The Nonfiction Book Publishing Plan: The Professional Guide to Profitable Self-Publishing
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The Nonfiction Book Publishing Plan: The Professional Guide to Profitable Self-Publishing
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Overview
Are you ready to turn your passion into a profitable business?
The Nonfiction Book Publishing Plan is loaded with proven strategies, real-world examples, and fascinating interviews with successful authors who started from scratch just like you. In this content-rich book, you will learn how to:
As nonfiction authors, publishers, and internet entrepreneurs with over three decades of combined industry experience, we understand your unique goals and challenges. We also have the experience to show you how to produce your nonfiction book in the most professional way possible, while you turn your passion into a profitable business.
Whether you're writing self-development, business, memoir, how-to, spiritual, narrative, or other nonfiction book, this authoritative guide by experienced industry professionals will provide you with the solutions you need to achieve your publishing goals.
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781949642001 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Authority Publishing |
| Publication date: | 09/26/2018 |
| Pages: | 304 |
| Sales rank: | 743,743 |
| Product dimensions: | 6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.64(d) |
Read an Excerpt
CHAPTER 1
THE BUSINESS OF SELF-PUBLISHING NONFICTION BOOKS
You may be wondering why this book is geared toward nonfiction authors. Isn't the publishing process the same no matter the genre? Yes and no.
While many of the processes for producing a book are the same regardless of genre, it's the strategy behind nonfiction that makes a big difference. Many nonfiction authors have a personal mission to make some kind of difference in the world, and just as many want to use their books as the basis for starting a business or as a way to grow an existing business. If you aren't yet thinking this way, you should be.
Publishing a book makes you an entrepreneur, and therefore you should treat your book like a business. Owning a business has many advantages. You can write off business expenses, such as the fees you pay to freelancers who help produce your book. If you have a home office, you may even be able to write off part of your utilities (talk to a qualified tax professional to find out exactly what you can and can't do).
The point is that we want you to treat your book like a business, not only because of the tax advantages, but because we want you to make money doing what you love. With more than one million books published each year, it's easier than ever to get a book in print. At the same time, many would argue that it's also harder to sell books and actually become profitable. You have to rise above the noise to stand out.
If you focus on book sales alone, and you earn somewhere between $5 and $15 per book as a self-published author, you have to sell a whole lot of books to pay your mortgage. It can be done, but the reality is that it won't be easy.
Our perspective is that authors should think beyond the book and use it as a tool to grow a business. This is exactly what we've both done, and we want to show you how you can do the same.
OPPORTUNITIES IN NONFICTION
Nielsen BookScan tracks around 85% of all print book sales in the U.S., and for 2017, it reported that over 687 million books were sold. When the ebook market exploded and we all feared that print books were going the way of vinyl records, the book market looked grim. But the decline in print book sales leveled out in 2013, and overall print book sales have increased every year since then.
Adult trade nonfiction became the fastest growing trade category of book sales in 2013, surpassing children/young adult, which had been the growth leader for the previous two years. Adult nonfiction also showed the strongest year-over-year growth among the five trade-sector subcategories tracked (the others: adult fiction, juvenile fiction, juvenile nonfiction, religion).
Sales in the adult nonfiction category have continued to increase each year, though numbers have leveled out. In 2017, the category gained 3% in sales over the previous year, while fiction declined by 1%.
What you might find even more interesting is that nonfiction titles sell more than twice the number of fiction titles each year. In 2017, Nielsen BookScan reported 281 million adult nonfiction book sales compared to 139 million adult fiction titles sold. Juvenile nonfiction was up almost 8% over the previous year with nearly 60 million units sold, though fiction still leads with kids at 181 million units.
Incidentally, juvenile nonfiction sales have been increasing in recent years, which may be partly due to the Common Core standards used by many schools across the nation. Most teachers are encouraging their students to read 50% fiction and 50% nonfiction, with the goal of preparing students for a more successful college experience.
In more good news for nonfiction authors, an annual survey conducted by Smashwords revealed that nonfiction readers are far less price sensitive than fiction readers. Smashwords encourages nonfiction authors to experiment with higher ebook prices versus the lower ebook prices fiction writers must offer based on market demand (for fiction, Smashwords currently indicates $2.99 and $3.99 as the "sweet spots" for pricing).
The massive sales of nonfiction prove that there are growing opportunities in this category. It also makes us wonder why more writers' conferences and writers' groups aren't paying attention to nonfiction.
MORE REASONS TO LOVE NONFICTION
What do the following books have in common?
• What to Expect When You're Expecting by Heidi Murkoff and Sharon Mazel
• Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom
• The Purpose-Driven Life by Rick Warren
• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey
• Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus by John Gray
• Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
• A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle
• The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz
• Chicken Soup for the Soul by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen
• Good to Great by Jim Collins
• A Child Called It by Dave Pelzer
• The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch
• Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer
• The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell
• The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama
• Running with Scissors by Augusten Burroughs
• The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
• He's Just Not That into You by Greg Behrendt, Liz Tuccillo
• Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution by Robert C. Atkins
• The South Beach Diet by Arthur Agatston
All of these nonfiction books topped bestseller lists in the last twenty years, and they are all titles that continue to sell well today. Some were turned into movies or featured on Oprah. All have contributed to incredibly successful careers for the authors who wrote them.
The point is that nonfiction can be evergreen. It can stay relevant for many, many years. Remember How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie? It was originally published in 1936 and has sold over 30 million copies. As recently as 2011, this book was listed in Time magazine's list of The 100 Most Influential Books of All Time. It continues to appear on recommended reading lists around the world and still sells swiftly today.
Nonfiction books can generate revenues for years, and even for decades. But let's be clear: only a small percentage of authors will ever make a living from their books alone. Even most New York Times bestselling authors have day jobs. They also earn money from speaking, consulting, writing columns for major publications, teaching classes, and building other revenue streams. Often a book is the first step in building a highly profitable business.
AUTHOR PERSPECTIVE: Karl Palachuk
I run two businesses in Sacramento, California. One is a technology consulting company. The other is a book publishing company, which grew out of my activities publishing almost two dozen books for myself and others.
I have written seventeen books prior to this one. I self-published most of those and worked with another small company that self-published one. My first book was published way back in 2005 when digital printing was neither cheap nor widespread. Back in those dark ages, the only way to get a good price on book printing was to buy 1,000 copies at a time.
My first book cost about $8 to produce when printed in quantities of 1,000 at a time. In other words, I had to come up with $8,000 in order to get a garage full of books to sell. I had to really believe that I was going to be able to sell these books in order to commit to the printing!
As you'll see when we discuss pricing, however, I am very happy to be publishing in the nonfiction market. Why? Because I can charge a lot more for my books than I would ever get for a work of fiction.
I didn't need to sell 500 books to get my money back. In fact, that first book retailed for $90. So even with giveaways and promotions, I had to sell only 100 books to recoup my investment. And, as you can imagine, I had quite of bit of profit by the time the first 1,000 books were sold.
Because of my publications, I have been able to build my publishing career to include speaking at professional conferences, paid training events for major vendors, and a whole series of add-on and spin-off products. I have also developed an online store that is focused on my core market (technical consultants).
Let me be very clear on this point: It took a great deal of work to build up all of those spin-off products, training materials, websites, and so forth. It took time and money and hard work.
But let me also assure you that it is very realistic that you can build a little "empire" of your own around your books. It begins with your expertise and knowledge. Then it proceeds to your book, to speaking engagements, to additional work, and on from there.
AUTHOR PERSPECTIVE: Stephanie Chandler
Back in 2003, I quit my soul-sucking Silicon Valley job and opened a 2800- square-foot bookstore in Sacramento, California. My big master plan was to sit in the back office and write novels, because when you spend your whole life wanting to be a writer, crafting the Great American Novel seems to be the only logical thing to do. (Yes, I can laugh about it all now.)
As it turns out, I lacked the imagination to write fiction, and this realization was devastating, though only briefly. Luckily, I accidentally fell in love with nonfiction when I realized that I could write books that make a difference in the world.
Nonfiction books teach us how to do things and how to make life better. In addition to wanting to be a writer since I was a kid, I have always loved teaching. It was joyous to realize that I could blend two of my passions together and build a career around them.
My first book was a business startup guide that I self-published with the help of a hybrid publishing firm back in 2005. At the same time, I launched a website targeted toward entrepreneurs and started writing articles and building an audience. A year later, I wrote a second book, and because I had built a "platform" (an audience of book buyers) online, I quickly landed a book deal with Wiley. Then I signed with an agent and sold two more books. I eventually got turned off by traditional publishing and left it behind, then launched my own hybrid publishing company in 2008, specializing exclusively in nonfiction.
Being an author with an online platform helped me build a business I never expected. I was invited to speak at events and hired as a consultant. I ended up working with dozens of companies who paid sponsorship dollars in exchange for outreach to my audience. I was paid for writing posts on my own blog, posts on sponsors' blogs, recording video tips, conducting webinars and Twitter chats, and developing custom content. I even had a six-figure contract to serve as a spokesperson for a company, which involved doing a media tour, speaking at two events, conducting a couple of webinars, and writing some blog posts. And guess how that company found me? They picked up a copy of one of my books. I earned more from that one sponsorship agreement than I ever did from sales of that book.
Since then I have launched all kinds of revenue streams, from downloadable products to online training courses. In 2010, I launched the Nonfiction Writers Conference, an online event featuring 15 speakers over three days, all delivered via teleseminar. Each year attendees asked how they could keep in touch after the event was over, so in response I launched the Nonfiction Authors Association in 2013. Our community has grown beyond any of my wildest dreams, and it's also one of the most rewarding endeavors of my life.
What Karl and I hope to accomplish with this book is to help you think bigger about your publishing goals. It's not just about the book; it's about all the opportunities you can create around the book. And since many of us nonfiction authors want to make a difference in the world, it's also about how you can make your own dent in the universe along the way.
Karl and I have been in a mastermind group together for many years, and we have always wanted to collaborate on a project together. This book made perfect sense. My sincere hope is that we can inspire you to not only get your book published in the most professional way possible but to also build a rewarding and profitable business. Your book doesn't have to be a hobby. It can be the basis of a thriving business and the launch point for doing important work in the world.
ON MAKING A DENT IN THE UNIVERSE
Nonfiction books have the potential to change readers' lives. Want to learn how to sell on eBay? There's a book for that (many books, actually). Want to learn about the history of the state where you live? There is likely a book for that (and if there isn't, you should write one!). Want to become a master cupcake baker or learn how to ride a unicycle? Check your local library or bookstore.
What we want you to understand is that as an author, your book can impact your readers. Your book could teach readers how to improve their lives in some way, get healthier, grow a business, be a better parent, get through a challenging life event, manage menopause, care for an aging parent, live with an illness, become a better partner, get over a breakup, find new love, master the art of Origami, become a potato farmer, negotiate the purchase of your next car, and so much more.
Yes, being an author gives you the magical power to make a difference in the world!
And by the way, if you're writing a memoir, one of the first questions you should ask yourself is "What's in it for the reader?" Will readers relate to your journey in some way? Will they learn how to do something better because of your experience? Will they develop a deeper appreciation for their own family because of yours? Like prescriptive nonfiction, your memoir can — and should — impact readers' lives too.
The other challenge to keep in mind is that if you want to grow your readership and impact the world in some way, you have to help people find your book. With millions of competitors, it's easy for a book to get lost in the crowd. Like it or not, your job doesn't end when you write and publish the book. In many ways it's just beginning. We'll talk about this more in the coming pages.
CHAPTER 2PROS AND CONS OF TRADITIONAL PUBLISHING AND SELF-PUBLISHING
Though this book is focused on how to self-publish your nonfiction book, we thought you should understand some of the pros and cons of both self-publishing and traditional publishing.
SELF-PUBLISHING PROS
• Book can get to market quickly — or on your own timeline.
• Full creative control of the cover art, interior design, and contents of your entire manuscript.
• Keep all of your rights. If you want to sell rights to a movie production company, have it translated into 59 languages, or publish excerpts in blogs and magazines, you can do so without getting permission or splitting the profits.
• Book printing costs are low, resulting in a higher profit margin when you sell books yourself.
• Distribution is readily available to Amazon and other online bookstores, making it easier than ever to reach readers, especially since the majority of us buy books online anyway.
• Print-on-demand technology means that you don't have the expense or headaches of printing and storing thousands of books in your garage or basement.
SELF-PUBLISHING CONS
• There is still some stigma in self-publishing, though it's improved in recent years.
• You have to do all the work: establish a publishing company, purchase ISBNs, get the cover created, get the interior typeset, get listed with distributors, locate a printer, etc.
• Startup costs can be high since you have to invest in editing and book- production services.
• It is difficult to get brick-and-mortar bookstore distribution, though not impossible (and not necessarily the best way to go anyway — we'll cover this more soon).
TRADITIONAL PUBLISHING PROS
• Some added credibility when your book is published with a major press.
• Broader distribution is more likely, including brick-and-mortar bookstores (though not guaranteed, and not necessarily the best choice for niche topics).
• Large media outlets are friendlier to traditionally published authors (more likely to get book reviews, major press coverage, etc.).
• Sometimes the publisher invests in marketing, though keep your expectations low. In most cases, publishers rely on the author to do the majority of the marketing. Large publishing houses tend to invest most of their resources into their well-known authors, though smaller and mid-sized publishers may put more effort into helping the book get exposure.
(Continues…)
Excerpted from "The Nonfiction Book Publishing Plan"
by .
Copyright © 2018 Stephanie Chandler and Karl W. Palachuk.
Excerpted by permission of Authority Publishing.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: The Business of Self-Publishing Nonfiction Books, 1,
Chapter 2: The Pros and Cons of Traditional Publishing and Self-Publishing, 9,
Chapter 3: Profit Opportunities with Your Book, 17,
Author Interview: Jim Horan, 33,
Chapter 4: Choose a Niche Audience, 39,
Chapter 5: Write Your Nonfiction Manuscript, 49,
Author Interview: Claire Cook, 73,
Chapter 6: Beta Readers, 77,
Chapter 7: Editing Essentials, 85,
Author Interview: Melinda Emerson, 91,
Chapter 8: Pre-Production for Self-Publishing, 95,
Chapter 9: Book Design and Production, 111,
Author Interview: William Teie, 129,
Chapter 10: Book Printing and Distribution, 133,
Chapter 11: Bookstore Distribution and Beyond, 151,
Author Interview: Mike Michalowicz, 161,
Chapter 12: Ebooks and Audiobooks, 169,
Chapter 13: Bestsellers Lists and Book Pre-Orders, 179,
Author Interview: Honorée Corder, 187,
Chapter 14: Endorsements and Book Reviews, 191,
Chapter 15: Navigating Amazon, 203,
Author Interview: Blake Atwood, 217,
Chapter 16: Your Website and Ecommerce Strategy, 221,
Chapter 17: Plan Your Book Launch, 235,
Author Interview: Charmaine Hammond, 247,
Chapter 18: Author-Publisher Business Operations, 251,
Chapter 19: How to Get a Traditional Book Deal, 265,
You Can Do This!, 275,
Resources for Nonfiction Writers, 277,
About the Authors, 291,