This is an absolutely excellent book for any aspiring author wondering how self-publishing works and how to go about it. And yes, there are a few tips and tricks in here that those who've already taken the plunge will find helpful as well.
The author writes in a clear, conversational style, detailing the self-publishing journey she and her husband undertook to get his first fiction novel on the market, and sharing with the reader all the things that they learned along the way. Beginning with a clear explanation of what exactly self-publishing (or indie publishing) is, as opposed to traditional publishing and hybrid publishing, she moves on to detail all the myriad tasks a self-published author needs to manage, either by performing the tasks themselves or by delegating to others.
As an indie author myself, I full well know the magnitude of these tasks - and this is before the marketing even comes into the picture. They include beta reading, editing, cover design, blurb writing, formatting for ebooks and paperbacks, choosing distributors and aggregators, pricing and royalties, making sure you have your tax information in order, building a newsletter list and an author website, and a multitude of other tasks before you even get your book on the market.
Does that sound exhausting? It is, I can tell you from personal experience. However, V.V. Cam makes it a great deal easier by supplying a range of excellent checklists to use at various stages of the writing and pre-publishing of your book, starting with one that asks you consider whether self-publishing is even for you. A host of useful links are included to various sites where you can find experts to help you with those tasks outside your personal skill set; I've used a number of them and can vouch for their usefulness. You can also download the useful checklists and templates provided in the book.
I'd highly recommend this to any aspiring author considering taking the plunge, whether self-published or traditional. It's a really great overview of what exactly it takes to get a book to market. I'm very much looking forward to the second in the series, which covers promoting your book once you get it out there - I always tell aspiring authors that promotion and marketing is 90% of the work if you want to be successful, so I'm very interested in what tips V.V. Cam will have to share in the sequel.
Five stars.
Because Self-Publishing Works: Everything I Learned About How to Publish a Book is available now at an awesome low price of 99 cents. Go and grab it; it's excellent value for money.
Disclaimer: The author sent me an ARC of this book for review.