A Step-By-Step Guide To Self-Publishing Your Book

Self-publishing made easy

Self-publishing a book is easier than you think. It isn't a get-rich-quick scheme, but it can answer a question that many writers ask themselves. That question is:

Do you want to publish a book?

Chances are, if you are a writer, you have a desire to publish a book. We have all heard the stats on the general population after all:

200 million Americans want to publish a book.
81% of people pulled in 2002 wanted to publish a book.
Some even say that 90% will talk about wanting to write a book.

You get the picture. If a high percentage of the general population wants to write a book, it shows that an even higher number of people want to publish a book on writing platforms.

Yet, so many people never actually do it. Or they put it off for years. I know for me, I have had the desire for years. Then it took me another two years to finally publish my book after I started writing regularly.

But then I did it.

It all started with realizing that I believed a lie about self-publishing. Once I broke down this lie, I started needed to take immediate action over and over again.

Since breaking away from the lie, I have published three more books. Two of the three have become #1 Bestsellers on Amazon. All of them sell every day too. But, I had to break through a lie.

Breaking Down the Self-Publishing Lie

The problem is that so many writers have about self-publishing is how it goes against the norms of working with a traditional publisher. We think that a traditionally published book is always better than a self-published book.

Yet, I have read tons of self-published books that are so much better than traditionally published books. My bookshelves are starting to fill up with self-published books because I can't get enough of them.

The lie we believe as writers about self-publishing is that our books are not as good as traditionally published books.

That isn't always true. There are so many great books that started as self-published books. The Martian by Andy Weir was self-published long before it was a Matt Damon movie. Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki, was another self-published book that sold millions of copies.

The list goes on and on. But these books are all examples of why self-publishing is just as good as traditionally published books. So, it's time for you to break down this lie and get ready to publish your book.

Your Step-By-Step Guide to Self-Publishing

In this guide, you will learn the steps I have taken in self-publishing my books. These are the steps that I go into further detail in a course that I am currently working on that will be available in the first part of the year.

However, I must help other writers that I am sharing this content today! I want to see your books on my bookshelf. I can't wait to read them on my Kindle. Most of all, I cant wait to celebrate your achievement with you.

Now, I won't go into great detail. However, I will share a healthy amount to get you moving on publishing your book and give you the information you need to feel confident in making it happen.

Step #1: Planning

So often, people want to write books, so they sit down and start writing without a vision or plan. Ultimately this lack of a plan doesn't work. If you don't have a plan, you are screwed. So, here is what you need to do:

Pick a topic. It can be one that you are passionate about or one that you have seen a lot of success writing online with it. Or, it can be a topic that you know will do well. Whatever it is, you need to pick a topic.
Outline/Mind-map your book topic. The next thing you need to do is to get some ideas down on paper. With my first book, I mind-mapped a bunch of subtopics to my main topic. With my others ones, I went straight to outline. You need to give yourself a framework.
Make a few decisions. Ask yourself these questions and decide on your answers: 1) Who is your audience? 2) How long do you want your book to be? 3) What is your timeframe? Once you answer these questions, you can move on to the next thing.

If you don't have a plan, this will turn into a struggle. You need to have an excellent idea of these three main points with action taken on each one of them. This way, you can jump into everyone's favorite part.

Step #2: Writing

This is what a writer lives for, writing. We all love to get into the creation. Now, if you did your planning, this part is straightforward because you have a plan, now you are filling the pages with the information in your head or that you have researched. Here are three ways to do this:

Write blog posts. These posts can be chapters or sections of your book. They can be done in order or out of order, but most of all, this will give you an idea of how people will respond to your content.
Write your book. I use Google Docs to write my books. It works well for editing down the road, especially with my editor. Also, this can be good if you write other items for blog posts or online content.
Write it on paper. I don't know of anyone who does this anymore. However, this used to be a thing to do to get all the ideas out and then clean up when you put it into a word processor.

I would suggest you stay away from any editing whatsoever because that can mess with your head. No matter what you do, this is the fun part, and it is the part that you will most likely enjoy. Plus, editing comes next.

Step #3: Editing

The dreaded editing phase. At least, that is the case for most writers. Those who love editing might enjoy this more than writing. Either way, this is the phase when you edit it yourself, and you send it off to an editor to help you create the manuscript that will sell. Here are three ways to find an editor:

Freelance/Job Websites. My first editor was from Fiverr. He wasn't bad, but I sure didn't pay $5 for his work. Freelance/job websites are great places to find an editor if you don't know where to start. They can also be budget-friendly.
Writing Groups. Another place you might find a great editor is in writing groups. There are lots of writers/editors out there. Finding an editor is an excellent way to collaborate on your book and other projects in the future. My current editor is a friend that we connected where we both used to live but belonged to the same writing groups.
Google. Honestly, you can find everything on Google these days. It might be another place you go if you don't know where to start. Also, if you have a lot of money to spend on your book, you can find some very, very professional ($$$) editors that will work with you this way.

If there is one thing to tell you, this is the one place where you should spend your money. A good editor is super, super important. Once you find this person, you will want to hang on to them. They are as important if not more important than the next person.

Step #4: Cover Design

Between this step and editing, it's a toss-up on which one is the most important. We have all heard the saying, "Don't judge a book by its cover." The problem is that people do judge a book by it' cover. So, if people make a snap judgment to stop and learn about your book, your cover needs to be good. Here are three things to do to get a good book cover.

Create a design brief. If you can create a clear design brief, it will be easier for your designer to capture how you want your book cover. The one I use comes from Chandler Bolt's example in Published.
Hire a cover designer. Here's the thing, I have created my book cover designs, but I don't have much of an eye for them. For my first book, I hired someone from Fiverr for $50. It was good, but not great. For my most recent book, I found someone who is good and paid $150. Worth it.
Get input from your audience. If the people who read your work regularly like the cover, you are heading in the right direction. They don't get the final say, of course, but their input helps understand what your audience looks for in a book.

Your book cover needs to stand out. Because it will be in a list of books on Amazon or sitting on a shelf in Barnes and Noble amid thousands of other books, it needs to capture attention so they will pick it up or click to learn more.

Step #5: Formatting

Your book needs to look professional on the inside, just as it does on the outside. Not only is it helpful to be pleasing to the eye, but it helps your readers read the book better. There are a few options for book formating:

Do it yourself. You can do it. It is moderately complex. But you don't have to pay a whole heck of a lot to do it. I have done all of my formatting for my books and love doing it. But I know it isn't for everyone. You can purchase a program called Vellum which is what I use, and it works great.
Hire someone to do it. Again, you can hire out Fiverr or Upwork to do it. I have heard mixed reviews on how well people like it. The problem is that you don't always get a lot of revisions, and sometimes you have to tweak things as you go.
Hire me to do it. Honestly, I would love to do it for you. And depending on the size, it won't be overly expensive. As I said earlier, I have formatted all of my books and would love to work on your books. It is hands down one of my favorite parts of the book publishing process.

I believe the essential part about formatting is making your book easy to read. Anyone can make it look like other books, but making it so your readers can enjoy their reading experience is huge!

Step #6: Publishing

Now, when I say publishing. I am talking about the details of publishing. Because I use Amazon KDP as my primary distribution point, there are three key things to have set up when you hit the publish button to get your book to sell and become a #1 Bestseller.

Pricing. You need to have a good handle on your pricing. Whether it is a print book or digital, your pricing makes a difference. I like to have a plan at the time of publishing how I will price my book. I always launch free for the Kindle version and then step up to $2.99 to $4.99. But this is a crucial aspect of publishing.
Categories. You need to know what book categories will help you get to #1 Bestseller. I did the research by hand with my first book, landed myself in heavy competition categories, and never made it to #1. However, after that, I found a better way to pick good categories to help me make that bestseller status.
Keywords. Amazon is a search engine. If you have solid keywords that people are regularly searching for, your book will pop up all the time. With my most recent book, I sell a copy or two every day. I believe it's because I nailed the keywords. If you miss this aspect, your book will die a quick death, like my first one.

The best way I know of to help you decide on pricing, categories, and keywords is by using Publisher Rocket. Hands down, this is the best program out there, and it is worth purchasing if you intend to write multiple books.

Step #7: Distribution

Now, I place distribution separately from publishing because there are ways to expand the distribution of your book on other platforms. There are three main ways that I have done this for my book.

Smashwords. This website will sell your books there and expand distribution to Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Libraries, and services like Scribd. It is a great place to get your content out to other platforms.
ACX for audiobooks. ACX is another excellent resource because you can set up your books for audiobooks distributed to Apple, Audible, and more. You can do the recordings yourself or hire a narrator, and they will help professionally complete everything to upload.
Sell Direct. You can sell courses, subscriptions, and digital downloads. I use Podia for my digital products that I sell direct, and it is worth it. It helps me capture email addresses for people who decide to download my books and stay connected with known buyers.

Expanding your distribution at first may not have substantial monetary gains. However, it will help build a base for every book you write later. Most of all, you will be able to capture a greater audience. So, it's worth looking into these options.

Step #8: Book Launch

Book launch day is my favorite day and the most nervous day of the entire process. The reason is that now I get to see if all my hard work pays off. There are three main strategies I use to help launch my books to #1 Bestseller lists:

Free Book Promotion. I set it to a free book promotion for the Kindle version for the first 48 hours for every one of my books. This way, I can capture a lot of downloads which will help drive paid sales afterwords.
Launch Team. So, I'm still a little up in the air with this because my launch team for my first book was incredible. For my second book, I didn't use a launch team with a Facebook group or anything. I worked with my email list and other connections. Then, with my third book, I used a launch team that didn't work as well. But, I still think this could be useful.
Paid Promotions. So, this is where I have seen a lot of success. I keep a budget of about $100 for paid promotions. I typically do one that promotes my book on a free day. And one paid promotion that will promote my book once it goes back to a purchase book. This strategy worked incredibly well with my last book, with over 2,000 downloads and purchases.

The critical thing to remember on launch day is to get your book out into people's hands and Kindles. The more downloads, the better chance it will have to continue to be sold and shown by Amazon.

Step #9: Promotion

This step is different from the Launch day because it is for ongoing promotion. What I have learned about keeping my books selling is talking about them regularly and making sure when people sign up for my email list, they hear about my books. Here are three ways to continually promote your books:

Email sequences. When you sign up for my email newsletter, you get free resources at the beginning. I also send out a series of emails after that first one that is helpful and points people toward my books.
Mention your book everywhere. Every free resource has an "also by" section at the end. For all of my books that are on Kindle, I update my "also by" section. I share posts all over the place that refer to my books from time to time. The key is keeping your books available to be seen.
Quarterly promotions. Something I have started to do is quarterly promotions where I drop the price of a book. Then, I share it like crazy, like a launch day or a buy a cheap promotion, and I see sales increase which makes Amazon share the book, and I see more sales happen.

Now, there are a lot of other ways to promote your books constantly. You can pay for ads, which I have done, but I don't have a lot of success with them. Or you can have them on your website. The fact is that you will always need to be promoting your book, or it won't sell.

Final Thoughts on Self-Publishing

There is no greater feeling to me than when I see the final published book in hand. I love it. A sense of pride and accomplishment inspires me to start working on the next book and the next one.

Step #10: Celebrate Your Book

One step to the entire self-publishing process that I did not mention was the importance of celebrating your published book. Remember, in the beginning? You were one of a million people who wanted to write a book.

Now, you belong to a select few who can call themselves an author. You have published a book that is going out into the hands of people who will read it. Most of all, you have accomplished a dream that every writer has buried inside of them.

That is worth celebrating!

So, at this point, jump for joy, shout from rooftops, and pop open the bubbly! You have accomplished a goal and a dream, and you need to be celebrating. Enjoy it! Bask in the accomplishment. You deserve it.

And then, you get to decide what to do next. Are you going to write another book? Or chase another dream? That is entirely up to you. But, for the time to begin, celebrate your work!

If you have published a book before, share it in the responses below. If there is a step missing or something you did differently, share it too! It is always helpful for aspiring authors to learn as much as possible!

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J.R. Heimbigner is a #1 Bestselling Author on Amazon who loves helping people grow in their faith, find productivity success, learn about investing, and help writers become authors. You can connect with him on Medium, his website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Ko-fi!

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