Where to begin?

5 Steps - To Get from Finished Book to Published Book

After 52 rejections and 2 scams, I got a yes from a publisher. A real one. That paid me. To celebrate my mom, oldest brother and two toddlers put some unique graffiti on this abandoned building (with permission). Getting to yes, took me two years, lots of tears and more research than I can remember.

Nearly four years later I decided to go back to school, pursue a degree in digital marketing and start my own business. To make your transition from a finished book to a published book a lot easier and faster. I want to teach you the tools you need to get your book published. 

Let's get started, shall we?

Step 1) Branding 

This is a logo. One of the
steps to branding.

Do you plan to publish more than one book? Do you want to share your book with more people than friends and family? If you answered yes to these questions, you need a brand. A brand is all about your business. That's right. Publishing books for a living is a business. Branding tells the world what your business is. More importantly, it tells them what you can offer them. 

Step 2) Build a Platform

There are many rules to being a successful author (they change often as well). The most important one is being visible where your customers are. In the case of books, your readers. It also means building a place your readers can find you. A place you can send them to, to get to know you or your brand, preview your work and eventually buy your products. 

Step 3) Social Media Pages

Even though social media pages are an extension of branding and building a platform, I gave them their own step. They are that important! Without a presence on social media, your business will be invisible online. There's nothing worse than someone wanting to buy your product, but they can't find you! You don't have to be on all the platforms. Some are more visible than others. Just get on them, now. Preferably a year before you publish your book. 

Step 4) Book Extras

Depending on which route of publication you choose, there are several things you will need to have prepared. For traditional publishing, you'll need to summarize your book into a sentence, a paragraph and a page. If you're self-publishing you'll need a book cover and formatting at the very least. For most routes you'll need a book description, a bio and a blurb for the back cover (yes, you write that). There are other routes to publication and many other options, but the point is, your work only begins when you finish your book. 

Step 5) Marketing Material

This is an example of marketing material that can be
shared on social media, a website or advertisement.

No matter which route you choose, nearly all of the marketing will be on you. Even traditionally published authors do most of their own marketing. That means you'll need advertisements, pictures, posters, social media posts and many other images prepared before you're published. Even before you have a book cover ready. You're selling your work. You'll need material to do this. 

One More Thing

Having all the tools you need to publish a book can seem overwhelming. There is tons of information out there for every step of the process I mentioned. Maybe too much. Try not to get overwhelmed by looking at it all at once. Instead, break it up into achievable and practical steps. Keep following this blog to see more about the publishing process and the tools you need to get your hard work published.