Self Publishing
How to get permission from copyright owners
Ah, permissions. This is one of the knottiest areas of publishing for writers who are trying to do things right. When do you need to ask permission to use a quote, or a graph, or
New Media
KDP vs. Ingram Spark: How They Stack Up
Ingram Spark is an interesting publishing platform for many reasons, among them: 1) Spark offers print-on-demand service for hardcover books with jackets; and 2) Spark provides writers with a friendlier path into bookstores than Amazon/KDP.
Self Publishing
How Much Does It Cost to Self-Publish a Book?
Plenty of people will tell you that self-publishing a book is free. And it is free if all you’re talking about is the cost of uploading your files to KDP or Ingram Spark or Bookbaby.
Book Marketing
How To Approach a Bookstore: Tips for Authors
I’m often asked by authors how to get their books into local bookstores. I recently sat down with the manager of Books, Inc., just off the Stanford campus in Palo Alto, to find out how
Book Marketing
How To Get Over 50 Starred Reviews on Amazon First Day Out
Recently during my Stanford workshop on self-publishing, guest speaker Guy Kawasaki was asked whether he had purchased any ads for his new book on self-publishing APE: Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur–How to Publish a Book. “Not one,”
Book Design
Best Fonts for the Interior of Your Self-Published Book
One of the biggest mistakes I see authors make in self-publishing their print books is in their choices of typefaces. They’re either too common or too weird. Since most wordsmiths are design-challenged, I asked one
The “Truthiest” Font Is…
If you don’t think fonts matter, take a look at the article in Friday’s New York Times. Errol Morris describes the informal experiment of a university student who found that he could raise his grade
Best Book Covers
Just back from BookExpo in New York, where I saw some extraordinary book covers. Over at Pinterest, I’ve put together a little board with comments on why each deserves special attention. If you believe, as
Tips for Hiring an Editor
Do you really need an editor? Yes! Absolutely. Without question. Regardless of how good your writing is, you need a professional editor to work with you before you publish. Think of it this way: your
Another Book Awards Program for Independent Publishers and Self-Published Authors
In yesterday’s blog, I listed three awards programs I’ve had some experience with and can recommend to independent publishers and self-published authors who would like to garner some kudos for their work. But I forgot