The past few years have seen a huge influx of self-published authors. Online platforms like Kindle Direct, Lulu, Createspace, and personal blogs have become household words. Many leisurely writers are foregoing traditional methods of publication and taking matters into their own hands. Now, I'm all for being your own boss, but there are some things that other people do better than I can, because, quite frankly, they were trained to do it. With that being said, I am a self-published author and I, like every other self-published author, have made mistakes. I have compiled the following list of the top five things I feel could be helpful to new aspiring self-published authors who are just starting out. So without further delay...
1. Don't Rush Through Your Manuscript- One thing I have noticed is that many authors rush through the creative process in an effort to just get their story out. Even though they may have had an awesome idea, they did not allow it to ferment into an intoxicating tale. I have read quite a few self-published works that are riddled with spelling, grammatical, and formatting issues making them difficult to read. Take your time and do a second, third, or even seventh proofread of your manuscript before hitting the submit button. If the first book you put out is not well-written, it can greatly deter the public from looking at your future titles. This leads me to number two.
2. Not Getting a Proofreader or Beta Reader: Writers like many other professionals, can be a proud bunch and want to believe that every word they write is literary gold. Well, the truth is, they're probably not. Don't be afraid to let others read your work after you have written your first draft and performed your first edit. A fresh set of outside eyes may see errors, or plot holes, that you may have missed. If you don't want to share your story with a friend or stranger, send off a sample to one of the many online editing companies for a free 2000 or 3000-word edit. Even if you don't decide to hire them to edit your entire book, they may have some valuable notes, which can be applied to the rest of your W.I.P (work in progress) on your next edit. Another helpful tool out there is the Grammarly extension with Google. This Godsend makes it possible for an author to proofread their manuscript with a professional eye. Although it will not catch every mistake, (Not even the best editor can) it will help with comma placement, subject-verb agreement, and spelling.
3. Writing Because You Want Fame, NOT Because You Enjoy It: This is probably the most important thing that many self-published authors forget. Very few of us will ever be the next Dr. Seuss, J.K. Rowling, or Agatha Christie no matter how badly we want it. In an effort to gain fame and fortune, some authors forego the enjoyment of writing and fabricating a believable and tantalizing tale in exchange for writing the next great rip-off of Game of Thrones. When we write only to earn a paycheck, writing becomes a J.O.B. and stops being our passion. We all write because we are passionate about our craft. If you write an awesome story, other people will eventually find and read it with the right exposure. This takes time. As much as no one wants to hear it, how many famous authors became well-read and known after their death? You have all heard of Herman Melville, Edgar Allen Poe, Franz Kafka, and H.P. Lovecraft, just to name a few. Terrible, I know, but isn't it more important to leave behind a legacy? And a well-written one?
4. Not Researching What You Don't Know: We all possess knowledge about certain topics that are foreign to others. Each of us is an expert at something or several things. I know quite a bit about automotive repair, mythology, education, and forensics. I tend to write about fantasy worlds populated with mythological creatures and G.I.Joe characters fighting futuristic, military battles. There are many other things that I am unfamiliar with, and that I need to either consult an expert on or research online. There is an awful lot of reading and research that goes into good writing. Realism will only add to your work and create a more encompassing experience for your readers to indulge in. Don't forego realism because of laziness. I once spent the better part of three hours just reading about foreign cuisine to fabricate a short chapter in a fan fiction novel.
5. Not Promoting Your Work Before Release: More times than naught I see self-published authors promoting their work after its already been published. I'm not saying this is completely wrong, but you need to establish an audience, and the best way to do that is by offering tantalizing nuggets of your current W.I.P to your would-be readers. This can be done in your blog posts, on your Twitter, Facebook, or any one of a dozen author websites like Marketlist.com or an Amazon author's profile. You don't have to give away full plotlines or even complete chapters. Equate this practice to movie trailers, not the ones that give you the whole story, but the good ones that leave you with a multitude of questions and wanting more. Apply this concept to your book updates and add some flashy pictures to whet the appetite of your fans. A picture can be worth a thousand words and a thousand new readers.
Hope this helps some of you out there. Thank you for reading. Have comments or other ideas to share? Feel free to leave them here and share this article with others. Until next time.
Cheers!
Drakov
No comments:
Post a Comment