Authors who self published their first book

They marketed, pitched, and sold the heck out of their books. Tell them the book you are pitching to them has already been self published. Elizabeth jolly she was an english author who settled in australia. I know you want to write books, but while youre working on your first book, you can publish other forms to build. The six authors published many of their books through amazons online self publishing platform kindle direct publishing select, and they expressed shock and frustration over losing their. Honoree corder started her writing career as a single mom over a decade ago. Frank baum self published some of the books in the wizard of oz series. The lord of the macabre, edgar allan poe s first book, a 40page collection of poetry published in 1827 when he was just 18 years old, was entitled tamerlane and other poems, attributed with the byline by a bostonian.

The tale of peter rabbit by beatrix potter was originally self published in 1901. The writing lives of great authors, i found that even for the best writers in the world, getting started can be the hardest part. Kings first published novel was carrie, published by doubleday in 1974. She is also hal elrods business partner for the miracle morning bestselling book series. Most people have a book in them, about 80 percent or so.

If you think its easy to sell your self published book to a publisher, please read on. Write in a category thats got proven appeal, but find a way to say something surprising. Additionally, thousands of authors have created publishing companies and self published their. Getting published is hard, and even successful writers were often rejected. She selfpublished the first book in 2011 as an ebook and print on demand paperback through an independent publisher. Alongside his lurid thrillers fans can download an advice book entitled.

How this selfpublished author sold 800,000 copies of her books. Many people approach me in the hopes of having me pitch their self published books to literary agents or. Notable selfpublished authors dorrance publishing company. Alfred prufrock and the waste land, paid for the publication of his first book. The most recent data from author earnings in their latest quarterly report gives ample proof of the drop off in self publishing sales and earnings. If you are considering paying someone, though, just remember that the tools and services they will use will be exactly the same as the ones you can use if you do it on your own. Many of the classics were originally self published including works by william blake, james joyce, william morris, walt whitman, and virginia woolf. But those who are publishing a book for the first time, or who aspire to, might have unrealistic expectations of the publishing experience. How to really make money as a book author even if you dont sell a single copy average book authors dont make a lot of money. Whats the quickest way to get literary agents to roll their eyes in frustration. In 1908, ezra pound sold a lume spento for six pence each. My novel disposable people became the first self published book to win a major prize. Royalties are money given to an author after a book is published and sold. Now only about 10 percent of those will finish writing it, and maybe 10% of those will get their book actually published.

Watership down was an instant success and sold over a million copies worldwide in the first few years after its publication, and is considered a modern classic. How this selfpublished author sold 800,000 copies of her. According to author mike cooper s backoftheenvelope calculations, the average ebook the preferred format for selfpublishers. Since publishing her debut novel, holy island, on amazons kindle direct publishing platform kdp in 2015, ross has gone on to publish a. If you take the above authors and their 51 titles, they averaged 12,455 lifetime copies sold for each book published. Selfpublishing success stories you need to hear about. Today, she is the author of dozens of selfpublished books, which have. Here are five tips on how to promote your self published book. Only 50 copies were printed, and the book received virtually no attention. Self published authors on average, however, are hardly reaping a fortune. But if all their books only sold 10,000 copies, they might struggle financially. Jamaican indie author ezekel alan shares the story of his groundbreaking achievement whats the secret of your success. How to really make money as a book author even if you don. It was her first book, and,unwilling to call it quits, hocking turned to.

Jamaican indie author ezekel alan shares the story of his groundbreaking achievement. Richard adams the english author was 52 when his first book, watership down was published. If they have 150,000 authors all selling 10 copies of their book, thats 1. Last summer, the onetime insurance salesman from kentucky became the first self published author to sell 1m kindle ebooks. Dawson s first selfpublished book, the black mile a thriller set in londons west end between 1940 and 1970 again failed to register. Most books are published by a small number of very large book publishers, but thousands of smaller book publishers exist. Amanda hocking, the writer who made millions by selfpublishing. My novel disposable people became the first selfpublished book to win a major prize. How to help beginning authors publish their first book. When my first book, a collection of short stories titled new york 1, tel aviv 0, was published in november 2014, many people in my life assumed id enter a. How to publish a book and sell your first 1,000 copies.

The english author was 52 when his first book, watership down was published. When famous writers forays into selfpublishing succeeded, it was due to factors most selfpublished writers cant access or to serendipity. The amount of effort required simply didnt translate into realworld results. Westaway by ruth ware, the night circus by erin morgenstern, you. Quick tips for authors selfpublishing for the first time. The book was a huge success, being the first selfpublished book to top amazons charts in the uk and usa.

What you should know about being a published book author. After i published my first book, it took six years before i published my second book. In 1759, british satirist laurence sterne s selfpublished the first two volumes of tristram shandy. How 5 great writers got started on their first books. Everything you wanted to know about book sales but were. Self publishing, on the other hand, contains both professional fulltime authors who spend time and money marketing their books as well as people who just think it would be fun to put an ebook up on amazon and never spend any time marketing. All of these books have one thing in common their authors did not simply publish and then lean back and enjoy their success. If you work with a publishing company, a part of your royalties must go the publisher, an. To give you a little context, i first set out to write a simple 10 steps to making a living as a selfpublished fiction author. Amazons kindle direct publishing kdp is a fast, easy and free way for authors and publishers to keep control and publish their books worldwide on the kindle and kindle reading apps. She was frantic to get her first book published by the time she was 26, the age stephen king was first in print, and time was running out shes.

Publishing a book, especially your first book, is an experience that can mess with your headregardless of how your book does in the world. Everything ravaged, everything burned by wells tower, knockemstiff by donald ray pollock, pen america best debut sho. Your name in print on a book jacket, having your words in print, and the respect of having accomplished publishing your work. To help you avoid surprises, here are five things writers need to know before publishing their first book. How do unknown authors achieve success with their first. I wont, however, because it would end up being a very long list of credits. When you see a book shoot magically up the bestseller list in the first week it is published, understand that it took many people many months of work to put it there. I wouldnt as yet consider myself successful, but i hope i am getting there. As an authors, you receive a percentage of the sale, depending on how you published your book. Many small and mediumsized book publishers specialize in a specific area. What selfpublished authors need to know about taxes. Amazon provides the largest avenue for e book sales. The best help a beginning author would want is to simply help them get their book published. How much does the average author earn publishing their book.

His experience with his first book put him off writing for a few years. Sedwick on jane friedman what every self published author needs to know about taxes most writers dont realize that their memoir, short story collection, childrens book, vote up 0. Amanda hocking is a paranormal romance author who made millions of dollars selling her selfpublished ebooks and then went on to get a multimilliondollar book deal from st. By the time she received the first shipment of 5,000 books, shes. This canadian writer was self publishing her own y. All of these books have one thing in common their authors did not simply. Two years ago, i selfpublished my first science fiction novel, where the hell is tesla. Arguably the most wellknown selfpublishing success story is e. Publishing your first book might be, as it was for me, the first step in a longterm education into the publishing industry and thats fine. Author of first selfpublished book to win a major prize. Two years ago, i self published my first science fiction novel, where the hell is tesla.

Today, she is the author of dozens of selfpublished books, which have collectively sold more than 800,000 copies. Alongside his lurid thrillers fans can download an advice book. Sarah stodola uncovers how 5 great authors found what they needed to get started on their very first novels. It is true that many authors who stick with it for several years, and keep publishing especially if they can get up to 10 books, find that all their hard work suddenly takes off and they make it big. The second option for most indie authors who are publishing a book for the first time will be far more attractive of course. A variety of contemporary authors are choosing to self publish their books rather pursuing a contract with a traditional publisher. Adams served in wwii and later joined the british civil service. He originally selfpublished his first book, eragon, under his parents small publishing company and spent one year touring to promote the book. Self publishing success stories are all around us but its not often we get a glimpse into how, exactly, these authors manage to sell so many books on amazon.

These selfpublished authors are actually making a living. Franklin hiram king s book farmers of forty centuries was selfpublished in 1911, and was subsequently published commercially. Today, only six months after publishing my second book, im publishing my fourth book ive self published three books in the past six months. Consider the cases of baum, king, poe, strunk and twain, who actually published their own books. Advertisements while the data is clear, the reason or reasons why the number of books sold by indie authors has fallen so quickly is definitely not so clear.

Famous authors who have self published bookstand publishing. If you selfpublish, and do a proper job of marketing, your book may not only. Five simple ways to promote your selfpublished book. Eragon was an instant hit, selling over a million copies within the first five months. Amanda hocking, the writer who made millions by self. Thus i usually say that the average book sells 10,000 copies with a major publisher. Donna faz fasano wrote for traditional publishers and then became an indie author. The title of this post should be credited because i have been asked how to market a self published book or how to promote a book, so many times.