What
experiences have you had with self-publishing?
(detailed)
Detailed, you say?
"I
don't have time or money to bother with marketing,"
I said between mouthfuls of cous-cous.
I
don't remember his reply to that or to any of
my other excuses. What I do remember from that
potluck dinner conversation with the man who
would be teaching a self-publishing course is
that no matter what objection I raised, he quietly
set it aside.
A
month later, on my way to his class, I grabbed
copies of a bulletin I had been writing, thinking
I might show them to someone. Then as I walked
across the field to the local school with them
in my hand, I suddenly realized I was already
self-publishing.
I
have taught Grade one (first grade to Americans)
since 1977. Every year parents asked me the
same questions. Every year I'd try to answer
them on the run as I searched for a child's
missing spoon or raced to get in line for the
photocopier or washroom. Even scheduled interviews
never gave enough time to fully answer all the
legitimate questions parents had. When September
2002 arrived I decided to be pro-active. I wrote
a two-page letter to my students' parents, dealing
with what I knew from experience would be on
their minds. Then I played with a newsletter
template in my word processing program. I was
so impressed with the results that I included
a price and copyright information.
I
showed the result to the two other Grade one
teachers in my school and they asked if they
could have a copy. I gave each of them one for
free. I decided to write two new issues every
month while school was in session. My colleagues
were so impressed that in October they encouraged
me to take copies to a district meeting of other
primary teachers. I got my first two subscriptions
from that.
The
first year I focused on writing. I didn't have
time or money to market. (My objections during
the potluck dinner were rooted in reality.)
But
as the school year came to a close I decided
to try selling to schools province-wide. Since
I had access to all school addresses, I arranged
for a special price with the post office. That
meant I had to presort all the mail, all 1200
envelopes! I had assumed I would only have to
put them in order by postal code. Of course
the post office has a much more complicated
system. I used three days and all my available
floor space to finish the sort on time.
Before
I took on the mailing project, I called Paul,
the man who gave the self-publishing workshop,
to check on what would be a good return on a
mail-out. He told me 1%. Two per cent would
be possible if I had a very targeted audience.
In
my flurry I calculated that 1% of 1200 would
be 120 and that would cover my costs and give
me a little left over. Two hundred and forty
would be great! I went ahead and waited for
the subscriptions to flood in. When only eight
had arrived the first week, I re-did the math
and to my horror, realized that 1% of 1200 was
12, not 120! Even though I did very well percentage-wise
(I sold 32 subscriptions.), I lost money.
Happily,
I have discovered a way of cutting my advertising
costs to fit my budget. I could raise my prices,
but education funding is being cut so drastically
that I know teachers do not have money to spend
on anything "extra."
My
next biggest self-publishing venture is my web
site. I'm thrilled with my writing tips pages
and with the link I call Pesky Problems! Again,
I have a message I feel passionate about (how
to use words effectively to give a message clearly
and with power) and the web allows me to publish
on that topic to my heart's content.
I
have other projects, personal and collaborative,
in process but they are not far enough along
to discuss publicly.
What
turned you on to it at first?
I
had a message to share and an audience to share
it with. The technology made it easy to spread
the message in a professional format.
What
was the most challenging aspect of self-publishing
for you?
In
this case, it was keeping the costs low enough
to stay afloat. In the collaborative projects
it has been working with other people who are
less time-oriented than I am.
Looking
back, what would you have done differently?
Clearly,
I would have breathed in twice before doing
the math. Having said that, I have no regrets.
By the time I realized what I had done, the
money was spent. I wrote it off to being a good
lesson I could share. (It's also a tax deduction.)
And I know that my message is meeting needs
in nearly 100 classrooms. (I have plans to expand
my reach to other jurisdictions and eventually
to publish a book using the research I've put
into the bulletin.)
In
your opinion, what are the pros and cons of
self-publishing?
I
believe that the pros and cons of self-publishing
are very individual. What one person finds easy,
another finds difficult. For example, for me,
writing clearly and with power comes easily.
I know that is not true for everyone. On the
other hand, having a clear business plan has
not been my strong point.
Who
should look into self-publishing?
I
believe that anyone who has a passion to say
something should consider self-publishing. Having
said that, I think people who cannot deal with
stress should think carefully before taking
the leap. Some part of the process will be stressful
to almost everyone.
Where
do you see the future of self-publishing going?
Self-publishing
can only grow in the coming years. Ten years
ago I could not have produced The Primary
Thing, my bulletin for Grade one parents.
Having a great template on my computer made
that possible. Technology is going to make self-publishing
more and more attractive. For example, in January
2002,
Trafford
Publishing, the first
Print on Demand company in the world, was responsible
for 27% of the Cataloguing in Publication (CIP)
list in Canada. There are different publishing
statistics, but by that count, Trafford was
Canada's largest publisher by far.
I
also believe that with time and wisdom, baby-boomers
will have more to say as we age and more of
us will self-publish.
What
experience have you had with publishing eBooks?
My
bulletin is almost an eBook. I don't sell hard
copies. I email the issues as attachments. It
certainly keeps the costs down.
Where
do you see this new trend going?
I
don't feel qualified to speak on that issue.
Any
general advice for the writing community?
First
of all, I believe that everyone has something
of value to share. It can be scary to start
writing, but it's well worth the effort. If
writing does not come easily, take a course
or join a group.
I
have a passion for good writing. Unhappily,
most of the self-published books I've read fall
short. Many writers try to cut corners. They
will pay for artwork, typesetting, or layout
because they understand they can't do a good
enough job of that on their own. Then they skip
editing because they mistakenly believe that
their writing is "good enough." People
also think the spell checker on the computer
means they don't need an editor. They don't
know that editors do much more than check spelling.
They don't realize that all the greatest writers
are edited. Everyone has blind spots. And having
a message and the passion to share it does not
make a person a powerful writer. A good editor
makes sure people hear the message, not the
mistakes.
Once
something is in print it is there for the life
of that page. Make sure each page, paragraph,
sentence, phrase, and word you choose is the
best for your purposes. Then put it out there
for everyone to read!
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