Is this your year to finally publish? It's never been a better time, but there are a lot of options and a lot of choices! Let me know in the comments if you're planning to publish this year!
One of my goals is to join your course Publish & Thrive in the next few years! It is still too early days for me as I am still working on finishing Draft #1 of my WIP. But I love watching your content in the meantime.
It's my year. I saw the perfect coffee mug with a lid that said "going places" and there was this cute little orange snail below the text. It's a gentle reminder to myself that a snail's pace is still a pace. While I could be upset that my publishing was delayed 2 years by a brain injury, localized tumor removal, my 5th car accident, and navigating out of a mental breakdown, the journey has taught me so much. I haven't come this far to come this far. I know that writing has healed me and I hope to be brave and share my brainchild this year. I'm building a pipeline as well with 4 total books.
I watched this before, but now that I am about to publish, watching it again lifted my spirits and encouraged me that I am on the right track. I have a lot to learn, but you and other authors on RUclips have taught me so much. Thank you.
Sarra, this was fantastic!! One quick edit for your links: Atticus can be used on both Mac and PC (it’s web-based). Thanks again for taking the time to compile this video… you did everyone a solid by providing this huge amount of information for free!
I am hoping to punish this year! I’m very excited because I started writing this book in 2018. Thank you for taking the time to share all of this information.
I just joined your class and then I realized I want to publish Non fiction for now, will your class still be of benefit? I would think yes. Thanks Girl!❤
SARRA!!! You are SO inspiring and helpful for me on my writing path....Can't wait to join your Publish and Thrive sessions when I'm ready! BUT, if I signed up early, would I always have access?
I can at least start to think about editing my one novel now, i dont mind doing alot of work, but where to start my research journey. Thanks for the workbook to help me get started
Thanks for all you do Sarra. I just put my book up for release on 2/1/24. (4yrs in the making)and went back to the Publish and Thrive to walk me through some of the setup. I chose to go with Amazon for now; hopefully, in a few months, I will be able to release it on a wider platform. Thanks Again for all your inspiration over the years!!🌻❤
This is such a good, comprehensive list of how to go about publishing. I love it. I published my first couple books as an indie in 2020, and haven't published much since because of various reasons, but between this video, your workshop this weekend and your Publish and Thrive course, I'm really hoping to change all of that.
Absolutely loved this and really got me excited for Publish and Thrive next week. Such a great resource Sarra for those who may not have the budget yet for the course to provide the workbook and this overview of the topics.
A few of the "I've linked/I will link below" links are missing? And the ones I was most interested in are not in the "How to Publish in 2024" workbook, like the books about Kickstarter and Direct Sales.
I’ve bought so many books because an author has a series on KU and then some of their other series or standalone books weren’t so I bought them directly. Is that common or am I a unicorn in that regard?
I think it's a mix! This is why it's so important to focus on writing great books because a reader will be much more willing to pay for books outside KU if they really love your writing. I honestly have a feeling we will see more readers buying outside KU in the coming years when they really love an author.
I'm still writing my book, and nowhere near ready to publish, but I do have questions: Does Ingram Spark do sprayed edges and special covers if authors want to release a special edition or something? ----- Does the marketing section of Publish & Thrive cover tips on convincing bookstores to carry your books? Does Publish & Thrive cover obtaining ISBNS, taxes, etc in Australia? Do you talk about how to check if your pen name is trademarked? ----- Does Publish & Thrive talk about getting your book into book boxes like Illumicrate or Owlcrate? ----- How much does Publish & Thrive cost?
Something that worries me about trad publishing is that they own the IP, right? Let's say you get a 3 book deal, fulfill it, but then you want to write a prequel. Can they say no? Then what? Is this something I could negotiate so I could self publish the prequel or whatever they say no to? I've seen one of my favourite authors say they want to write more books with a set of characters but her publisher said no, so that's it unless they change their minds. Any thoughts?
It really depends on the contract. You could be clear with your agent that you want the freedom to write more stories in that world and see what you can get into the contract. And they usually don't own it forever unless your books continue to sell really well. There's often a rights reversion clause that says if sales dip below a certain amount after so many years you can request your rights back. But I don't know enough to know how much of a fight it is to get them to agree to give you control over the world.
What mixing wide and KU by series? Example: If you have a series of short spicy fairytale retellings those tend to do well in KU so it would make sense to have all of them in KU. But for a longer word count fantasy series it would make more sense to be wide. Sure you're KU readers wouldn't be reading all your works, but you're be capitalizing on the best path for each type of series? (Obviously, you might have different pen names for those but you might not depending on your branding)
I wonder if there are exceptions to the KU exclusivity rule? Because one of the authors I've really enjoyed through KU, I found the first book in her series in Barnes & Noble (and immediately bought it, I was so shocked to see it in person).
I’m working on publishing my book this year but I had another wip that I totally left on the back burner. How do I find motivation to write what I already started?
It can be tough to come back to an old manuscript! I recommend printing it out or pulling it back up and just reading through it to start. Sometimes getting your head back into the story will make you excited to tackle it again.
If you write it by hand, then I'd recommend having it transcribed before sending it out. Most agents and publishers only accept digital submissions. You can either use a speech to text to read it out for a transcription, type it or hire someone to transcribe it for you.
Hey Sarra :) does your curse is suitable for non US authors? I am an author in Hungary, my book is under translation and will be published to foreign market soon.
It's such a double edged sword for me ... They give us so much opportunity to reach readers and I'm super grateful for what they've done for self publishing but yes ... The exclusivity, lack of customer service, lack of clarity on guidelines is all so frustrating!
Everything I used is linked and explained in the description and workbook if you want to check it out. I'm not physically creating any paperbacks on my own. I write the book, use the software linked (vellum) to format it in ebook and paperback formats and then I upload those to all the retailers I discussed in the video.
Hi Sandra! Do you mean for the events we had? Your Path Forward course is still available to purchase on replay, but everything else mentioned here is either closed for enrollment or past. We'll do another Double Down Day the first Saturday in March though!
Thanks for it your videos is so infomatable Do you formatt for other? Really i wrote a book and need to be formatted and publish,it is my first book It is 700+pages ,csn be devided in 3 books ,it is so importsnt to humanity So we can make a deal to help me in this issue And paying you your cost Also ism not hesitate to let you my tradtional publisher and see how we csn share the royllatiesi need it to be format and publiush in the 3 types I want it yo show to people
I'm sorry, I don't offer that service. You can format the book yourself at Reedsy or Draft digital . Here's a post about it blog.reedsy.com/how-to-format-a-book/
Indie is the only way to go for a male romantacy author. It's so demoralizing getting the "I like your work but, have you considered an feminine pen name?" Letter... -_- Traditional publishing is so toxic.
Same thing people used to say about self published authors, ebook authors, etc. It's the future, you just have to decide if and how you want to work with it. But no shade needed.
I will not go to AI for narration. I want to support other artists and creators. And personally I can tell within a few sentences at most when somethings AI - and it’s boring - takes me immediately out of the story. It sounds off and I just won’t listen to it, I’ll return it . I WILL use an app like EVIE to read back to me something I’m creating, but even that gets annoying. You don’t hear it quite the same as when a human is reading it with proper emphasis and characterization. My two 🪙😂
Is this your year to finally publish? It's never been a better time, but there are a lot of options and a lot of choices! Let me know in the comments if you're planning to publish this year!
One of my goals is to join your course Publish & Thrive in the next few years! It is still too early days for me as I am still working on finishing Draft #1 of my WIP. But I love watching your content in the meantime.
I want to self-publish one book a month in 2024.
Hi, I'm a new subbie ❤
I wrote my first book and I am now in the editing process.
Congratulations!
It's my year. I saw the perfect coffee mug with a lid that said "going places" and there was this cute little orange snail below the text. It's a gentle reminder to myself that a snail's pace is still a pace. While I could be upset that my publishing was delayed 2 years by a brain injury, localized tumor removal, my 5th car accident, and navigating out of a mental breakdown, the journey has taught me so much. I haven't come this far to come this far. I know that writing has healed me and I hope to be brave and share my brainchild this year. I'm building a pipeline as well with 4 total books.
🩷
You are a valuable gem, Sarra for sharing all your knowledge, and giving us free workbooks to download and print out. A fabulous teacher. 🥰
This is absolutely my year to publish. I’m working on draft two and my sister is working through it with me as my alpha reader
Yes!! Excited for you, congratulations!!!
I watched this before, but now that I am about to publish, watching it again lifted my spirits and encouraged me that I am on the right track. I have a lot to learn, but you and other authors on RUclips have taught me so much. Thank you.
Sarra, this was fantastic!! One quick edit for your links: Atticus can be used on both Mac and PC (it’s web-based). Thanks again for taking the time to compile this video… you did everyone a solid by providing this huge amount of information for free!
Thank you! Yes you're right and I should have made that distinction!
I am hoping to punish this year! I’m very excited because I started writing this book in 2018. Thank you for taking the time to share all of this information.
I just joined your class and then I realized I want to publish Non fiction for now, will your class still be of benefit? I would think yes. Thanks Girl!❤
Yes! We have lots of nonfiction alumni who have successfully published!
SARRA!!! You are SO inspiring and helpful for me on my writing path....Can't wait to join your Publish and Thrive sessions when I'm ready! BUT, if I signed up early, would I always have access?
Sorry I didn't see this last month but yes it's always lifetime access to all my classes!
Great! Thank you! I’m wanting to get it because I’m wanting to learn the process, but I’m just not there yet with my WIPs
I can at least start to think about editing my one novel now, i dont mind doing alot of work, but where to start my research journey. Thanks for the workbook to help me get started
Thanks for all you do Sarra. I just put my book up for release on 2/1/24. (4yrs in the making)and went back to the Publish and Thrive to walk me through some of the setup. I chose to go with Amazon for now; hopefully, in a few months, I will be able to release it on a wider platform. Thanks Again for all your inspiration over the years!!🌻❤
Congratulations!!
What is the title? I will look for it 😊🎉
This is such a good, comprehensive list of how to go about publishing. I love it. I published my first couple books as an indie in 2020, and haven't published much since because of various reasons, but between this video, your workshop this weekend and your Publish and Thrive course, I'm really hoping to change all of that.
It's time!! Excited to work with you.
Thank you!! I am determine to begin my indie publishing this year..
Great advice, Sarra. ❤
So enjoyed this! I love the checklist, that's really helpful.
Absolutely loved this and really got me excited for Publish and Thrive next week. Such a great resource Sarra for those who may not have the budget yet for the course to provide the workbook and this overview of the topics.
So excited for next week, and I'm happy you found this helpful!
I want to self-publish one book a month in 2024. But I haven't written much since 2024 got started.
this is so extensive and informative, thank you so much for this!!
You're welcome! I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
Excellent advice thank you, Sarra
Thanks so much for this!
This will be a re-visited video for sure.
Fantastic and helpful video
Thank you Sarra :)
Great work
Thank you!
What a fantastic video! So super duper helpful. 💖
A few of the "I've linked/I will link below" links are missing? And the ones I was most interested in are not in the "How to Publish in 2024" workbook, like the books about Kickstarter and Direct Sales.
I format using Adobe InDesign.
I am !
Thank you!
Would love the link to your workbook
You can sign up here: heartbreathings.ck.page/06396d7c0f
Thank you.
This is so helpful! Thank you so much! When is the class opening again?
Mid July is when enrollment opens and we will begin first week of August!
Mid July is when enrollment opens and we will begin first week of August!
I'm trying Ream this year. I'm pretty excited about it.
Me too!!
I’ve bought so many books because an author has a series on KU and then some of their other series or standalone books weren’t so I bought them directly. Is that common or am I a unicorn in that regard?
I think it's a mix! This is why it's so important to focus on writing great books because a reader will be much more willing to pay for books outside KU if they really love your writing. I honestly have a feeling we will see more readers buying outside KU in the coming years when they really love an author.
👏👏👏 Great and generous video 🌹
Thank you Sarrax
I'm still writing my book, and nowhere near ready to publish, but I do have questions:
Does Ingram Spark do sprayed edges and special covers if authors want to release a special edition or something?
-----
Does the marketing section of Publish & Thrive cover tips on convincing bookstores to carry your books? Does Publish & Thrive cover obtaining ISBNS, taxes, etc in Australia? Do you talk about how to check if your pen name is trademarked?
-----
Does Publish & Thrive talk about getting your book into book boxes like Illumicrate or Owlcrate?
-----
How much does Publish & Thrive cost?
Do editors get part of the royalties if you publish indie?
No! Just a one time fee.
Something that worries me about trad publishing is that they own the IP, right? Let's say you get a 3 book deal, fulfill it, but then you want to write a prequel. Can they say no? Then what? Is this something I could negotiate so I could self publish the prequel or whatever they say no to? I've seen one of my favourite authors say they want to write more books with a set of characters but her publisher said no, so that's it unless they change their minds. Any thoughts?
It really depends on the contract. You could be clear with your agent that you want the freedom to write more stories in that world and see what you can get into the contract. And they usually don't own it forever unless your books continue to sell really well. There's often a rights reversion clause that says if sales dip below a certain amount after so many years you can request your rights back. But I don't know enough to know how much of a fight it is to get them to agree to give you control over the world.
@@HeartBreathings thanks for the reply!! It gives me enough to think about and research :)
What mixing wide and KU by series? Example: If you have a series of short spicy fairytale retellings those tend to do well in KU so it would make sense to have all of them in KU. But for a longer word count fantasy series it would make more sense to be wide. Sure you're KU readers wouldn't be reading all your works, but you're be capitalizing on the best path for each type of series? (Obviously, you might have different pen names for those but you might not depending on your branding)
I wonder if there are exceptions to the KU exclusivity rule? Because one of the authors I've really enjoyed through KU, I found the first book in her series in Barnes & Noble (and immediately bought it, I was so shocked to see it in person).
If it was a paperback, then it's not part of exclusivity! Only eBooks are in KU!
@@HeartBreathings That makes sense!
I’m working on publishing my book this year but I had another wip that I totally left on the back burner. How do I find motivation to write what I already started?
It can be tough to come back to an old manuscript! I recommend printing it out or pulling it back up and just reading through it to start. Sometimes getting your head back into the story will make you excited to tackle it again.
@@HeartBreathings Thank you I will do that
This is my goal for this year and I’m currently writing a story. If I write my story by hand, how would I send that to a publisher through the mail?
If you write it by hand, then I'd recommend having it transcribed before sending it out. Most agents and publishers only accept digital submissions. You can either use a speech to text to read it out for a transcription, type it or hire someone to transcribe it for you.
It's going to vary agent by agent and publisher by publisher, but I don't think many (if any) accept hand written manuscripts anymore.
Hey how are you doing it so far? I am already broughts one on yours books at amazon and I will leave a review one on yours books on amazon
How do we get the workbook with the links etc you spoke about?
Just sign up for my newsletter that's linked in the description box. I'll send you the workbook and an additional link to all my resources!
Hiii!! First comment and like!!
✨✨✨✨✨✨
Hey Sarra :) does your curse is suitable for non US authors? I am an author in Hungary, my book is under translation and will be published to foreign market soon.
I'm beginning to hate Amazon. They seem to be like 'one-sided contracts'. They want limitations on how to sell, MY work....
It's such a double edged sword for me ... They give us so much opportunity to reach readers and I'm super grateful for what they've done for self publishing but yes ... The exclusivity, lack of customer service, lack of clarity on guidelines is all so frustrating!
What does self publishing mean . Did you use equipment at home or library . Did you use a program
Everything I used is linked and explained in the description and workbook if you want to check it out. I'm not physically creating any paperbacks on my own. I write the book, use the software linked (vellum) to format it in ebook and paperback formats and then I upload those to all the retailers I discussed in the video.
We are last Feb 3rd so what is available
Hi Sandra! Do you mean for the events we had? Your Path Forward course is still available to purchase on replay, but everything else mentioned here is either closed for enrollment or past. We'll do another Double Down Day the first Saturday in March though!
@@HeartBreathings I'm looking to publish in the next 3-4 months and looking for the best program to walk me thru it
@@HeartBreathings I'm going to publish in the next 3-4 months and was looking for the best program to help navigate the how to’s
Thanks for it your videos is so infomatable
Do you formatt for other?
Really i wrote a book and need to be formatted and publish,it is my first book
It is 700+pages ,csn be devided in 3 books ,it is so importsnt to humanity
So we can make a deal to help me in this issue
And paying you your cost
Also ism not hesitate to let you my tradtional publisher and see how we csn share the royllatiesi need it to be format and publiush in the 3 types
I want it yo show to people
I'm sorry, I don't offer that service. You can format the book yourself at Reedsy or Draft digital . Here's a post about it blog.reedsy.com/how-to-format-a-book/
Indie is the only way to go for a male romantacy author.
It's so demoralizing getting the "I like your work but, have you considered an feminine pen name?" Letter...
-_-
Traditional publishing is so toxic.
Can't respect AI writers.
Same thing people used to say about self published authors, ebook authors, etc. It's the future, you just have to decide if and how you want to work with it. But no shade needed.
We didn't even get to go into AI for writing in this video so I'm not sure why this comment was needed.
I will not go to AI for narration. I want to support other artists and creators.
And personally I can tell within a few sentences at most when somethings AI - and it’s boring - takes me immediately out of the story. It sounds off and I just won’t listen to it, I’ll return it .
I WILL use an app like EVIE to read back to me something I’m creating, but even that gets annoying. You don’t hear it quite the same as when a human is reading it with proper emphasis and characterization.
My two 🪙😂