It has been said that there is a book within each and every one of us.
While the greatest challenge may seem to be writing your novel or non-fiction business book – and it is indeed a challenge to do it well. That is nothing compared to getting those books into the hands of readers.
A book is a product and it has to be sold for its value to be realized. Thus, if you want to be an author you had better be prepared to market your book.
APE – Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur – How to Publish a Book, by Guy Kawasaki and Shawn Welch, is much more than its title suggests. It can help you choose whether self-publishing or going the traditional route is best for you.
Most importantly, it will provide invaluable advice for marketing your creation.
Traditional vs Self-Publishing
The business of publishing a book has changed dramatically in the last several years, if not months. APE will help you effectively navigate those changes, regardless of whether you choose to self-publish or follow the traditional route.
Now, anyone can publish a book – due in no small part to the power of that ubiquitous marketplace known as Amazon.
It should be no surprise that there is an entire chapter devoted to navigating Amazon – as there should be. Nevertheless, you will discover that once you learn how to work with Amazon, from uploading your book to managing and responding to reviews, it’s really pretty straightforward.
Does this mean self-publishing is the way to go? Self publishing is scary even for a best-selling authors like Guy Kawasaki, because you bear all of the risk. However, the same is nearly true for traditional publishing. As Guy points out in his book, advances for new authors are becoming increasingly rare.
You need a platform just to attract the attention of a traditional publisher, which may rule it out as an option formany aspiring authors. Your platform is a collection of connection channels (such as this blog) with which you can connect with readers – in other words, sell books.
One might argue that if you have a platform you would be crazy to share the profits with a traditional publisher. While this may be true, there is a lot of heavy lifting in the form of such things as distribution to consider. For my upcoming book, that was a significant reason I chose the traditional route.
You have to know yourself well enough to know what you can do well. I happen to love marketing and sales. Whereas, some people love the thrill of building things, and believe me, there is more to building a book than just writing.
I was preparing to self-publish and changed direction for a variety of reasons. APE will help you to weigh the pros and cons of traditional vs self-publishing to determine which path is best for you. As a bonus, the authors humorously strip away idealistic fantasies to give you a true picture of what to expect.
Successful Authors are Great Marketers
If you watch late-night television you know actors are popular guests for two reasons:
1. They are usually interesting.
2. They share responsibility for the success of their film projects.
Actors need late-night television just as much as it needs them – that’s why they show up. Of course, back in the days of The Johnny Carson Show authors also shared that platform.
Unfortunately, authors and books are usually not nearly as interesting as actors and films, and therefore have to find other marketing channels to reach their audiences.
Authors not only share responsibility for the success of their books, they bear most of it, regardless of whether they traditional or self-publish. Fortunately, APE is loaded with more book marketing ideas than any author could possibly handle.
APE – Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur is a comprehensive book that will benefit both new and experienced authors, just as it will help you navigate print and the mind-numbing nuances and options involved with digital publishing.
APE is presently only available as a Kindle version. Given that is has nearly 400 links to useful online content, this may be the best way to go for most.
Good luck. I hope you enjoy the process of writing, publishing, and marketing your book as I am mine.
Leave a comment below – and please share with your social networks.
Until next time, Jeff