Writing Life: The Publishing

If you are going to go independent, then you need to make a few decisions. It’s not just about where you want to release your work, but also when, and in what formats. My advice is simple:

1. Publish as widely as possible.
2. Distribute as widely as possible.
3. Follow the instructions on each platform carefully.
4. Be aware of where each platform distributes your work—you don’t want duplication in your distribution. It leads to confusion. I keep a spreadsheet for this, and I upload directly wherever possible. OmniLit, for instance, is self-contained, apart from its sister-site AllRomance, but Smashwords distributes widely. Smashwords has an opt-out button for each distributor, for each title, and you’re best to opt-out when you set up a title for publication.
5. Do not agree to exclusivity for any platform, as it limits the readers your work can reach.
6. Publish in as many formats as you are comfortable with. These include: e-book forms (PDF, .mobi, .prc to name a few); print forms (CreateSpace sells through Amazon as well as on its own site); and audioforms (Amazon has an audio platform, too).

And GOOD LUCK