Here we go! Rebecca McKeown's self-publishing diary

Hello, all! I've mainly been a lurker up until now, though I have posted a few times. I've been enjoying reading through everyone's self-publishing threads. Seeing the numbers has been quite motivating!

I'm in the process of self-publishing a short collection of my poetry called Bless the Bitter Night: Poems about Failed Love in the Modern World. Since it's poetry, and only a short collection, I don't have any grand ideas of selling millions of copies. I'm sure it will mainly be friends who buy it. I just think self-publishing is a good way to get my work out there, plus I've always liked the "do-it-yourself" lifestyle, so it's a good fit for me! I'm in the middle of writing a fantasy novel. I'm not sure if I'll self-publish that. Right now, I'm just focusing on this poetry book. I figured I'd document how things go here, as it might help others who want to self-publish poetry.

Right now, the ebook is up on Amazon and Smashwords for $0.99. It just got accepted into the Smashwords' premium catalog, so it will be a while before it's uploaded to Kobo, Apple, and the rest. I'm also in the process of uploading directly to Barnes and Noble, but my vendor account isn't verified yet, so I haven't published there as of right now.

The book will also be in print. My proof copy from Createspace should arrive tomorrow. If everything looks good, I'll hit "publish." I'm not sure how long it takes after that to get it up on Amazon. I did pay the $25 for Createspace's expanded distribution, which may end up a waste of money, but I figure $25 isn't terrible.

Once the print copy is up on Amazon, I'll "officially" release it, which basically means I'll promote it on Facebook and Twitter and my website, as well as send out an email to my mailing list (which has one person as of right now haha.)

Sooo... that's it. I'll keep you all posted!

merrihiatt said:

Welcome, Rebecca. I look forward to reading your thread.

It only takes four or five days for the paperback book to be live at Amazon once you approve the proof. Longer for it to appear on other sales channels.

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Good to know! Thank you, Merri!

FionnJameson said:

Good luck! You're going to love it here. Everyone is uber supportive and we help each other out a lot.

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It sure seems like it! Good to know I can turn to you all for advice.

Celeste Carrara said:

Good luck Rebecca

FYI, you can do a giveaway on Goodreads of your printed copy. That could help get your name out there. Also, you can do one on Library Thing too and on there you can do an ebook giveaway.

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I haven't heard of Library Thing, but I'll keep it in mind. Thanks! I'm planning to do a Goodreads giveaway once I see the proof and get the print copy up on Amazon. I'm at work until later this afternoon, so I have no idea if the proof is here yet, but I hope it will be waiting for me.

Man, it's exciting to see myself on an Amazon author page! Same for Goodreads! Ahh!

Thanks, everyone!

Tezzirax said:

Good luck, Rebecca. CreateSpace puts together a nice looking product, and it is awesome to hold your book in your hands. Be sure to proof it front to back and back to front.

I order a couple proofs of my books so that my wife and I can mark them up in final proofreading runs--I spot more errors in the printed version than the electronic version because I am seeing my words a whole new way. Attack it with a red pen and a pad of post-it notes, even if you think it's pure as driven snow.

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Good advice. I plan to go over my book several times. Since it's so short, that won't be an issue. I know I caught quite a few spacing/layout errors in the digital proof. Hopefully there won't be any more!

Also, the proof hasn't arrived yet (drat!) even though I paid for it to arrive today. Does anyone know if Createspace ships via UPS or FedEx, or if they go with USPS? My mail already arrived today, but usually UPS and FedEx deliver later in the day where I live.

LBlankenship said:

More hellos, good lucks, and a proofreading tip for when you've looked at something a million times already: read it backwards! It helps you keep that mental distance.

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Yes! That's a great tip. I first learned it in journalism school, and use it quite frequently now.

Thanks, everyone! I'm at a friend's house, but I hope my proof is on my doorstep when I get home later. I'm excited to see it!

The proof was, in fact, waiting for me when I got home. I looked it over briefly, but it looks great! Tempted to hit "publish," but I'm going to make myself wait until I look it over several more times.

Just a little update. Even though the book hasn't been publicized as "released" yet, I sold one ebook on Amazon. Woo! I'm pretty sure it's from YouTube since I posted a trailer on my author channel that linked to my Amazon page. I'd mentioned my author channel earlier on my personal channel, so one of those subscribers must have hopped on over.

Thank you, Mme!

I'm getting a bit nervous because my paperback book showed up on Amazon yesterday when I searched my book title, but now only the Kindle version shows up. When I click on my author page, only the Kindle version shows, too. Though, I don't think the paperback appeared there last night, either. I'd bookmarked the paperback's page and it looks fine when I go to it there... Does anyone know if this is happening because Amazon is merging the Kindle and paperback listings into one, or is there a glitch or something I should be worried about?

merrihiatt said:

Give it a couple more days to sync up. If it doesn't, contact Amazon KDP directly. Do you have an author page set up? It allows you to claim your books and you can link to it so only your books show up.

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Thanks, Merri. I hope it sorts out soon. I do have an author page set up. Right now it only shows the Kindle version (which I uploaded first) and not the paperback, but when I search the paperback to add it to my page, it says it's already added. I'm assuming this is going on because Amazon is merging the two, but I'm not sure. Has anyone else experienced this?