Are you just starting out with self-publishing? In this interview, Grant Faulkner from NaNoWriMo interviews me about how to discover what publishing path is right for you, some tips for getting started and some of the practicalities of being a successful independent author.

You can watch the video below on here on YouTube. There are show notes with time-stamps and a transcript below.

The interview covers the following questions at the specific time-stamps if you want to jump through:

• [02:58] Did NaNoWriMo influence Joanna's entrepreneurial spirit?
• [04:15] How to determine which publishing path is right for you – check out the pros and cons of traditional vs self-publishing here
• [07:55] The speed of self-publishing
• [09:53] Does self-publishing eliminate the chances for publishing traditionally? [No, it doesn't. Listen to the interview with literary agent, Barbara Poelle, where we also discuss this issue.]
• [12:08] What happens after an indie author writes a book — and before they publish? [More on what happens after the first draft including editing here.]
• [16:00] When do you know your book is ready for an editor?
• [19:48] The stages of writing and finishing a project
• [21:52] What to expect to pay an editor – find my list of recommended editors here
• [25:30] What formats should authors consider publishing in? – find my formatting help here
• [29:15] Tips about book cover design – find my list of book cover designers here
• [32:55] When and how to create a publishing imprint. You don't need one, but here's how I created Curl Up Press
• [36:44] How do indie authors distribute their books? [More on publishing options here]
• [38:30] Tips on publishing books written by children – check out this interview with children's author and publisher, Karen Inglis
• [41:00] Advice on when to start marketing a book [More on book marketing here.]
• [43:30] How to develop a writing community
• [45:08] Thoughts on online writing communities like Wattpad
• [48:04] Bouncing back after a ‘failed' book — what is your definition of success?
• [52:15] What does it cost to publish an audiobook? [More on audiobooks in my new book, Audio for Authors.]
• [54:34] How to price your book
• [56:08] Giving books away to hook readers as a marketing strategy
• [57:10] Motivation for young writers

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Joe Konrath, one of the early US indies, said that “2009 will go down in publishing history as Year Zero for the upcoming ebook revolution.” [JA Konrath's blog]. Back then, I had a couple of books available and still worked my consulting day job, but the eco-system we have now is almost unrecognizable from a decade ago. It's a lot better!

In this episode, I share a discussion I had with Orna Ross for the Ask ALLi podcast about the last decade and the inflection points that have changed the business model for indies along the way. As this goes out in Christmas week, it's just the interview with no news or personal segment. Happy Holidays!

Orna Ross is an award-winning author of historical and literary fiction, a poet, non-fiction writer, and founder of the Alliance of Independent Authors, as well as one of the Top 100 Most Influential People in Publishing according to The Bookseller.

Joanna Penn is an award-nominated, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of thrillers under J.F.Penn and also writes non-fiction for authors. She’s also a podcaster and an award-winning creative entrepreneur. Her site, TheCreativePenn.com has been voted in the Top 100 sites for writers by Writer's Digest.

We discuss:

• Round-up of 2019 for indie authors — lots of small, incremental improvements. A good year for wide publishing with the expansion of PublishDrive and FindawayVoices, plus B&N has a new CEO, James Daunt, who shook up the UK chain Waterstones. Chirp for audio promotions and Google indexing podcast episodes means audio potential continues to rise. Amazon Advertising expands into UK and Germany (as well as France, Italy and Spain after we recorded.) Indie authors get into more libraries with the pay per checkout model for audio and ebooks.
• 2009 as ‘day one' for self-publishing, certainly in the USA, spreading out to other markets over time. The year it became possible to make a living as an indie author.
• 2010 – Apple iBooks launches.
• 2011 – 99c ebooks and the first Kindle millionaires. Romance authors with large trad pub backlists went indie. The media emphasized the trad pub vs indie models. Plus, Borders went bankrupt. ACX launches in the USA (but doesn't open up to the UK until 2014).
• 2012 – Launch of Kobo Writing Life, Draft2Digital, BookBub, and the Alliance of Independent Authors
• 2013 – Ingram Spark launches (although Ingram had been around a lot longer). [First stabilization of initial eco-system – low pricing + a number of ebook retailers + email blasts + review sites like Goodreads]
• 2014 – Launch of Kindle Unlimited, which impacted ebook sales almost immediately. A new business model arose with an emphasis on fast production within KU niches. A pivotal shift in the indie space, at the same time as ‘wide' companies Kobo Writing Life, Draft2Digital, Ingram Spark and others offered another way. The conversation shifted from trad pub versus indie, and then it became exclusive versus wide.
• 2018 – The end of organic reach and the rise of paid advertising. It was no longer possible to upload a book and sell copies with no advertising, and authors with a big backlist had to keep those books alive with paid ads.
• 2019 – The incremental changes have led to a mature eco-system of global, digital opportunities for indie authors and multiple business models.
• The incredible shift in author confidence over the last decade
• What doesn't change — the fundamentals of creating intellectual property assets, copyright and licensing, running an author business, a growth mindset, and patience amongst other things.

If you'd like to know how I self-publish now, check out Successful Self-Publishing, available as a free ebook on all stores, as well as print and audiobook editions (narrated by me!).

You can find Orna at OrnaRoss.com and check out the Alliance of Independent Authors here. You can also find the blog at SelfPublishingAdvice.org and click here for the Ask ALLi Podcast, or check your favorite podcast app.

How do you think things have changed for indie authors in the last decade? Please do leave a comment or tweet me and Orna @thecreativepenn @ornaross

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