An ASK system that helps guide authors toward a decision by answering many of their frequently asked questions about book publishing.

1. SELF-PUBLISHING FOR
AUTHORS
Ask System - Jeff Shelton, Front End Analysis of Systems, Fall 2019
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2. Mary has finished writing her first steamy romance novel. She
is proud of her achievement. Now Mary is ready to have it
published, share it with the world, and make some MONEY!!!
Unfortunately none of the publishing houses will publish
Mary’s book. Mary has heard that she can self-publish her book
but doesn’t know what to do. She’s an author not a publisher.
Scenario
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3. WHAT YOU’LL LEARN
Learning Outcomes
• Authors will determine what type of book
to publish.
• Authors will learn how to create a book
from a manuscript.
• Authors will understand the costs involved
in publishing a book.
• Authors will be able to find locations to sell
their book.
Types of Questions
• Planning Questions
• Goal oriented procedural knowledge
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4. What type of book should I publish?
How do I create a book from a manuscript?
What are the costs involved in creating a book?
Where can I sell my book?
Click the links to find out more information about self-publishing. You
can return to this screen by pressing the home button in the lower right
corner.
Self-Publishing for Authors

5. What type of book should I publish?
The two types of books that authors publish are print
or digital. Each type has its own advantages and
disadvantages for publishers. An author can choose to
publish both types of book or just one type.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of
publishing a print book?
What are the advantages and disadvantages of
publishing a digital book?

6. PRINT BOOKS
Advantages
• Print books are tangible. There are many people
that like the feel of a physical book.
• Print books can be sold in stand alone
bookstores.
• Print books are easier to use in publicity.
• There is a sense of accomplishment when holding
your own print book.
• Print books deliver a higher price.
Disadvantages
• Print books require a seller to maintain inventory
that may not be able to be sold quickly or at all.
So they may order less books or return unsold
books.
• Print books cost more because there is a higher
cost for the printing.
• Print books require shipping costs.
• Print books are more difficult to design.
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7. DIGITAL BOOKS
Advantages
• Digital books don’t require inventory.
• Digital books have the ability to be
seen quicker by eyes around the
globe.
• Digital books are easier to produce.
• Digital books are less expensive to
produce.
Disadvantages
• No sense that you actually wrote a
book. Nothing tangible.
• Lower cost per sale.
• Easily copied and stolen.
• Requires some form of computer to
access contents.
Back
Expert Tip: Most people start with digital books for self publishing because of the ease of entry into
publishing.

8. How do I create a book from a manuscript?
Once a manuscript has been written it
will need to be turned into a book. The
first step is to have the manuscript
edited. Once the editing is complete it
will need to be formatted. Cover art will
need to be designed. The book will have
to be uploaded. Then the book can be
printed or digitally distributed. Each step
is dependent upon the previous step.
Why does the book need to be edited?
How do I format the book?
Where do I get the cover art?
Where do I upload the book?

9. Why does the book need to be edited?
Most people make small grammatical errors. Typos
end up in the most unusual places. Not even the best
of spell and grammar checkers can catch everything.
Plus just because you wrote something doesn’t mean
it’s good. An editor can help clarify unusual issues
with your writing and make the writing stronger.
Readers are not very forgiving of authors who don’t
make sense.
How do I find an editor?
Can I do it myself?
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10. How do I find an editor?
Back
There are some companies that will edit your book for a price. A simple Google search will
help you find these people. A better solution is to search out the large book publishers and
find out who their editors are. These people often work freelance on the side and will edit
your book for a fee. It might also be a way into a publishing house.
Expert Tip: Pay for an editor. Let them do the grunt work while you work
on your next book.

11. Can I do it myself?
Back
There are many authors who edit their books as they are writing the books. You can edit
the book once you have written it, however having a fresh set of eyes on your work may
produce a better result for you in the end.
Expert Tip: There are many authors who self-publish who don’t edit their books. They
just put them out there with any mistakes that may be in them. It is a way to save
money, but you may lose readers this way.

12. How do I format the book?
Print books need to go through a specific set of steps
that take the book from beginning to completion.
Formatting can be done in a basic word processing
program. The video below details the steps.
Digital books also need to go through a specific set of
steps, however the programs developed to format the
books are designed to make this process easier. The video
below details the process.
BackEven though these videos are for Amazon, the
process is similar for all publishers.

13. Book covers sell books. That’s why it’s so important to have a
great cover. Each cover needs to be graphically designed. You
can design the cover yourself, you can pay a graphic designer to
create a cover for you, or you can purchase a premade cover
for your work. There are websites devoted to selling book
covers. You’ll need to determine the size of book that you are
selling before you purchase. If it’s a print book you need to
know the number of pages in the book to determine how big
the spine is. You need a clear vision for the final look of your
book.
Where do I get the cover art?
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https://thebookcoverdesigner.com/
https://selfpubbookcovers.com/
Resources

14. Print books can now be printed on demand. They do not
require large print runs from a private printing company.
So when a customer purchases the book it can be
printed and shipped. There are two companies that
print books on demand. They are KDP owned by
Amazon, and Ingram Spark. You can upload print books
there to be created on demand.
Where do I upload the book?
Digital books must be formatted for the site that they
are sold. So if you format a digital book on one of the
platforms, you can sell it there. If you don’t format it
there you cannot sell it there. The most common sites
to upload the books are:
Amazon
Kobo
Barnes and Noble
Apple iBooks
Back

15. What are the costs involved in creating a book?
When authors have their books produced by a
publisher the publisher assumes all of the costs.
These can be considerable. They include items such as
editing, formatting, cover art, and publicity. When an
author self-publishes a book they assume all of those
costs. They also keep all of the money from the sale of
the book.
What is the cost of editing a book?
What is the cost of formatting a book?
What is the cost of cover art?
What is the cost of publicity?

16. The cost of editing a book can be very pricey. It is done on a per word bases. So if a book
has 10,000 words and the per word price is $.03 then the author will pay $300. Most
books however are anywhere between 50,000 and 120,000 words ($1500 to $3600). As
you can see the costs would add up quickly. Plus this is a first pass edit. There are
different levels of editing and a book can be edited multiple times for content and
grammar.
Editors charge different prices per word typically based on how much work they must do.
If an author’s work doesn’t need much editing then the editor may charge a lower price,
however if there are a lot of grammar and typo issues the editor might charge a higher
price. You may be able to negotiate your price, just ask.
An author can minimize their editing costs by doing a lot of it themselves. Most word
processing programs have spell and grammar checkers these days. Save some money and
use them.
What is the cost of editing a book?
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17. Formatting a book is dependent upon the type of book that is being formatted. Print
books cost more to format than digital books because there are many different things
that must be formatted such as page numbers, chapter headings, indentations, and
title pages. Typical print book formatting can cost up to $80 for an 80,000 word book.
Digital books are not as difficult to format. Most of the publishers of digital books have
their own software that a publisher uses to format a book for their own platform. So
Amazon has their own software, and Kobo has their own software, etc. Each has its
own features. While digital books are easier to format they can become more
expensive because they have to be formatted for each platform. Then uploaded. A
typical price for formatting a digital book is $25/platform, and $25/upload.
What is the cost of formatting a book?
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18. Cover artists charge per design element. Remember digital books only require a front cover for
selling the book whereas a print book requires the front cover, back cover, and spine. A typical front
cover can range anywhere from $50 - $150 while a back cover and spine combo add on is usually
$75 additional.
Most cover designers use stock images in their designs. Cover art can greatly increase in price when
an author chooses to use a specific model or image. Photographers and models may need to get
involved which can cost a lot of money. Custom design costs money.
Covers can have a great range of prices that can range into the thousands.
To keep costs down you can create the cover yourself. Amazon has a book cover creator. Also
choosing pre-made covers will keep your costs in line.
What is the cost of cover art?
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19. The cost of publicity can be never ending. You can spend a lot of money on getting your book seen
by the right people. Full page ads, commercials, publicists, banner ads, book tours, and blog tours
cost a lot of money. This is easily the area that can cost the most in publishing a book. It is not
uncommon to spend thousands of dollars to publicize a book.
Because there are so many variables in the cost of publicity it is best to create a budget and devote a
portion to publicity. Then use whatever amount of money you have to gain the biggest bang for your
advertising buck.
Remember that after a book has been published it may need to be publicized in different ways for
many years because you may publicize a sale or a re-release. There are always additional costs which
is why it is best to set a budget and spend it. Then move on.
What is the cost of publicity?
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20. Where can I sell the book?
You can sell a printed book practically anywhere. Local bookstores and book signings are
great places to sell your books. Digital books on the other hand can only be sold on the
sites that the book was formatted for. The top places to sell your books are:
Amazon
Kobo
Barnes and Noble
Apple iBooks
What’s next for Mary?
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What’s Next

21. Success!!!
Mary gets rave reviews and
self-publishes 10 more
books.
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