Self-Publishing

Today, we begin our printing business in earnest. Oh, we've printed things before, but they've always been friends, family, or people we know through "work". This is the first author who found us by word of mouth and wants us to print her book for her.

It's really a great book, too. :) I'll save that for another post sometime.

Being able to help other people realize their dreams is such an amazing thing. It is one reason we went into this business. The other, of course, is to make money.

I have two books which should have been accepted for publication by one of the major publishing houses (yes, of course I think they are that good), but no one has given them more than a cursory nod. So, I'm going the next best route and publishing them myself. Self-publishing is such an awesome avenue for authors who want to see their words in print. Not only do you keep control over your material, but you earn considerably more money since you get to keep all the profits.

Earning a royalty from a book publisher is fine, but it does not generate a lot of money. You have to sell considerably more books to earn as much as you otherwise would as a self-published author. When you work with a publishing house, you also have little say in how your book is marketed. What if the company doesn't bankroll it properly? You may have a published book, but you don't reap many of the rewards, like earning income.

If you do go the route of self-publishing, you will need to consider a solid marketing plan. You'll be doing the same basic things you would if your book was published by a large publishing company, but you'll have to make the arrangements yourself. At least you have control over this, too.

Writing is a delight. If you have a book that you would like to have printed, please contact me at the website listed below. We'll work with you.

Carla Vaughan

Self-Publishing Solutions

Web Sites for Writers - Do you Need One?

You want to be a successful writer. You want to make money at it, too. How many books have you read about "self-publishing", "understanding the writer's market" or "how to make your articles sell"? It isn't so easy for unpublished authors to break into certain markets. It doesn't matter how many books you read.

There is one avenue, however, that is virtually untapped by many writers and it is open to EVERYONE who wants to see their works in print. It also allows any writer the opportunity to make money at the same time. You can finally take control over your own writing destiny.

Millions of people will have access to your authored pieces, too. Will publishers come looking for you? It's a definite possibility. Will you have more credibility in the publishing world? Oh, yes. You will also have solid proof of your ability to reach your target audience, too.

Before I tell you how successful you can be, let me tell you the caveats.

First, it is not especially easy. It takes time and effort. If you are a serious writer, you already know what that is all about, though. Second, you will be writing more than you otherwise would. In fact, you will very likely be writing every day for the next couple of months. At least that is what I found myself doing. I love writing, though, so it is not a problem at all for me.

Last, it will most likely become your favorite thing to do. Be prepared to spend a fair amount of time on this because you will enjoy it so much you won't want to do anything else. I am absolutely telling the truth. My kids can't drag me away from the computer some days. I just love what I'm doing.

So, those are the pitfalls. All in all, not too bad.

Now, I can tell you about the good news. You have a myriad of ways to earn money with your writing. For less than $1 per day, you can reach hundreds of thousands of potential readers "buyers" of your works. You can also sell your material in a variety of ways. In addition to this, there are a variety of other ways to make money that don't even have anything to do with writing.

I have an e-book that I sell and I'm in the process of publishing a paperback version which I will also be able to sell very soon.

Ok, enough of that. You can read more of the details if you're interested. For now, let's focus on how you can accomplish this.

If you're like me, you have probably been writing for awhile. I have two books, actually. Both of which have been rejected by big-name publishers. I can handle rejection pretty well, so that's not a real problem for me. What bothered me was that I knew I had good material and no way to reach my intended audience.

Why should I be limited in what I can do just because someone else doesn't see things the same way I do?

My answer? Find another way to reach my audience. That's exactly what I have done, too. I created a web site dedicated to one of my books. I intend to do the same for the other book, too, but I have a few more things I need to accomplish with this first site still.

I am living my dream of being published. Not only am I reaching my target audience, but I am also having numerous articles published on other sites. I have been contacted by two other sites to write for them as well. A third site asked (and I agreed) to provide advice to the members of its site on the very subject I wrote about. I am an instant expert.

I pay less than $1 per day and I am published, in demand and am receiving monthly checks from my site.

Just think about it. It might work for you. It might not. I just know that as writer, it is extremely hard to get your name out there for the right people to see it. This gives you one more opportunity to make a name for yourself.

Best of luck.

~Carla

A link to the book I'm selling How to Write a Professional Resume

How you can create a website about your book(s), too: My Passion