My Journey to Self-Publishing!

See where your story takes you!

Let me start by saying I am NOT an expert, and my self-publishing journey has been very humbling. Below is the condensed roadmap I used to self-publish my first picture book. My goal in writing this is to inspire someone who has considered publishing their own children’s story, but doesn’t know where to start. It’s a lot of work, but SO MUCH FUN!

#1 Get inspired!

My inspiration comes from my kids. Their interactions, thought process, and words are hysterical. I love writing stories that highlight my children’s growth, how they learn to make decisions on their own, and overcome conflict.

#2 Write your story.

Don’t RUSH! I usually start by writing a scene. I don’t know what happened before or what happens after, but somehow it all comes together along the way.

#3 Self-edit, Self-edit, Self-edit.

Ask yourself, what are the weak points in my story? Are there weak characters or plot twists that could be better, removed, or changed? Would an illustration work better to show the reader versus telling them?

Then, allow family members and friends to read your story. Remember, they love you, so they will love your story. They are NOT likely to give you an honest critique. It still feels good to hear what they have to say. Ask questions like what is your favorite part? And, least favorite part? Don’t get offended! You don’t have to agree with everything, but listening will make your story better.

Find someone you aren’t close to and have them read your story for an honest critique.

#4 Take an online class.

I joined At Home Author for 27$ a month. No, they are not paying me to advertise them. At Home Author provides invaluable advice from fellow mothers who are educators and successful children’s book authors. They can help you write your story and give you step-by-step instructions on how to get traditionally published or self-publish. They also offer a list of trusted editors, illustrators, book formatters, and book designers.

#5 Hire a Developmental Editor.

I hired three for my first book and found two that I really liked.  My two favorites are:

Brooke Vitale – brookevitale.com, and Lor Bingham – calicoediting.com

Get ready to be humbled! You might not like the feedback you get, BUT take a break and then read it again. Make some changes. Don’t RUSH! Send it back to the developmental editor for a 2nd read through or move on to the next editing process.

IMPORTANT: Brooke also set up full pagination for my book, separating the print into discrete pages, and assisted with art notes. She is an expert, and I highly recommend this service from her.

#6 Hire and editor to do a line-by-line editing.

Lor Bingham also did my line-by-line editing. She’s also exceptional.

#7 Find an illustrator.

This is the most expensive step in the process. I found my illustrator using the website REEDSY. You will pay a little more using their website because they require a percentage, but using their site protects you from contracting with illegitimate illustrators and people who use AI. AI is dangerous because it could land you in court dealing with copyright infringement issues.

I am so lucky I found my illustrator, Jessica Warrick. Her ability to draw characters and capture their personalities is astounding. She’s easy to work with, nice, communicative, and open to suggestions. I highly recommend her and am hoping to use her work again in my next picture book Bunnygins Goes to the Park.

Jessica Warrick - https://www.jessicawarrickart.com/

#8 Start building your website.

I used WIX. Is it the best? I don’t know. I have never created my own website before so there was a big learning curve. I do think WIX is user friendly, and I was able to get customer service help from a live person through their chat service.

#9 Purchase ISBN numbers from bowker.com

#10 Hire a book designer.

A book designer will help you choose a text font and add design text to your book. The designer helps with text placement and helps to give your book a little extra sparkle and shine. They can also create your files for you. The files you will upload for any paperback, hardcover, or ebook, and provide you with barcodes.

My book designer was Misty Black. She was very communicative and easy to work with. She provided me with some valuable input. https://www.mistyblackauthor.com/book-formatting.

#11 Start laying out your marketing plan.

What type of ADS are you going to do? Facebook or Amazon Ads? Are you going to do a book trailer? How many weeks in advance are you going to start advertising your book on social media. Update all your social media accounts with your new author profile and a link to your website.

My marketing plan included: developing a launch team, using email marketing through MailChimp, creating a book trailer from Literary Titan, creating Amazon and Facebook ads, creating ads for Pinterest, asking a local newspaper for a press release, getting a review from a certified children’s book reviewer, and reaching out to 10 picture book influencers on social media to see if they would recommend my book to their audiences.

#12 Upload your files!

I used Amazon KDP to sell my paperback and eBooks. I used Ingram Spark to sell my hardcover and paperback. Make sure you optimize your metadata and use clean URL links when posting the links on social media and your website.

#13 Start implementing your pre-publish marketing plan 6-8 weeks before you hit publish.

#14 Hit publish. Congratulations!

# 15 Start implementing your post-publish marketing plan.

REACH FOR THE STARS! I’LL MEET YOU THERE!