Keep yourself fed and warm, and the other stuff like books will come naturally.

I’d like to tell more bits and pieces about what I think can be done to sell books, but in all honesty I don’t want to be seen as an “expert”. There have to be other opinions, especially from people not as stubborn as I am who actually read what other people do first.

I’d like to have about 8 people who sold their own self published books get together to write a guide. I’m willing to be one of them, but I’m a bit more gonzo than average. There has to be a way we can share what we have learned and get this option become more viable. The goal is independence from publishers, agents, and all that nonsense. Think of it as Emancipation.

Lift every voice and sing, till earth and Heaven ring,
Ring with the harmonies of liberty;
Let our rejoicing rise, high as the listening skies,
Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.
Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us,
Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us;
Facing the rising sun of our new day begun,
Let us march on till victory is won.

I’m glad you like my suggestions, but there has to be another side to this. I feel like Charles Bukowski around here, for some reason. “Some people never go crazy – what terrible lives they must lead.” I guess I’m just here for balance. Hopefully other POD People (Print On Demand) will chime in.

I got coffee shops to carry my book by first drinking far too much coffee. Not only do you get to know the owner that way, you also lose some inhibitions. The aura of “artsy” is a good look for coffee shops, so they often go along.

I got a small paper sorting thing from OfficeSmacks and taped a small box with a slot on it. I sold them for $10 even to make it simple. All I was asking from java the hutt was about a half a square foot of counter space. I checked it twice a week, and kept it neat and clean (and the cashbox empty, very important). Over the last 18 months I’ve sold about 250 books in about 5 locations that way – not a ton, but not bad.

Bookstores are very unlikely. I sold about 40 in one that was willing to take me for a while, but everyone else was not going to do it. It’s not worth your time unless it’s independent. I’d suggest getting known there, too.

Basically, you’re more than just the primary means of production – you’re also distribution and marketing, too. It’s everything that you have to prove to an agent or publisher anyways, except once you have these skills you realize that there’s little need for an agent or a publisher. Life’s funny that way.

Dao ke dao, fei chang dao. (The way that is known is not the true way.) Once you handle that, and realize you’re on your own no matter what, I highly recommend just doing whatever you can and being resourceful. Why the Hell not?

I think your suggestions are great, by the way. I’m particularly interested in how your arrangements with the coffee shops work. The difficulty getting a self-published book into the bookstores is, of course, the most challenging obstacle to overcome.

Cover art.

I got my cover art by shopping around for artists and not finding one who would do just what I wanted for relatively low money. Finally, I asked a bartender if he knew any artists, and without a pause told me, “Yeah, at Visual Addiction” (a tattoo parlor). I went there, and they hooked me up with Peter Hanson, who did it for $200. I have the original framed above my desk (which is why I can’t believe I forgot to mention it!)

Shop around for a good artist who will do what you want. A tattoo parlor worked for me. Good art is worth a lot, but if you don’t have the scratch to splurge bigtime you can find someone.

There are several things that I can only give general info on. For example, there are some coffee shops in Saint Paul that are full of people who are writers or are into books generally. I hit those up hard for signings, and they often agree without a big deal.

I have a few coffee shops selling my book all the time, and I kind of rotate them. It’s not easy to get them into it, but worth it.

I’m very, very vocal in local politics, so people knew my name ahead of time. That, combined with a willingness to talk to everyone about anything (and, eventually, your book) are the key to me. If only 1/100 people give a damn, talking to about 10,000 is 100 potential customers. (In this town, 10,000 people is easy somehow).

The things I did wrong – and couldn’t recover from – are not getting in with the writer’s groups ahead of time, not getting my PR schedule lined up (I didn’t know I had to schedule) and perhaps not using lulu.

Oh, don’t forget editing. I had mine edited by two teens after the semi-pro edit which was after my 3 big edits (each less productive than the last). Each chapter was heavily worked up on its own, too. I honestly feel that sending it to someone for a (free) edit is always worth it, as long as you are willing to potentially ignore everything they say if you don’t like it. That may sound weird, but you can judge for yourself if it’s a “too many cooks” problem or really good advice, but you can only tell after you get the advice.

There’s a ton of little stuff, too. I had some color cards printed at kinkos to advertise appearances that were handy, but that’s all the promo junk I ever went in for, aside from authorsden.com. Maybe someone else found something was really great. I had minimal write-up in the local papers, but that’s the case with all self-published books – they won’t read ‘em. (The one I got cost me lunch, as it was friend of friend).

Oh, yes, make a list of all your friends, sort-of friends, and people who were friends until you ticked ‘em off. They need to know you wrote a book. Hit them up for little reviews on authorsden and/or amazon. Everyone you knew from your first grade teacher on, especially that High School English teacher that gave you a “C” and was sure you’d never amount to much. They can be pressed into service.

Last bit of advice: Having written a book is a major chick magnet, but I think it’s a guy turn-off. Perhaps it only works with the right guys, which would be handy. But some of the best promoters for me were dates. Go figger.

Naturally, other people have their own recommendations. I’d like to hear those, and perhaps we can assemble a very small (no more than about 8 pages) guide to doing this.

BTW, to be completely fair, I think that my rate of pay for all of this is up to about $2 an hour. You still don’t do this for pay, but it is handy to show people that I can write because I have a book – it’s my Master’s Thesis, so to speak. Never expect to get rich, but you can break even and use the time commitment to advance your writing career generally. Regular publishers can’t make that claim.

I’m definitely interested in hearing whatever suggestions you have.

That’s just great news, and congrats!

I keep thinking about putting together the lists of things you really have to do in order to self-publish – and have it available for free.

I made a few mistakes along the way because I don’t do “how-to” books and courses – I just teach my little self how to do stuff. So naturally I made a few mistakes along the way.

For example, it appears that publishing with lulu has the least stigma associated with it. Can everyone else confirm that?

Also, a number of reviewers only do “pre-publication” books, a few more only “new” books, and so on. I’m working on Midwest Review now, as they are the only big one that is neither (and is open to the world). But a list of due dates and costs for important reviewers would be a big help.

If nothing else, I should make an effort to be positive and upbeat. Self publishing is great! All my best wishes! Hasta la victoria siempre! (wait, that one can be taken wrong …)