Self Publishing with Print on Demand (POD) Publishers.
by Brooks A. Agnew, PhD
(Odessa, WA)
Unlocking the Secret
As a first-time author, we (Brooks wrote with E.J. Clark) found that publishing houses were more or less dedicated to our failure. They were insulting, condescending, and made us feel like dirt. They weren't the least bit interested in how good the book was, who our audience was, or what genre we used. We accumulated a drawer full of rejection letters from every publisher in New York. That's where all the publishers are.
So, we decided to self-publish. After about 7 months, we found a company named Author House. They were a Print-on-Demand publisher. This means that you pay them to list your title with the ISBN number, put a copy in the library of Congress, and provide your customers with 4-7 day delivery of a book they might buy from you. That's it.
They provide no distribution, no marketing, no publicity, and forbid access to their database of buyers. In short, every single book you publish has to be sold to a brand new audience without knowing who bought your previous books. Unless you decide to do something better.
Here are the secrets to success as a self-publishing author.
Rule one; never but never buy a publisher's marketing package. It may sound like they're going to give you access to 350 TV stations, 2,000 publicists, and 5,000 newsletters, but unless your book is about baking cookies or trimming poodles, you will be wasting your money.
Rule two; never sell your books through the publisher's website. Each sale of your book contains vital information that belongs to you. Selling POD books from your own website allows you to collect 50% of the sale price in profits, without holding any inventory. Ok, a little inventory. You might hold on to 20 or 30 books, but it beats owning a garage full of books and having $5,000 tied up in books.
If you sell your books from your website using PayPal or some other online payment service, you have the email address of a person who actually likes your book. That means he will buy your second book. And, you don't have to wait for him to come to you. You go get him when you're ready.
Now, this is a two-edged sword. If you don't let Amazon or Barnes & Noble online sell some of your books, you won't get rated. Getting in the top 100 selling books in North America is a major title. We have done it twice!! This makes our books national best sellers. This rating beats the heck out of the NY Best Sellers List...hands down, because you will turn this into money.
Rule three; buy book return insurance. This costs about $500 a year per title, but it is worth it. Without this little policy, no bookstore will ever stock your book...period. Bookstore sales make you zero dollars...only a few cents per copy...but it gets your name out there and allows you to sell more books from your website.
Rule four; only radio ads sell books. Never buy a newspaper ad. Never put out fliers. Forget about late night infomercials. All of these are a waste of money. Get on the radio as often as you can...everywhere...even news programs.
Rule five; always always always put your web address on your book covers. On the back of the book tell the reader how to get you to come and speak at their book club or join a phone lecture. These make loads of money and sell the heck out of books. One book sale with a website on the cover will sell four books on the average.
Rule six; publicists are a complete waste of money, unless they will work for commission only. No publicist will ever sell your books where you can make money. Everyone else will, but you.
Visit Brooks's website.
