Best Selling Author/Self-Publisher
Reveals The Secrets To Creating Your Own Successful Book
Learn How To Bypass the "Insiders Club" of The Mainstream Publishers and Create Your Own Massively Successful Book
Dear Author-
Have you ever dreamed of becoming a successfully published author? I think it's true that at one time or another just about everyone dreams of writing a book that will make a difference - that will change the lives of others. And it is possible to have a successful book - very possible - when you go about it wisely. But what do you do first?
Most people believe that success as an author comes from writing a great book and the rest will take care of itself. And that is the first fatal mistake. Sure, you've got to write a great book - a book you're passionate about - a book that you put your heart and soul into. But that just isn't enough.
Let Me Explain
Publishing a successful book is like so many other things in life. There are several set formulas for authors to get published - call them recipes - and most authors follow the most common recipe. The problem is, the most common recipe rarely works. Maybe this sounds a bit familiar:
You pour your soul into a piece of work that you know will touch the hearts of people
You shop the work around the literary agent community to find someone who will:
Get you a great publishing deal
A mainstream publisher offers you an advance on the book, which you gladly accept
The book goes to press, is released, and lands on the New York Times Bestseller list
That's just one version of the publishing recipe. It's the Cinderella story. Yes, things like that do happen occasionally. But most authors would be happy with just the first three items on the list - to write a great book, shop it around, and get a deal - any kind of deal.
The problem with that formula is, it's a recipe for failure - not just failure - Disaster!
Reality Check
In the real world, just getting a mainstream publisher to look at your work is a MAJOR ACCOMPLISHMENT. Actually getting a deal and receiving a cash advance is nearly impossible for a first time author. Why?
The Truth About Mainstream Publishers
I'm going to shinny way out onto the skinny branches when I say this, but here goes anyway: MAINSTREAM PUBLISHERS DON'T KNOW SQUAT ABOUT MARKETING AND SELLING BOOKS! That seems like a pretty bold statement so let me back it up with a few facts.
Every year there are almost 100,000 new titles released to the public - most are dismal failures
Depending upon the size of the publisher, a book will have anywhere from three to six weeks to make it in the bookstores - after that it gets virtually no attention from the publisher's promotional department
Publicists for even the largest houses are pathetically under-staffed - they simply cannot afford your book the time it deserves
The promotional budget for a book by a first-time or unknown author may be as little as $1000!
The truth is, publishers are well aware of the fiercely competitive market out there. So here's what they do to hedge their bets and almost guarantee themselves some measure of success:
They look to publish books by celebrities, athletes, and politicians - folks with marquee value
They look for fresh talent - people with a small to moderate following of some kind - people with a fat Rolodex - in other words, authors with their own contacts and a flare for self-promotion
They publish Sensational, Timely, Controversial, and sometimes even trashy, attention-grabbing titles
It’s not so much that the big publishers don’t know what is necessary to market and sell a book, they do. You see, when a publisher takes on an author that fits one of the above categories, more than half of their work is already done for them.
Why do you think you see so many celebrity faces on the covers of books in the stores? Because familiarity sells. The truth is, an unknown author has very little chance of even hitting a base hit with a mainstream publisher, let alone a New York Times Bestseller homerun.
And that isn't even the worst of it...
Even if you do manage to get a deal with one of the established houses, consider these unsavory tidbits:
You'll be paid a measly 7 to 10 percent royalty on your work - in reality, what this means is, just about everyone who has anything to do with marketing, distributing or selling your book will make more than you will on it - a lot more
You’ll have to pay wholesale prices (usually about half of the cover price) for it. You'll actually have to purchase your own book in order to market and sell it!
You’ll have an extremely short window of opportunity (three to six weeks that the publisher is actually promoting your book) It’s a make it or break it situation
You'll be working within the publisher's schedule. That means it could be between 9 and 15 months before your book is released
These are just a few of the disadvantages of working with a mainstream press. Talk to any unknown authors who actually made it publishing with an established press and they'll tell you they actually had to get out and promote their book themselves.
So, if you’re going to have to do most of the work yourself anyway, (and you will) why not take the initiative to make your own book a screaming success? It’s actually pretty simple, when you have the right formula.
Self-Publishing Your Own Book
Frank Baum (The Wizard of Oz), Edgar Allen Poe (The Raven and many others), Ken Blanchard & Spenser Johnson (The One-Minute Manager and others), Deepak Chopra (The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success and many others) and Louise Hay (You Can Heal Your Life and many others) all have in one thing in common. They’ve successfully self-published their own books. And You Can Too.
We’ve talked about the most common way (using a mainstream publisher) of getting your book into the hands of readers. We compared the process to a recipe. With that recipe you’ll probably end up with plain white bread - if you're lucky. I’ve got nothing against white bread, but there are other more tasty kinds of bread in the world.
Mark Victor Hanson congratulates Charles on the release of
his first book, The Streetsmart Homebuyer
When you take the bull by the horns and publish your own book, you become the baker – you decide how and when the ingredients are added and how they are mixed - and you retain the rights to your work and control of how it gets marketed. Oh, and your share of the profits are far more than the measly 7 to 10 percent you'll get from the big guys.
When you self-publish, you can write, publish and promote your own book and you keep the lion’s share of the money you’ll bring in. You can direct the marketing of your book to outlets other than bookstores (mainstream publishers concentrate their marketing efforts almost exclusively to bookstores while about 40 percent of the books on the market are sold through vendors other than bookstores).
If you feel that a certain niche would be more receptive to your title (you should actually be writing for such a market) you can direct the bulk of your marketing and promotional efforts to this niche. To say it again, YOU retain control.
Can you do all of this on your own? Probably not. You're going to need help. But the good news is there is a community of people out there offering dozens of services set up to help small press operators. This community is there to provide you with the tools for success - because no artist is successful without the proper tools. The first tool you should consider is a solid plan for success. The Self-Publishing Solution eBook is that plan.
The Self-Publishing Solution eBook
The Self-Publishing Solution is the result of more than six years of experience in the business of publishing and marketing my own books. It's laid out as a step-by-step, logical plan to publishing your work - starting with your pre-publication activities and then advancing to getting distribution with the major bookstores, libraries and other venders. Finally, it takes you through the promotion and publicity maze logically and easily.
Contained within the pages of this comprehensive eBook is information gathered both as the recipient of lots of professional coaching at the hands of the industry's masters, and a great deal of trial and error. I've been told that it would take several lifetimes to use all of the great marketing and promotional tips in this book.
~> Pre-Publication ~ Getting Your Book Set Up Properly
Links to apply online for your ISBN, copyright, and Library of Congress catalog number.
Resources for book cover designers, proofreaders, typesetting, deeply discounted professional publishing software, copy editors, printers specializing in small press runs, getting the barcode for your cover and much more.
Printable application forms for getting your free listing in "Books In Print," (an absolute must) your ISBN, the copyright for your book, and your Library of Congress catalog number, should you choose to apply via snail mail.
~> Distribution
Links to major distributors who will handle your book – getting it to bookstore shelves, a user-friendly distributor specializing in sales to libraries, the fast-track to getting your book listed on Amazon.com, and, getting set up to sell your book online without paying through the nose for credit card processing, warehousing, shipping and more.
~> Promotion and Publicity
Live links with contact information to more than 1000 active book reviewers waiting for your submission (this one resource alone is a goldmine).
Live links to active, up-to-date databases containing thousands of newspapers, magazines, and radio & TV stations - all critical in your quest for publicity.
Inexpensive software that will allow you to send your electronic press release to more than 18,000 opt-in media sources such as TV and radio stations, newspapers and magazines, and Web media. (This single resource is worth 10 times the cost of the book)
Promoting your book online using your own Website.
How-to resources for preparing an outstanding media kit.
Tons of tips for getting booked on radio and TV talk shows (author interviews on radio and TV can help you to sell LOTS of books).
Several extensive databases listing talk show hosts seeking authors.
Sources for publicists and media coaches that will help you shine with the media.
Ideas for conducting profitable workshops and seminars to promote your book.
Samples of pitch letters to book reviewers, press releases, an author bio, a book brochure, sample interview questions and more.
The Self-Publishing Solution is more than just a collection of valuable Web links. It's a comprehensive guide detailing the steps you'll need to take to publish your book successfully. It's filled with nuts and bolts, practical information that I gathered and used to successfully publish and sell my four books.
This exhaustive list could go on and on, but there is no need for that. You can download the book right now for free and see for yourself.
What you'll get is the Table of Contents and the Introduction. The rest of the valuable information in The Self-Publishing Solution eBook is password protected. If you feel that the information will help you to reach your goal as an author and publisher (and it will), the investment for the book is $34.50 - a drop in the bucket compared to its actual value.
You Can't Lose
I'm so confident that you'll find this material to be so much more than I've promised that I'll guarantee your satisfaction for a full 90 days.
Special Bonus
I believe that success in this life comes not only from doing, but in helping others to do. So I'd like to sweeten the pot by offering you some personal consultation as a value-added bonus to help ensure your success.
For a limited time, purchase the Self-Publishing Solution eBook and receive FREE email consulting with the author on your book project - a $75 value! (a total of 3 email inquiries) .
To Your Success,
Charles Steed
PS You might be thinking what a great resource this book would be once you've written your book and are ready to begin promoting it. The truth is, having this valuable information before and during the writing phase of your book will actually help to shape your work, making it more marketable and appealing to the book trade.
PPS I'm constantly discovering new resources for marketing and promoting my books. Each time I do, I add them to The Self Publishing Solution. Purchase the eBook now and get one year of updates FREE!
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Important: Here's how it works... Just click on one of the download links and click "save" twice. This will save the file The Self-Publishing Solution.exe to your computer (remember where you save it - "My Documents” is a great place to keep it). Just double click on The Self-Publishing Solution.exe and the eBook will come up in your browser just like a Website. It couldn't be easier. Ordering instructions are on the first page.