Content Preparation Gives Your Book an Advantage
If you're considering self-publishing your work and have been researching how to market your book, you may be reading a lot about PR and promotion. They are valuable and necessary for a successful book launch for most authors. But there are some things to do before you print your book to ensure it's fully competitive in today's marketplace. Two of the most essential are editing and cover design. There are various levels and types of editing, and you'll need to decide which ones are most appropriate for your book. Readers today are less biased against independently published books if their quality is high.
One of the many great things about working with professional editors and cover designers is tapping their experience and industry knowledge. If you let a friend with graphic design skills create your book's cover and they don't know about color expectations in your genre, it could hurt sales. It's the same with line editing and proofreading. If spelling or grammar blunders end up in your book's text, it can turn off readers with an eye for those details. People's expectations of quality today are sky-high, and meeting them ensures your book's success. You want your readers to recommend your work enthusiastically.
Working with an editor also gives you a foil for title selection – someone to bounce ideas off of and hear their opinions. It's a help and comfort to many first-time authors feeling undecided about their book's title. Having a seasoned editor available to give thoughts and input is priceless in many situations. Other content prep specialists can also make significant contributions, so don't forget your book's printer. Things like binding and trim size have much to do with people's perceptions of your book. The freedom to be unique is another factor in favor of skipping print-on-demand and its template limits.
Where you want to sell your book also factors into many of your decisions – and be realistic about what your readers will spend and where they shop. Hardcover editions are suitable for many books, while others should be released in paperback, keeping it simple and costless. Considering your audience and its needs and preferences gives you an advantage. It's also one of the reasons to have a plan with well-supported reasons and stick to it. Making decisions casually or on the fly opens you to blunders that can cost you sales and readers. When you give your book every advantage, it has greater chances for success.