Top Self Publishing Firms Revealed

Self-publishing is fast becoming the name of the game for authors who want to bring their book to market in a timely fashion while maintaining creative control. Recently, I was introduced to Stacie Vander Pol’s book, Top Self Publishing Firms. I was pleasantly surprised with the quality of information Ms. Vander Pol provided.

kathleen gage

I have been a self-published author for over a decade. There was quite a bit I learned from reading the book. I would highly recommend this book for anyone who wants great information about self-publishing firms and the choices available.

kathleen gage

Kathleen:  From your perspective, what is the book about?

kathleen gage

Stacie:  The book profiles the top performing self-publishing (POD) companies based on sales performance. Information on publishing fees, book pricing, and distribution are also included, as well as a chapter on the genres that sell well for sell published authors.

kathleen gage

Kathleen:  When did the idea for the subject matter first come to you?

kathleen gage

Stacie:  I was actually looking for a book like this one and couldn’t find this kind of information compiled in a book, online, or anywhere else. I was curious about self-publishing companies, but I was only interested if I knew my book had a chance to succeed. I found plenty of information regarding publishing costs and distribution but nothing on sales performance.

kathleen gage

I started doing all of the cumbersome research on my own, and soon realized it would make a great resource for other writers.

kathleen gage

Kathleen:  What makes your book different from others in this genre?

kathleen gage

Stacie:  Top Self Publishing Firms is the only book that evaluates Print-on-Demand Companies based on the sales results of their published titles.

kathleen gage

Kathleen:  What is your favorite part of the book?

kathleen gage

Stacie:  My favorite part of the book is the enormous list of current top-selling titles that were published by firms in the book. It is such a source of inspiration and motivation to me, even now.

kathleen gage

Kathleen:  What advice would you give to first time authors?

kathleen gage

Stacie:  Don’t dismiss self-publishing. It’s an excellent option. If you write a great book, you can see outstanding sales results and often make more in royalties than you would with a traditional publisher.

kathleen gage

Write an excellent book. This means several things. First, your subject matter must be of interest to a lot of readers. Next, your book must be well written, edited, and titled.

Create a project plan for your book. You can use a calendar or spreadsheet. List every single step you need to complete your book including re-writes, research, and marketing.

kathleen gage

List in order each task that needs to be accomplished with a timeline. This way, you always know what you are supposed to be doing, and when you don’t feel like writing, you have plenty of other tasks on the list you can turn to. Without my project plan, I never would have completed the book and would have dropped the ball entirely when it came to marketing.

kathleen gage

Kathleen:  Do you plan on other books?

kathleen gage

Stacie:  Yes. It may not be right away, but the whole process has been so rewarding I don’t think I’ll be able to stay away for too long.

kathleen gage

Kathleen:  What do you enjoy most about being an author?

kathleen gage

Stacie:  At first, it was the creating something out of nothing part, but now it’s the satisfaction of hearing that my book has been valuable to other people. I just love that!

kathleen gage

Kathleen: How can people contact you? (website, blog, other)

kathleen gage

www.TopSelfPublishers.com

TopSelfPublishers@gmail.com

Thank you Stacie. Your information is very timely.

Kathleen Gage

The Street Smarts Marketer

Comments

[Aprille Janes]

I'm a published writer myself and I've been excited by the acceptance that self-publishing is finding. The internet has played a big part in this as the playing field is levelled between corporations and small business. Artists, writers and musicians are able to connect directly with their fans. As we become empowered to put our work out there we've found ways to control that work as well and the public has been accepting. A huge win for everyone!

Stacie's point that it must be quality work is well-taken because trust is always a delicate balance. If the public becomes skeptical about the quality of what is offered then it hurts everyone. Hiring an experienced editor to polish the work would, in my mind, be a good investment.

Thanks for doing the legwork on this valuable informaton, Stacie and thank you, Kathleen, for letting us know about it!

[Kathleen Gage]

You are so right Aprille about the acceptance of self published authors in the publishing industry. The stigma that was once attached to being self published has really diminished.

The reality is, it takes a lot of effort and work to self publish. There is a dedication that those who have not gone this route may not understand.

Thanks for an excellent post.

Kathleen Gage

[Beyond Niche Marketing]

I chose to self publish my own book after working with a client who was a pioneer in internet radio. She was absolutely STUNNED at how many top authors were tripping over each other to get interviewed on her show. She was puzzled by their enthusiasm until she learned that even though their books had been published with TOP publishing houses, they were the ones primarily responsible for the marketing of their titles.

Many people think that landing a contract with a top publishing house means they'll take care of it all. The truth is, that treatment is reserved for a very select few. The rest have to work VERY hard promoting their book ON THEIR OWN!

At least, when you self publish, you get a bigger "share" of the profits!

[Kathleen Gage]

An author believing that a publishing house will do all their publishing is one of the greatest misconceptions many people have. The reality is, some publishing houses will do some marketing and promotions of the book, but as was stated by Beyond Niche Publishing, the majority of the marketing must be done by the author.

There are countless ways an author can do this and yes, radio is definitely one way. Yet, an author must be prepared for these types of opportunities (that in most cases they have to create or pay a PR firm to do the work).

The author should be engaging, have information prepared for the show host including a bio, introduction, sell sheet on the book, send the book to the host, questions for the interview, to name just a few.

A mistake many authors make is to get upset if a show host doesn't read the authors entire book. The fact is - most hosts don't have the time to read the entire book.

Based on the need for authors to know how to conduct a great interview I developed a product that anyone who wants to get a lot of web radio interview opportunities would benefit from.

It is called Directory of Resources for Internet Radio Show Interview Opportunities Ver. II & Radio Interviews – A Recipe for Success

Go to http://www.streetsmartsmarketing.com/radiointernet.htm to read more.

Kathleen Gage
The Street Smarts Marketer