How To Succeed Self-Publishing Books on Amazon
This author has sold thousands of copies — she shares her tips!
Many self-published authors love the control that independent publishing gives them, and if they’re good, they’ll make money and build a dedicated fan-base and a solid reputation.
Author Terry Tyler shares her tips on how to market books successfully, build your author profile, and make money from your work.
Terry Tyler, Post-Apocalyptic Novelist
Terry Tyler is best known for her post-apocalyptic fiction, but she’s also written murder mysteries, and contemporary family dramas inspired by history. She’s developed a wide readership, having started her self-publishing journey in 2011.
How does Terry approach the marketing? “Free promotions have always worked for me,” she says. “A good practice is to have the book featured on sites like BookBub and Freebooksy. This can get pricey, but it’s worth it. The promotions make the books more ‘visible’ on Amazon, so more readers stumble across them and will, ideally, then buy others. This works particularly well if the free book is the first in a series. For new authors with only one book, I would advise building a presence on social media — get to know other writers and book bloggers.”
Terry has been in the self-publishing game for many years. Her commitment and dedication to publishing good books year after year, has earned her a loyal following. She has over 91,000 twitter followers and some of her books have hundreds of reviews.
Did she learn any hard lessons in the early days? “A fair few, yes! I wish I’d had more of a strategy and long-term plan, and been better at editing, but that came with practice.”
Terry says she would never want a publisher. “I need to be in control of all decisions about pricing, editing, cover art, promotion, everything. I can’t imagine handing my book over to someone else’s control, for them to produce.”
What’s her best advice? “Understand that you won’t make much money at first; it’s a long game. Don’t publish until you’re sure it’s as good as you can make it. It’s fairly easy to sell one book if it has a great cover, a well-written blurb and some paid promotion, but unless the book is great, people won’t buy another.
“Speak to other writers before you spend out on editors, proofreaders, promotion sites, etc, or you might waste money. ALWAYS get the book professionally proofread before publication.
“Make your book exclusive to Amazon so you can enrol it in Kindle Unlimited, which is like a library. I earn two-thirds of my royalties from this.”
Terry has compiled a list of articles for writers, which is split into sections including debut authors, general writing advice, publishing, promotion and social media.
Terry’s blog: www.terrytyler59.blogspot.com/2019/02/stacks-of-useful-articles-for-writers.html
Key takeaways
- Free book promotions can get people reading the first in your series and turn them into loyal readers for the rest of your books;
- Start with a strategy and long-term plan;
- Don’t skimp on editing;
- Understand that you won’t make much money at first; it’s a long game;
- Don’t publish until you’re sure that your book is as good as you can make it;
- Speak to other writers before you spend money on editors, proofreaders, promotion sites, etc;
- Use a professional proofreader;
- Make your book exclusive to Amazon so you can enrol it in Kindle Unlimited, as this can be a big earner.
More from me…
- Words of Wisdom from the Author of War Horse, Michael Morpurgo
- How Much I Made Self-Publishing 10 Books Through Amazon KDP
- Write Spooky Stories All Year Round! And Get Paid For It!
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