Publishing a Story Collection

by Allen Lyne
(Adelaide, Australia)

Tall Tales & True from the Boys in Blue

I wrote a couple of novels and offered them to agents and publishers with predictable results. You will find that story in the fiction files on this site under the title Publish and (or) die.

I decided to self-publish both of my novels and have had some success. They've each sold several hundred copies and I still make some sales from my web site. I have also made recordings of my books and sold them as Audio Books.

But on to my non-fiction effort:

I served for 12 years in the Royal Australian Navy and left after that time as a non-commissioned-officer because I wanted to see what the world outside had to offer. I'd been navy from 18 to 30, and those years are formative years, so getting out was a huge step. Another reason for leaving was that I had the urge to write.

I stayed away from the ex-service community for 30 years and then some. My feeling was that a chapter of my life closed when I left and I was moving on to new things. I retained a very few good friends from my service days, but gradually lost contact with them.

Then the net came along and I started cruising ex-navy websites to see if any familiar names were on them. I got in touch with people I hadn't seen or heard from for 30 and sometimes 40 years. We had a ball catching up with what we'd done with our lives since our hell-raising days in the navy. I met a few old mates who happened to live locally or when I was visiting interstate.

I joined two ex-service organisations; something I thought I would never do.

One of the constant refrains you hear repeated at ex-navy clubs, at reunions, and anywhere else that old salts gather, is that 'someone should put all those great stories into a book'.

I took the hint after a few years and did it.

This time I didn't trouble the publishers or agents, I went ahead and self-published. Why not? I had by then learned all of the skills needed to do the job. I had taught myself to edit, proof-read, layout correctly and I had a good working relationship with a POD printer in my home state.

He likes me partly because I'm one of the self-published authors that return for repeat print runs and partly because he likes my books.

The non-fiction title--'Tall Tales & True from the Boys in Blue'--has sold more than twice as many copies as have my novels. The novels are okay and have had good reviews and good comments from readers, but the power of niche marketing is not to be taken lightly.

'Tall Tales & True from the Boys in Blue' is still selling from my web site and by word-of-mouth in the ex-service community. I made a lot of sales through various ex-service web sites. In each case I went to the web master and asked for permission to market my book through their forums. All but one agreed. I offered every one a commission of 30% of the sale price with the offer to let them collect the proceeds and pay me to deliver the book.

Only one took that option. The rest allowed me free access to sell the book without asking for a commission, which was most generous of them.

I have also spoken at various ex-service clubs about the book and made sales that way. I had planned to visit other states in Australia to do the same, but so far haven't been able to motivate myself to do so. Perhaps later this year...or next.

To sum up...If you have any unique experience, any singular experience in life that you can turn into a book that will interest people and will sell copies, get to it.

I also point out that my book is partly based on my stories, but mostly it is the stories of other people that I collected by advertising for them on the net. In every case I received permission to place these stories in my book.

There are a million subjects you can approach this way and you don't of necessity have to have personal experience of the thing you want to write about--it no doubt helps if you have, but it ain't necessary.

Think about doing something on the experiences of firefighters, bomber or fighter pilots, airline pilots, used-car salespeople, ambulance drivers. A book of personal anecdotes about people in these or a lot of other industries and professions would sell well.

Your market is mostly, but not exclusively, with the people that have direct experience in the industry or profession.

It helps if you can develop skills as an oral historian and become conversant with interview techniques, which is another string to my bow.

Visit Allen Lyne.