Self-publishing
You have a story to share with the world. One that will entertain people and change their lives. You’ve decided to take things into your own hands and self-publish. How much will it cost? What are the steps involved? What are your options?
Read more about self-publishing with Liquid Type below, or get in touch for a quote.
Self-publishing a quality book can be costly. Depending on your particular project, you might need to factor in the costs of editing, book production, proofreading, ebook conversion, and cover design. A rough estimate for self-publishing an average-length book of 70 000 words with a simple layout is R55 000. This includes top-quality services at each step, but it excludes printing.
Publishing your own book requires hiring professionals such as editors and designers. You could opt to do many of the steps yourself, but this could mean your book will be of inferior quality. It is particularly important to hire a good editor and a specialist cover designer. These pros can help transform your book from an average- or low-quality product into a great one.
Once you’ve decided to invest in your book and make the commitment to self-publishing, how do you know your manuscript is ready for publication?
Having finished writing the first draft of their manuscript, many authors rush to find someone to help them self-publish. However, they might not be aware that their manuscript has major flaws. For example, their book might have structural weaknesses and be poorly written, confusing, incomplete, or contain plagiarism. The author needs to sort out these issues before self-publishing. There is very little an editor can do to fix these problems, so the author needs to revise their draft as many times as necessary to produce the best version they can.
Therefore, many authors who feel their book is ready to be self-published realise that they still need to do a lot of work before they’re ready to go ahead. In these cases, a manuscript evaluation can help you find out your strengths and weaknesses, your readiness to self-publish, and what you still need to do to fix your manuscript.
Having finished writing the first draft of their manuscript, many authors rush to find someone to help them self-publish. However, they might not be aware that their manuscript has major flaws. For example, their book might have structural weaknesses and be poorly written, confusing, incomplete, or contain plagiarism. The author needs to sort out these issues before self-publishing. There is very little an editor can do to fix these problems, so the author needs to revise their draft as many times as necessary to produce the best version they can.
Therefore, many authors who feel their book is ready to be self-published realise that they still need to do a lot of work before they’re ready to go ahead. In these cases, a manuscript evaluation can help you find out your strengths and weaknesses, your readiness to self-publish, and what you still need to do to fix your manuscript.
When you’re ready to self-publish, the first step is copy editing. This involves detailed line editing of your book to correct errors and ready the manuscript for book production.
In the next step, your book’s pages are designed and the text is laid out. For books with a simple layout, Liquid Type uses the latest publishing technologies such as digital-first workflows that enable you to produce the print book and the ebook at the same time. For books with a more complex layout, a traditional workflow is used. This involves laying the pages out in Adobe InDesign and converting your print book into an ebook after proofreading.
While the book is being designed, cover concepts are commissioned from a professional cover designer.
Once the pages have been laid out, the next step is proofreading. This involves a last, meticulous check for errors remaining after copy editing. It also focuses on catching any formatting errors made during book production.
By this stage, the cover design has come a long way. The author has approved the concept, and the back-cover description is put in place along with any shout quotes (endorsements). The spine width is set and the author biography and photo are put in place.
Next is implementing the proofreading corrections. After these changes have been made, final files are produced. The ebook is created. Once the final files are signed off, they are uploaded to vendors (such as Amazon), and your book is available for sale.
In the next step, your book’s pages are designed and the text is laid out. For books with a simple layout, Liquid Type uses the latest publishing technologies such as digital-first workflows that enable you to produce the print book and the ebook at the same time. For books with a more complex layout, a traditional workflow is used. This involves laying the pages out in Adobe InDesign and converting your print book into an ebook after proofreading.
While the book is being designed, cover concepts are commissioned from a professional cover designer.
Once the pages have been laid out, the next step is proofreading. This involves a last, meticulous check for errors remaining after copy editing. It also focuses on catching any formatting errors made during book production.
By this stage, the cover design has come a long way. The author has approved the concept, and the back-cover description is put in place along with any shout quotes (endorsements). The spine width is set and the author biography and photo are put in place.
Next is implementing the proofreading corrections. After these changes have been made, final files are produced. The ebook is created. Once the final files are signed off, they are uploaded to vendors (such as Amazon), and your book is available for sale.
If you’re convinced that self-publishing is for you, how do you find the right partner to help you in your self-publishing journey?
There are many self-publishing services providers who will promise you fame and fortune to get you to pay for exorbitantly priced and unnecessary services. Liquid Type is not one of these companies. Liquid Type prides itself on giving authors accurate advice and feedback. Because self-publishing requires a big investment, some honest conversations are sometimes needed in order to make authors aware of how hard it is to sell enough copies to make their money back, let alone make a profit (if that is your aim).
There are many self-publishing services providers who will promise you fame and fortune to get you to pay for exorbitantly priced and unnecessary services. Liquid Type is not one of these companies. Liquid Type prides itself on giving authors accurate advice and feedback. Because self-publishing requires a big investment, some honest conversations are sometimes needed in order to make authors aware of how hard it is to sell enough copies to make their money back, let alone make a profit (if that is your aim).
Liquid Type only works with authors and organisations who are serious about producing quality books. These authors and organisations are willing to pay for top-quality services because they are inspired to create exceptional books. Liquid Type takes on self-publishing projects with considerable merit. These are books that will change people’s lives. They are good enough to compete with books published by traditional publishers.
There are many self-publishing services providers. Why should you choose Liquid Type? One reason is that Liquid Type is currently one of only a few self-publishing services providers who uses a digital-first workflow to produce books and ebooks. This allows us to output print and digital versions at one click, cutting out the need for costly typesetting and ebook conversion. This saves you money and time.
Another reason to use Liquid Type is our focus on quality. We only use the best designers, editors, and other professionals.
Another reason to use Liquid Type is our focus on quality. We only use the best designers, editors, and other professionals.
It takes anywhere from three to six months to self-publish a quality book, depending on the nature of the project and the work involved.
Liquid Type is committed to fine attention to detail, exceptional services, honesty, and the highest production standards.
I aim to:
I aim to:
- provide the best-quality services at reasonable, industry-standard rates
- help harmonise the author’s creative genius with the reader’s sense to create a seamless reading experience
- guide authors in making good publishing decisions
- provide honest advice and feedback
- be professional in working with authors to ensure a hassle-free and enjoyable experience, and
- use my personal experience of more than fifteen years working in the publishing industry to always keep the practicalities of book publishing in mind.
Get in touch and provide me with as much information as you can about the services you need.
The self-publishing experience has been very exciting and fulfilling. I have learned a lot about the various stages involved in the production of the book. Liquid Type Publishing Services is the best and I will always consider them when I publish my third book.
