Successful self-publishing is something you can do on your own, but you’d be better off working with a team of professionals. This is one area where traditional publishers tend to have the upper hand on indie authors: they have more people working on a single project.
But is it possible to publish a book that rivals the quality, both in terms of content and production, of a traditional book?
Absolutely.
You’ll just need to have the right people on board. The essential roles of a publishing team are:
- Editor. This is the person in charge of getting the manuscript into shape, getting proofreaders to catch all the typos, and make sure the book makes a coherent argument or tells a story that makes sense.
- Designer. This is the person who designs not only your book cover but your interior, as well (deciding what fonts and art work go into making for an enjoyable reading experience). This can be two people but it doesn’t have to be.
- Publisher. This is the person who helps you get your book published and into the appropriate distribution channels (e.g. Amazon). You can pay a company to do this, but I think it makes more sense to just hire this person outright. You will save money in the long run and get more personal attention.
You can do as much of the above as you want, but it’s better to hire a team of specialists.
And here’s the catch: it doesn’t have to cost money.
You can get the design, editing, and publishing services done for free. It’s not that hard to get good work done at an affordable fee, if you know what motivates people and are willing to swap favors. However, if you can afford to hire people, do it. In the end, it will be well worth it.
These people will make your job as author so much easier. It is still your book, but these professionals can help create a much better finished product. You can save money by not hiring them, but investing in a good team will yield a better product that you can be proud of and that the reader will notice.
