The Path To Self-Publishing Success [Kindle Edition]

Michael R. Hicks (Author)

Book Description

You dream of having a full-time career writing novels, but you're not sure how to get there, or if it's even possible. Maybe you've played the lottery with the traditional publishers, submitting your work over and over again to publishers and agents, only to receive a pile of rejection notices. You've looked at self-publishing, but are leery of it, or maybe you've embraced the idea but don't know where to start because you have no background in the publishing industry. Or maybe you're one of the many who's jumped into the self-publishing pool and splashed around, but haven't made the kind of progress you wanted to achieve.

If that sounds like you, then you need to read this book. Michael Hicks has been self-publishing since 2008, and through trial and error found his path to success in early 2011 when his books hit the Amazon bestseller lists. A few months later, he kissed goodbye his day job of twenty-five years to write full-time, a move that completely transformed his life. He had never been previously published, and had no background in publishing or marketing. Yet he succeeded.

You can, too.

This book tells you how he did it. By sharing what he learned from sometimes painful experience, you can avoid many of the pitfalls that self-published authors may encounter, and maximize the potential to achieve your own success.

Product Details

• File Size: 203 KB
• Print Length: 99 pages
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
• Publisher: Imperial Guard Publishing, LLC (August 3, 2011)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B005FU49BG
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Not Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #330,763 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Helps Lay a Solid Foundation for Those Exploring Self-Publishing August 5, 2011

By B. Wilson

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

First the backstory: I'm still progressing through editing and publishing my first novel. I follow the rule of reading five books on the topic as each exposes a different facet. This is the fifth book, and I picked it up quickly because I've watched Hick's efforts from a far for about a year and wanted to see his inside perspective--see a bit of the sausage making explained. I recently read John Locke's as well. Together I think they provide a decent foundation for somebody just starting to explore self-publishing (an Explorer).

That said, I'm not exactly his target audience. I'm not an Explorer. I'm Tuning my understanding.

"The Path" is a fast, friendly read. He speaks from his experience in a way that gives meaning to those exploring self-publishing. I liked how in the beginning he laid a foundational philosophy and provided some resources to help an interested writer learn theirs. I appreciate his insights throughout the book.

Both authors spoke about being an author as a business. Locke talked about his business plan, which to me was more of a marketing plan. Locke's book focused on marketing. Hicks covered the key domain segments of self-publishing: editing, cover art, marketing.

Throughout his book, he dives into the details. I'm concerned that over time changes in a vendor's business process would invalidate some of his information. Sometimes I feel an explorer would do well to have some "go look at these references for more information." As I said above, he does this in the beginning. I thought it would be a good theme to run with throughout the work.

John Locke has something meaningful to say in his "1 million in 5 months." The Amazon rating tells you whether the reviewer is in the target audience. If you have a four or five, then that's your target. Their input is what you should solicit for your next novel. Otherwise, the reviewer is not in your target audience and you're free to ignore his input.

I rated "The Path" the way I did because I'm not Hick's target audience. However, I marked him up because he did a good job on giving the Explorer a foundational understanding that I think should get that Explorer into print. He missed getting five stars because I thought referencing some other good works on self-publishing (e.g. "Aiming at Amazon") throughout would have made Hick's "The Path" the go-to book for the Explorer. However, he has a special errata site that he may use to add that content in the future.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A Great Self-Publishing Resource, Especially for e-Publishing January 29, 2012

By Susan L. Mchugh

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Mr. Hicks' book was recommended to me by a friend when she learned that I was writing a book (still in progress).

I learned quite a bit from "The Path To Self-Publishing Success", particularly in the area of e-books and online promotion using social media. Before I read this book, I had given very little thought to the e-publishing side of things. After reading this book, I'm now going to give it serious consideration.

This book was written by somebody who's been there and done that. Thus, the concepts presented are not purely theoretical. They have actually worked. Mr. Hicks in this work goes through, in detail, the steps he took to achieve success in self-publishing. Thus, this is not a comprehensive guidebook that would cover every possible aspect of the subject. It is simply a discussion of the things that he did and what worked for him.

Still, there is plenty of great material. In the book, Mr. Hicks covers every aspect of the journey of writing, publishing,and promoting a book in electronic format. He begins with some excellent advice on the area of self-improvement--both personal and as a writer--and then stresses the importance of treating self-publishing as a business.

He stresses the importance of producing a quality work, and gives specific steps about how to go about doing this.

There's also step-by-step instructions about how to format and actually publish your book with a variety of e-book formats. He also discusses things such as pricing strategy and royalty options and gives recommendations here.

There is extensive discussion about promotion using social media, with particular emphasis on Twitter. He gives only brief mention to other social venues, such as Facebook, but that is only because Twitter is what worked for him. Mr. Hicks only talks here about things that he knows and has tried. I, for one, appreciate this.

Other areas of on-line promotion that he covers are the personal web site and newsletter.

One theme that he sounds throughout the book is that you don't need to spend a whole lot of money in promotion, getting reviews, finding editors, and the like. There are plenty of people out there in the self-publishing and POD world who will gladly take your heard-earned money and provide things of questionable value in return. He points out many of these traps, but he also identifies the specific areas where one should invest resources, such as in producing a good cover for a book. This advice alone would pay for the modest cost of this book many times over.

To summarize, this book would be a wise investment for anyone who wants to get a book published, particularly an e-book. And if, like me, you are considering only the print media, this book will make you think again.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A ton of useful info in an easy to read package October 23, 2011

By Rick G.

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

This book is a great resource for both first time writers as well as experienced self-publishers still honing their craft.

As a self-published author with about a year of experience under my belt, I was happy to find tons of good advice regarding new concepts to try as well as some thoughts with regards to fine tuning what I'm already doing.

The pros are fairly easy to list:
- Quick easy read
- Goes beyond just the ebook world and gives full end to end advice regarding the self-publishing business.
- Written by a top self-published author (something not all "how to" books of this genre can claim) so there's the added confidence of listening to someone who knows what they're talking about.
- Priced very aggressively compared to other "how to" books in this genre and easily worth what those others are charging.

The only con some might find with this book is that often times Hicks gives general advice on a topic rather that getting too specific. However, this makes a lot of sense. The author (rightfully) points out that every success story is going to be a little different. Emulating him or anyone else 100% isn't a guarantee of the same results. We each have to find our own voice in these things.

The title of this book is perfect. It's not a system, it's not a get rich quick scheme, it's a path...a long winding one. This book is aimed at those who wish to put themselves on this path. It exists to point us in the right direction and give the reader the tools they need to forge ahead. Whether we reach our 'destination' is still heavily reliant on us, but this book is an excellent compass to help guide us there.

More About the Author

Born in 1963, Michael Hicks grew up in the age of the Apollo program and spent his youth glued to the television watching the original Star Trek series and other science fiction movies, which continue to be a source of entertainment and inspiration. Having spent the majority of his life as a voracious reader, he has been heavily influenced by writers ranging from Robert Heinlein to Jerry Pournelle and Larry Niven, and David Weber to S.M. Stirling. Now living in Florida with his beautiful wife, two wonderful stepsons and two mischievous Siberian cats, he lives his dream of writing full-time and spends as much time on the road in the family RV as possible...when he's not at the beach!

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

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#51 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Science Fiction

#76 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Science Fiction

#51 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Science Fiction

#76 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Science Fiction