22 of the Most Asked Questions About
Self-Publishing. How much does it cost to illustrate a children's picture book?
How do you find an illustrator for your picture book? Our book reviews helpful when it comes to conducting niche research?
Can I make money by writing a book and then self-publishing it on either CreateSpace or on the Kindle platform?
How much does it cost to self publish a book on create space or Kindle direct publishing?
The actual publication of your book can be done for FREE! Check out Amazon Kindle and Createspace. But preparing a book for publication will cost money.
Even if you have written a non-fiction book or even a novel, there is still
the expense of hiring a book editor to edit and proofread your content.
Even if you have written a non-fiction book or even a novel, there is still the expense of hiring a book editor to edit and proofread your content.
DO NOT! Attempt this yourself.
How much does it cost to illustrate a children's picture book?
How much does it cost to illustrate a children’s picture book? This can be done for free using public domain images. Watch my video,. The link is below.
‘How to Make a Children's Kindle Picture Book Using Public Domain Images’ to learn more.
Depending on how many illustrations you have in your book.
It also depends on the experience and talent of your illustrator.
Remember a talented illustrator is going to be in demand and that could be a waiting list hire their services.
Keep that in mind when writing your book.
How do you find an illustrator for your picture book?
There are many sites out there where talented artists offer their services.
Sites like upworks.com and fiverr.com are an excellent place to start. You can find a talented artist for a reasonable price.
How many illustrations are in the children's picture book?
In a 32-page picture book, you don't need 32 illustrations. For my Pete’s Monster children’s book, I only needed 18 illustrations, not including the book cover.
How do you self-publish a paperback book?
Go to createspace.com which is owned by Amazon and sign up for an account
Make sure when you complete your book details you check the box that asks if you want to publish in both paperback
and Kindle edition.
You can also watch my 20 minute video on How to publish a paperback book on Createspace.
I walk you through the process step-by step. The link is below.
Welcome my name is Fay B. Bolton and today I'm going to go through the process
of publishing a book using the create space platform.
Do picture books have words inside them?
Word count is low for picture books. Some have fewer then 150 words. Keep a simple sentence structure with large font.
The illustrations themselves should explain the story.
How many words are in the children's picture book?
Picture books for children up to age eight average 1000 words (though many are shorter); easy readers for ages five to nine are 50-2500 words.
Chapter books (short novels for ages seven to ten) typically are 10,000-12,000 words.
What is considered a chapter book?
Chapter book is a story book intended for intermediate readers,
generally age 7 to 10 years.
Unlike a picture book a chapter book tells the story primary through words,
rather than picture.
How many words are in a chapter book?
If you’re publishing a paperback book, then a 50,000-word count might break nicely into ten chapters — about 5,000 words per chapter.
Depending on your writing speed and time you can devote to your writing skill.
5,000 words are much more than the length of a couplet of blog post, and you can quickly write this word count over a weekend.
12 to 24 thousand word count is a good range in publishing to Kindle.
Do I need to hire a book editor?
Absolutely! This is the one step of book publishing that you should not miss.
You need to have a fresh set of eyes read and review your book for proofreading and editing.
Cost between
200 and 1200 dollars, depending on your word count.
How long does it take to write a book and get it published?
There is no set answer to this question.
One book might take a year, while another is designed and printed in less than three weeks.
It is sensible to allow at least three months for the process -
six months to a year
is even better if you are writing a novel. Time depends on how many edits and re-writes need to be made
to your content
and how much research needs to be conducted.
What is the word count for a Kindle fiction book?
Today's reader because of distractions in people's lives and attention spans. The word count should be between
12,000 - 24,000 words is a good range.
You can also split your kindle complex novel into a book series of smaller books, which seems to be a trend today.
Do I need to research a book niche before writing or publishing my book?
Yes, just like on YouTube. There are trends. Same goes for Amazon
Look for a trend under the bestsellers for popular book topics and niche.
The diet and cook book niche is constantly changing.
How do I know what books are selling and making money on Amazon and Kindle?
In your book genre view the book sale ranking.
Ranked #1 means it’s a best seller. Even a ranking of 1,000, the author is receiving an excellent royalty commission.
Anything over a 30,000 ranking, book sales are slow. (Crying)
How important are book reviews?
Crucial! That's another reason why you must have your book edited.
Someone gives you a one-star review because the bad grammar or poor writing.
Ouch!That can cause people to click away and not buy your book.
Our book reviews helpful when it comes to conducting niche research, yes
Are book reviews helpful with research?
Yes! Many authors overlook reviews. Use book reviews as part of your research.
They can tell you what people liked or disliked about the book that they just read.
Reviews can also tell you if the reader felt like something was missing or not covered in enough detail.
Reviews are also a wonderful place to start to get your next book idea.
Do I need an author's page on Amazon?
Yes, creating your authors page. Follow the steps at authorscentral.amazon.com
to set up your account.
Make sure you add lots of information about you and why you write.
Include any writing awards you have achieved. It's your place to brag.
Do I need to write a book description on my Amazon book page?
Yes, if you want people to find your book think SEO, which is search engine optimization.
Write a book description containing about 500 words.
Use keywords that reference your books content and you.
Refer to specific pages in your non-fiction book where your reader can find the answers to solve their problem our dilemma.
Do I need to promote my paperback or Kindle book?
Only if you want people to read it? (Laughter)
This I would say, is the second most overlooked step to publishing a book.
The first being editing that authors overlook.
I cannot emphasize this enough. I
Wish I knew this information before I publish my book to Amazon. (Dog whining)
Promote! promote! promote!
Both create space of Kindle offer a book launch promotion for free so make sure you follow the steps.
Also, the best day to launch your new book is on a Sunday.
Get your Facebook friends to read your book and tell them you need 5 book reviews around launch day.
Ask your readers on the last page of your book to write a review and include a link where they
need to go so they can write that wonderful review.
Does it cost money to promote my published book?
If you don't have an email list of raving fans
Set aside a budget without 150 to 300 dollars to pay for book promotions.
This is, I just learned
a tactic that many of the best-selling authors use to get their book ranked as #1 on Amazon
bestsellers list.
Check out these websites to learn more about promoting your book and I've included the links below.
Can I design and create my own book cover?
The answer to this is Don't do it. Have a professional
graphic artist designed your book cover. Let them read the back cover text or send them a synopsis of your
manuscript.
Can find a graphic artist on 99designs .com, Upworks.com or on fiverr.com.
Can I make money by writing a book and then self-publishing it?
As an author, there are a couple of ways to earn money from your paperback or Kindle book.
You can collect royalties from your book sales.
You can sell merchandise associated with your books content.
You can also earn money by being a guest speaker at an event.
Talk about self-publishing and the lessons you've learned, or
talk about your book and the main benefits or end result your readers will receive by reading your book.
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Thank you for watching. My name is Fay B. Bolton and I'll see you next time...