I think this is a procrastination blog...I'm reviewing the revisions for the lastest book we are publishing, Just Wanna Create. It's a hard slog. So....I thought I would write about our self-publishing...
We've been doing a lot of self-publishing. By the end of the year, we will have self-published 5 quilting related books, and 1 non-quilting IP book. We had a lot of help with advice on how to do everything, and then we did some research too.
ISBN Numbers. You need them. Leah Day suggested we get a packet of 10, which was super smart. She said that if you write one book, you are bound to write another. You get them at Bowker: http://www.bowker.com/products/ISBN-US.html. They are a little pricy. But this is how your book is identified, and you need it for the publishing process. Here is more about ISBN numbers: https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/topic/G201834170
LOC: Library of Congress identifier. This takes a bit of time, but is for libraries. https://www.loc.gov/publish/prepubbooklink/
The Choice of Self-Publishers. There are a number of them.
* Amazon has one, Kindle https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US?ref_=kdpgp_p_us_psg_kw_ad62. It doesn't cost anything to upload your book. And you can order copies. It can be a Kindle or hard copy. There are a lot of directions on how to do it. You can get your ISBN number through Amazon too.
* IngramSparks. We choose this one because we could get our books faster, and we also liked that we had more control generally. We've had great experience with this. The cost os $50 for them to review your cover and manuscript for technical issues. Then you upload your materials.
* Local publishers. Lots of people find a local printer. That's a great idea too.
We're starting to look for other options for publishers to bring the cost down a little more. We'll keep you posted on what we find.
The cover: there are a lot of resources to make the cover.
*Canva is a great resource. It's free. www.canva.com, and you can design lots of things there.
*Fivver. This is a service that you hire someone to make the cover.
We used Eyeridium, a new company (my kid) started of high school and college artists. So, that kind of thing is available too.
Copyright issues: the cover picture should not be something that you do not have permission to use or is not your own image. Copyright does not look kindly to infringing images that are selling a work.
Looking for images? Pixabay is a great resource. www.pixabay.com. Also, just ask permission if it is something you want to use.
Ok. Back to the manuscript...
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