Monday, March 24, 2008

The Business of Publishing

What exactly does it mean to be "published?" Well, the truth about publishing is really stranger than fiction and the truth is: getting published is only half the battle. The other half is to keep your reality check in balance so it doesn't bounce.

While publishing is all about creative expression, it's also about business and it's those business savvy authors who will succeed in the end. You don't have to have an MBA to be a keen business person, you simply have to understand the choices you make relative to your books future should be based on strategies that will enhance sales, not just drain your pocketbook. So, how do you do this?

Keep these guidelines in mind while you are planning your strategy for success as a self published author:

1) Reader profile: create one of these at the beginning of your marketing campaign and keep refining it as you move through the process. Refine and redefine who and where your audience is and how to get to them.

2) Time commitment: determine what you can and can't reasonably do. If you have a full time job it probably doesn't make a lot of sense to commit yourself to 40 hours of marketing a week unless your boss is on vacation.

3) Investment: how much are you willing to invest in your future? Are you willing to invest money without seeing much in return knowing that you are building a foundation or do you want to see immediate monetary results? Most authors don't see a return on their investment for a year or more. Are you committed enough to yourself or your project to keep this investment going?

4) Reality check: what's realistic for the industry you're in? Are you latching onto a fad or something with more longevity? Are you getting into a brand new market that will require lots of reader education? Or are you trying to go mainstream with a non-mainstream topic? While this is an admirable goal, it can be like swimming upstream.

5) Budget: while we encourage authors to invest in their future, we've also seen a number of people go into heavy debt, quit their jobs and even sell their homes just to promote their book. While that kind of dedication is certainly admirable, remember that although you have the potential to make a great deal of money it's not going to be overnight. The lure here is of course that "If I stick with it, this next sale will make me famous." Well, maybe or maybe not. If you've been plugging away for a while without any significant success, get a professional to give you some honest, constructive feedback about your plan, your market, and your book. It might be that a poorly designed has fallen off of the public's radar screen. Remember, as you're waiting to hit the big time you'll still need a place to sleep and Uncle Vinnie's couch will get old real quick.

6) Burnout: we hear this term often, even to the point of being overused. What we're really talking about here is author burnout. We've found the average author only markets their book for 90 days. That means 90 days of day and night marketing, radio interviews at 3 a.m. and a book signing every weekend. On day 91 they are so tired, discouraged and broke that they quit. You can avoid this by giving yourself realistic goals and a realistic timeframe in which to complete them.

There's nothing in the world like seeing your book in print. If approached realistically, objectively and with sound business sense, it can be one of the most exciting times in your life.

[Via - The Business of Publishing]

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