is a fairly self-explanatory expression: it simply refers to the process by which an author, having written a body of work, publishes it himself. In actual fact, it can be summed up in three points:
1. The author is the publisher
2. The author uses their own money to finance its publication
3. The author markets it himself
As a step-by-step guide, the process of self publishing a book is as follows:
Having produced the work for publication, the author obtains an ISBN (International Standard Book Number). They then would then approach a printing company specialising in books. (The author’s obtaining the ISBN is actually what makes the author a self publisher. This is the exact definition of a self publisher. Should any other person or business obtain the ISBN, then they would be regarded as the publisher).
The author pays the printing company for whatever services it offers to put the book into print, such as editing, word processing, cover design, photography, printing and binding of the book. Not all printing companies offer such a full range of services, so the author may approach others, such as an editor or cover designer, to complete these tasks first. They may then take the product back to the printer, who should at the very least print, and probably bind, the book. The author will then be given back their books in boxes.
The author next sets out to sell their book, using whatever means of marketing they can afford. Most authors set the price at about double the printing charges. The profit would offset their own marketing costs.
An important point to reiterate here is that the true definition of self publishing is when the author themself obtains the ISBN.
The reason this is so important for a potential self publisher to understand is that some businesses are set up to prey on those unfortunate enough to venture into this field without doing much research. Remember, if one of these businesses provides the ISBN, they are the publisher, not you. Despite now owning the book, some of these businesses will still charge – in fact overcharge – you to print the book. More often than not, the quality will be sub-standard. They will also charge you for marketing the book, which will usually be done half-heartedly or not at all. Should you wish to have copies of the book, you will have to pay for them. Unfortunately a lot of authors have suffered the indignity of being caught up in such scams. In the United States, lawsuits against such firms occur daily.
However, with some research, and by always reading carefully any fine print, most authors avoid these pitfalls. They enjoy the reward of having their own self published book in print, which is often indistinguishable from that produced by a traditional publisher.
The reason this is so important for a potential self publisher to understand is that some businesses are set up to prey on those unfortunate enough to venture into this field without doing much research. Remember, if one of these businesses provides the ISBN, they are the publisher, not you. Despite now owning the book, some of these businesses will still charge – in fact overcharge – you to print the book. More often than not, the quality will be sub-standard. They will also charge you for marketing the book, which will usually be done half-heartedly or not at all. Should you wish to have copies of the book, you will have to pay for them. Unfortunately a lot of authors have suffered the indignity of being caught up in such scams. In the United States, lawsuits against such firms occur daily.
However, with some research, and by always reading carefully any fine print, most authors avoid these pitfalls. They enjoy the reward of having their own self published book in print, which is often indistinguishable from that produced by a traditional publisher.
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