A Writer’s Got a Right!

“Every few weeks she would shut herself up in her room, put on her scribbling suit, and fall into a vortex, as she expressed it, writing away at her novel with all her heart and soul, for till that was finished she could find no peace.”

Louisa May Alcott, Little Women

Every person out there, providing support or receiving support has creative potential. The options are endless for how people express themselves and pursue creative outlets. However, today I just want to consider the writers. I know, dear readers, indulge this humble writer.

Do you ever consider the person you support could be the next great, American Novelist? Poet? Or magazine author? When I think about the variety of writers out there, all having a different style, different audience, different muse…it’s overwhelming. I can’t support every scenario, but I want to ask you: are you nurturing the one writer in your care?

Writer’s may need help

Some writers will need encouragement, someone on their side cheering them on. Other writers will just need your help getting supplies, whether that’s the old-faithful pen and paper, classic typewriter, the modern convenience of a keyboard, or a recorder. Yes, people who can’t hold a pen or type are totally writers; they just need help recording their voice. Check out Speech Recognition Software. Many writers of past used a Dictaphone, Agatha Christie, the famous mystery writer was known later in life to dictate to a secretary or Dictaphone; she is author of 66 books! 

Many writers will scribble things that are only for themselves. Just because this isn’t for an audience, doesn’t mean it is less important. Make sure these people have a journal, an outlet. Journaling is an important outlet to think through feelings, situations, and even complex pasts. As if releasing everything that has been bottled up, writing can be a major mood-booster.

Perhaps there are a few writers out there that dream of publishing. There are a lot of details to pursuing traditional publishing. Depending on which publishing house you’re interested in, you may want to find a reliable agent. As a support team, be sure to help the person you support steer clear of scams and fake agents. This Writers Beware article could help: sfwa.org/for-authors/writer-beware

If the person you support has firmly decided they want to go the route of self-publishing, there are tons of articles out there to help you in the journey. I just want to mention two handy resources.

The Big Apple for Bookworms

Apple is a major name in the tech world but they are now also a route for self-publishing books. Apple Books is that orange app all the readers with Apple devices are using to read and listen to books. New authors can publish their work as digital ebooks by creating a free iTunes Connect Account and uploading their book. Apple’s how to article can help you get started: authors.apple.com/support

Pay special attention to the necessary EPUB format and financial details. Consider setting your cost per book on genre trends and whether you are a first book author. At the time of this posting, Apple boasts providing authors with 70% of the royalties for every ebook sold, regardless of price. Apple takes 30% as their commission fee for hosting but they don’t charge until you sell an ebook. Find everything for the Apple author here: authors.apple.com

KDP is Smiling at You, Author

Amazon, the warehouse almost every household orders practically everything from, also offers self-publishing options. Is it irony or is it just beautiful? The site started off as an online book marketplace and now they are offering a way for new authors to publish via Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP). You will need to decide whether you want to publish as an eBook, paperback, or hardcover, or even all three. Remember to check out their formatting guidelines for each version of your book.

If you choose paperback or hardcover, note that this service will be ‘print on demand’. Books will be printed when customers order so you won’t have inventory to worry about. The cost of printing the book will be subtracted from your royalty so you will receive the difference.

KDP Select

If you don’t mind hosting your book exclusively on Amazon for three months (note that means not available on any other site, not even a personal author’s site), than you might be interested in the KDP Select program.

KDP Select offers higher royalties in certain countries and makes your ebook available to Kindle Owners’ Lending Library (KOLL) and Kindle Unlimited. It also gives you access to some promotional programs. Those sound like great perks but do more research and consider what is best for you. Choosing to publish on the general KDP rather than KDP Select would allow you to branch out and use other platforms at the same time. Multiple platforms could help in boosting your visibility. However, you also should consider that Amazon is a major player in the game of selling books.

Royalties

Amazon’s KDP offers two different royalty levels that come with their own set of rules to keep in mind. If you choose to receive 35% royalty, then Amazon’s commission is 65%. However, if you choose the 70% royalty so that Amazon’s commission is 30%, then your book must be priced between $2.99 and $9.99. If you choose this route you will want to read the fine print but here are some major points to know about selecting 70% royalties:

• Not all countries will be eligible. You will receive 35% in outside territories.
  • Signing up for KDP Select will grant you 70% royalties in Brazil, India, Japan and Mexico.
• Amazon charges a fee to deliver the eBook to the buyer. This fee is calculated based on the customer’s location and subtracted from your royalties. For the U.S. it looks like this fee is $0.15 per megabyte. This is a reason to keep pictures to a bare minimum.
• Buyers are allowed to lend their copy of your eBook one time for 14 days. This may actually benefit you in getting others to discover your book.
• Your eBook can’t be in the Public Domain; you need to own the copyright.

Learn how to create your book with KDP at kdp.amazon.com

Check out Amazon’s Publishing Terms and Conditions as well as Content Guidelines.

Writer’s got to write because they have a right

You will have to carefully consider the costs vs. benefits of each self-publishing platform for your unique book and goals. Of course, there are other resources out there such as Google Play, Barnes & Noble, and Kobo etc. Everyone has a voice, a perspective, a story to share. Everyone has a right to life and in America, we have freedom of speech with the right to the pursuit of liberty and happiness. Writers, I hope you write because you have a right!