Getting your Book Published

If you're a writer, your ultimate goal in life is typically that of getting your book published. I am here to help you achieve this goal! By following these steps, and applying yourself diligently to the path, your dream of getting your book published will soon be a reality. You've taken the first step by coming to this site!

How do I know these steps will help you get published? By following these steps I now have published:
* Weddings and Courtships Series with a professional publisher
* Lisa Shea Medieval Romance - ten books in Amazon paperback, Kindle, and Apple formats
* Mused Literary Review - quarterly art books with Lulu
* Low Carb Cookbooks - four print books on Lulu, ebooks on all platforms
* Lisa's Full Library of Published Books

In addition I have over thirty ebooks published which sell quite well on a wide variety of topics. I offer numerous ebooks online for free, because I love providing free content to people (as you can tell by my websites!) :).

I have personally used Lulu, CafePress, and CreateSpace (Amazon) for a variety of projects. My experiences explained here are all from my first hand knowledge of using those to publish books.

Here is my step by step guide, with over 180 pages, to help you in getting your book published! Please let me know if you have any questions or comments on this material.

Overview of Self Publishing a Book

Writing the Book
Getting Free Kindle Books
Preparing Yourself for Writing
Finding Time for Writing
What Software to Write your Book In
Organizing your Files
Handling Writer's Block
Dividing an Epic into Single Books
Setting a Book Length
Writing in a Screenplay Style
Using a Pen Name
First Novel when you're Old
First Novel when you're Young
NaNoWriMo - National Novel Writing Month
Famous Dates in Publishing

Editing / Reviewing the Book
Offering Constructive Criticism
Handling Criticism from Reviewers
How to Correct in a Word Document

Writing Style Notes
Single and Double Quotes
Comma Use
Apostrophe Use
Writing Style - Sparse to Lush
Using "Said" When Writing Dialogue
Indicating the Speaker in Dialogue
Writing in Past vs Present Tense
Word Order when Writing
Avoiding Adverbs - Why?
Avoiding Feeling / Felt as Modifiers

Plagiarism Parody and Homage
Plagiarism Basics
Plagiarism vs Homage
Parody vs Homage
Legal Issues of Writing a Parody
Homage Examples
Character Names and Homage

Preparing Your Book
Choosing a Book Title
Book Sizing Chart
Choosing a Book Size
Paragraph Mark vs Line Break
Headers and Footers
Setting a Gutter Margin
Page Numbers
Chapter Headings
Table of Contents
Sample Book Copyright Page
Printers Key on Copyright Page
External Trademark Mentions in your Book
Sample Acknowledgements Page
Sample Book Author Back Page
Back Cover Blurb
Page Count - Multiple of 4
Proofing the PDF

Book Cover
Designing a Book Cover
Book Covers on Kindle Fire
Technical Steps for a Book Cover
Designing a Book Back Cover
Designing a Book Spine
Full Cover Margin Issues

Preparing for Publishing
Writing a Query Letter
How Copyright Works
ISBN Numbers and Books
UPC Numbers and CDs
UPC Numbers and DVDs
Getting a Barcode

Finding a Publisher
Finding an Agent
Finding a Publisher
Writer's Market
Publishers and Editing
Actual Responses from Publishers with Timing
Small Publisher vs Self Publisher vs Print On Demand

Publishing on Demand / Self Publishing
Publishing On Demand - fee based
Thoughts on Paying Up Front for Publishing
Lightning Source - fee based POD
iUniverse - fee based POD
Publishing On Demand - FREE
Publishing On Demand - FREE comparison chart
Working Directly with a Printer
BookSurge - Amazon's Print On Demand
Lulu vs CafePress vs CreateSpace
Spiral Bound Books

Self Publishing FAQs
Should I Suggest a Cover?
Money Earned from Selling Books
Earning the Most Money
POD Royalty Comparisons

Lulu Publishing On Demand Step By Step
Lulu Self Publishing - Setting Up the Book
Formatting your Book for Self Publishing
Print Copy Sample from Lulu
Promoting your Lulu Book

CafePress Publishing On Demand Step By Step
CafePress Self Publishing
Loading Up the CafePress Book
Print Copy Sample from CafePress

CreateSpace Publishing On Demand Step By Step
CreateSpace Self Publishing
Loading Up the CreateSpace Book
Trying to Make a CreateSpace Cover

Ebooks
Ebook vs PDF / What Is an Ebook?
Creating an Ebook
MobiPocket and Amazon
Pricing your Ebook
Ebook Creation Step by Step

Amazon Kindle / iBookStore
Creating an Amazon Kindle Ebook and iBookStore - overview
Preparing your Kindle Ebook
Load your Book PDF Into Lulu
Creating the ePub Ebook File
Load your Ebook Into Lulu and iBookstore
Load your Ebook Into Kindle
Load your Ebook Into Barnes and Noble Nook
Combining your Kindle and Paperback Entries
Summary of Putting Ebooks Live
Lisa's Kindle Book List

DVDs
Creating a DVD
Selling DVDs on your Own Website
CreateSpace - Amazon DVD Sales
FilmBaby - DVD Sales
My Steps for my Origami DVD Sales

Promoting your Book
Placing in Bookstores
Doing a Bookstore Signing
Booth at a Craft / Trade Show
Promoting Your Book on the Web
GoodReads - Book Review Site
PaperBackBookSwap - Book Review Site
Sending Out Review Copies
Common Mistakes when Seeking Reviews

Amazon
Basics of Amazon Promotion
Planning an Amazon Launch
Selling Your Book on Amazon's Marketplace
Selling with Amazon Advantage
Amazon Advantage vs Amazon Marketplace
Amazon Pricing Information
Amazon Author Central

My Books and DVDs I Have Published
Irish Weddings and Courtships
Italian Weddings and Courtships
French Weddings and Courtships
Lisa Shea Medieval Romance Novels
Origami DVD How-To Instructions
Friends who have Published Books
Lisa's Full Library of Published Books
Writing Tips and Online Books
Lisa Shea Medieval Romance Novels
Online Literary Magazines



Covers From A Few Of My Works



Seeking the Truth Knowing Yourself A Sense of Duty Creating Memories Looking Back Badge of Honor Lady in Red Finding Peace Believing Your Eyes

Quick No-Cook Low Carb Recipes Microwave Low Carb Recipes Carb Charts - Low Carb Reference First 2 Weeks - Low Carb Reference

Origami DVD

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