If you focus on the three Ps of selfpublishing you increase the likelihood of success.
In the world of selfpublishing, it’s easy to lose track of what to do and what is a waste of time. You can fill up your entire day with busy work, but which things are important? Should you jump on the next bandwagon or is it a waste of time?
When making decisions about your career, the three Ps of selfpublishing are the most important factors to consider. On the other hand, if you’ve published and you fail to make progress, it’s because something is amiss in one of the Ps.
The three Ps of selfpublishing
I’m sure that after reading this, you’ll say “Yeah, duh!” but sometimes we really need to step back to look at the big picture and usually, go back to basics.
Product
Your first consideration should be with the product.
You have to make sure it’s as attractive as you can make it. Note I didn’t say “good”. What constitutes a good book will vary from person to person.
You need to have a book that’s attractive to people who read that genre, a book that is written to an adequate level of competency that contains the elements required in the genre that keep those readers happy.
But to get people to look at the book in the first place, the cover needs to be attractive and appropriate to the genre. The book needs adequate editing and a good blurb.
If you don’t have these things, it’s not easy to progress to the next stage.
Placing
Next you need to consider how the book fits in with books already out there.
How well does your book fit in the market?
Beginning authors often point out that they don’t like the genre “boxes”, but those are how books get classified and shelved. It is also how readers find your books. If they are not classified neatly in a genre, readers will struggle to find the book. Never mind that the book “also has elements of XYZ”, your book should be classified as primarily in one genre, and the cover and blurb should reflect that genre.
Once you’ve settled on the genre, you must place the book in the market. Make it visible, so that the people who are looking for a book in that genre can find it.
Paid advertising is but one way to do this.
Patience
This is a biggie. Publish the best book you can, place it well and then publish the next book. Success doesn’t happen overnight. Give it time.
Often people anxiously await success that must surely befall them after they’ve published three books, or five books, or they’ve stood upside down for three days while singing halleluja.
In all seriousness, the word “should” needs to be banned from the discussion over when you’re likely to see success. All I can say is that you’ll see it when it happens. And also, please check your definition of success.
