Category: Self-Publishing (Page 3 of 6)

Interview with Katlyn Duncan Author of TAKE BACK YOUR BOOK

August 30, 2021 / Katie L. Carroll

I’m very excited to host my amazing critique partner Katlyn Duncan today to talk about her latest release TAKE BACK Y OUR BOOK: AN AUTHOR’S GUIDE TO RIGHTS REVERSION AND PUBLISHING ON YOUR TERMS. Katlyn is the author of many YA and adult works of fiction and this is her first work of non-fiction. It’s so full of relevant information about the business of publishing and rights reversion, and I think any author or aspiring author will feel empowered after reading it. Welcome, Katlyn!

The inspiration behind a book is frequently talked about when writing fiction, but there’s often an interesting inspiration story behind non-fiction. What gave you the idea for TAKE BACK YOUR BOOK: AN AUTHOR’S GUIDE TO RIGHTS REVERSION AND PUBLISHING ON YOUR TERMS?

When the book rights for my debut Young Adult paranormal series (The Life After series) reverted to me in 2019, I immediately looked online to see what I should do with the book. But there weren’t many recent articles about what to do after book rights reversion. I had to do a lot of research myself, which was mostly scouring writer groups and working my network to find other writers who had their book rights reverted. For those authors, all of their stories were different, which helped me understand that I had to make a lot of decisions on my own.

One day, you and I were discussing self-publishing, and the idea came so quickly to me. There weren’t any resources out there about the process of rights reversion all the way through re-publishing the book, so I wrote it myself hoping to help any authors who are or will be in the same position.

Let’s turn the inspiration to you! What made you want to become a writer?

Storytelling has always been a huge part of my life. As a kid, I loved drama class and acting in plays while devouring movies as much as I could. Eventually, that stemmed into penning my own plays and movie scripts (which will never see the light of day, by the way!). Then when I was in my early twenties, I started to write fiction novels and I haven’t stopped since.

What’s one book you wish you had written? And (of course) why?

Can I say ‘Twilight’? I wouldn’t mind living in Stephenie Meyer’s shoes right now with the ability to auto sell anything I write and take all those lofty advances to the bank.

I think we’d all say yes to Stephenie Meyer’s advances! You write both fiction and non-fiction. How was writing TAKE BACK YOUR BOOK different from writing your fiction projects?

There are a few ways it was different. First, I had to do a lot of research for this book, more than I have for any of my fiction novels. Previously, I had saved some articles from when I was going through the book rights reversion process, but there was so much more to outline for the reader. I had to make sure that I listed as many options for a reverted book as possible, which meant exploring as many publishing paths as I could, along with outlining the self-publishing process from start to finish, and beyond to marketing and future plans for the book.

Second, writing a non-fiction “arc” is much different than a fiction one. You have to structure the book in a way that is compelling and makes sense as its own type of story while allowing author voice to shine through instead of a character’s voice.

Obviously TAKE BACK YOUR BOOK is full of advice for authors, but what’s one important takeaway you’d like to leave readers with today?

Regarding book rights, make sure you understand what you are signing away and how long your rights will be in someone else’s hands. This is where community is very important. Ask fellow authors in both the “traditional” and self-publishing spheres and find where your book belongs before you put pen to paper and sign any contract.

It’s so important to understand what is in a publishing contract before you sign. One last thing, what is next for you in your writing career?

I’ve completely veered away from traditional publishing and diving head-first into self-publishing. I’m re-publishing my debut YA series under a new pen name (Katy Duncan), starting with ‘Soul Taken’ in September 2021, followed soon after by book 2 (‘Soul Possessed’) and book 3 (‘Soul Betrayed’) in 2022, in addition to publishing adult thrillers after that.

TAKE BACK YOUR BOOK blurb:

Revive your book from the bottom of the charts with rights reversion.

Have you sold your book to a publisher, but years later it’s not selling the way you want? Are you frustrated with their lack of marketing and little to no royalty payments?

It’s time to take back your book rights.

This guide will give you the knowledge and confidence to get your book rights reverted and how to place it in front of new readers, on your terms.

In this book you’ll find:

The basics of rights reversion
What to do with your book after reversion
How to re-publish your book
Long-term considerations for your author business and backlist
Stories from authors successfully reverting and republishing their books

You will always be your book’s biggest champion. Don’t condemn it to years of neglect at someone else’s hands. Take back your rights and make them work for you for years to come.

Buy the book on Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and these other book retailers.

About the Author:

Katlyn Duncan is a multi-published hybrid author of adult and young adult fiction and has ghostwritten over forty novels for children and adults.

When she’s not writing, she’s obsessing over many (many) television series’, and hanging out on YouTube where she shares her writing process and all the bookish things.

Find her at katlynduncan.com, YouTube, and Instagram.

Email Ebooks to Kindle for Self-Publishers to Edit and Format Their Books

March 9, 2021 / Katie L. Carroll

With the popularity of my new Self-Publishing Resources page, I’ve decided to share some self-publishing tips and tricks on the blog as well. First up is the trick of emailing your ebooks and documents to show up directly on your Kindle ereader.

I like to do this for when I’m doing my own copyedits on a manuscript, but it can work for any point in the editing process when you feel like you need a different perspective on a story you’ve already read a bunch of times. Similar to printing out a physical copy of a manuscript, taking a look at it in a new format can do wonders for catching things you might have missed.

This is also useful for seeing what the actual ebook will look like in the Kindle ereader when you’ve gotten to the formatting stage. It’s nice to be able to see what a reader will actually experience before uploading those final files.

You can read your critique partner’s work this way as well. Book reviewers might also find this useful if they have ebooks sent directly to them by publishers and want to read it on their ereader.

The first thing you need is the have your document ready. If you are doing this to check your formatting, I recommend sending the actual file that you will be uploading for distribution so you get the most accurate look at your ebook the way readers will see it. UPDATE: Starting August 2022, you’ll no longer be able to send .mobi files to your Kindle, but .epub files are now acceptable to send.

Then you want to make sure the email account from which you are sending the document is on your approved list. To add an email to this list, navigate to the “Manage Your Content and Devices” section of your Amazon account and follow these directions.

Then it’s time to find the email address for you specific Kindle device. This is not the email that’s associated with your Amazon account, but a unique email address for the Kindle app in each of your devices. It’ll be some form of whatever your username is with @kindle.com. Directions for finding this email can be found here, which also lists the different types of files that are supported.

Then you simply attach the document in an email from your approved email account and send it to your Kindle email account, and voila, the manuscript will show up in your Kindle ereader of choice. Written all out like this looks like a lot of steps, but once you have approved your email and found your Kindle email, it’s just a matter of sending the document.

I’d love to hear if there are any specific topics self-publishing topics you’d like me to cover here on the blog.

Happy Book Birthday to THE BEDTIME KNIGHT by Katie L. Carroll & Illustrated by Erika Baird

January 26, 2021 / Katie L. Carroll

I’m so happy to have THE BEDTIME KNIGHT out in the world today! This book was first released as an ebook for a picture book app way back in 2012 (see “The Bedtime Knight” Is Born”), and it’s exciting to have it out in print for the first time.

Erika Baird, the illustrator, really did an amazing job of using the pictures to tell the story along with the text. And I love the purple color scheme she chose. The original layout was the text on one side and the illustration on the other, much like this page in the version releasing today.

That wasn’t going to work for the entire picture book for a print version. The design would have gotten stale, and the number of pages wouldn’t have worked. When I purchased the illustration rights from Erika, it was for the originals, so I had to bring my own design skills (or lack thereof) to the table.

Wow, did I learn a lot in the process of designing a picture book. If I never hear about adjusting page size for bleed again, I will be a very happy person indeed! One of my favorite spreads is this one with the closeup the young mouse character. It’s hard to see in this screenshot, but the illustration has a white border around it, and it was fun page to design.

This book is all about facing fears, especially the ones in our own heads. The mouse daughter keeps imagining the shadows in her dark room are scary things (like a giant on the ceiling). When Daddy Knight shines the light on them, they discover the shadows are just ordinary objects (like a ceiling fan). Then together, they use their imaginations to turn those everyday things into something else (like a friendly sea creature).

As the story progresses, the young mouse grows more independent in using her imagination, until finally at the end, she is alone in her room (with Daddy watching from the doorway) and reimagines the shadows all by herself.

As a person with a very active imagination, I often see things in the dark that scare me, especially when I was child. I love the way the dad character in the book so lovingly guides his daughter to see things (literally) in a new light and empowers her to reimagine them.

THE BEDTIME KNIGHT is available in print and ebook from Bookshop, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, IndieBound, and other book retailers.

Also a quick reminder that I’m teaching a virtual ShopTalk for the New England SCBWI called “What to Expect When You’re Self-Publishing” this evening, Tuesday, January 26, at 7:00 p.m. (ET). This is going to be packed with information! I’ve also added a Self-Publishing Resources page to my website for anyone interested in exploring more on the topic.

No New Year’s Resolution, But Hitting the Ground Running In 2021

January 4, 2021 / Katie L. Carroll

It seems I say the same thing at the beginning of every New Year: mainly that I’m always in the middle of things and a resolution doesn’t make much sense. Well, 2021 is no exception, so my plan is to keep moving forward on what I’ve been working on.

I’m so very close to finishing this big revision of my witchy middle grade novel, which finally has a title (not sure if that will end up being THE title, so not sharing right now). I think my next move is printing out a copy to do smaller line revisions before sharing it with critique partners.

I’ll also be presenting a Virtual ShopTalk with the New England SCBWI called “What to Expect When You’re Self-Publishing” on January 26, 2021 from 7:00 – 8:00 pm. Having booked this workshop has finally given me the motivation to work on setting up a page on my website for resources on self-publishing, so keep an eye out for that.

You may have seen my surprise announcement (see “The Journey of Self-Publishing the Picture Book THE BEDTIME KNIGHT”) that I have a picture book coming out as well. THE BEDTIME KNIGHT, illustrated by Erika Baird, officially releases January 26, though I know some of the pre-orders went out early (long story!). I’ve added THE BEDTIME KNIGHT to my Books tab, so you check that out for details on how to order.

All in all, lots of good stuff going on. I’ve thought about doing a 2020 book wrap-up post, but like everyone else, I’m kind just ready to move on and not look back. I hope the New Year brings you and yours health and happiness, and I’d love to hear your resolutions or plans for 2021.

The Journey of Self-Publishing the Picture Book THE BEDTIME KNIGHT by Katie L. Carroll, Illustrated by Erika Baird

December 7, 2020 / Katie L. Carroll

Surprise! I have a picture book coming out soon. While I wait for all the files to be finalized, I figured I’d share the journey of self-publishing this book and once again giving another one of my titles a second life.

Way back in 2012, my picture book THE BEDTIME KNIGHT, illustrated by Erika Baird, released on an ebook platform. I had entered the manuscript in a contest, and it didn’t win but the publisher offered me a contract all the same. It was really exciting to go through that process and seeing how the illustrator brought my words to life.

It was a positive experience in general, but a few years later when that company got bought out by a bigger publishing company, I opted to have my rights reverted back to me. There were several factors for that, but mostly I didn’t care for the terms of the contract and made the tough decision to walk away.

Fast forward a few years, and I had self-published my middle grade novel PIRATE ISLAND and found I really liked the process. I thought about doing that with THE BEDTIME KNIGHT. But publishing a picture book required design skills I did not have and I would have to get the rights from the previous illustrator or hire a new illustrator. I was also focusing on self-publishing my YA fantasy ELIXIR BOUND and writing the sequel ELIXIR SAVED. So once again, my little picture book about being scared of the shadows in the night was set aside.

Then one day, my sister and I were out on a hike with our families. We got talking about what writing project I was working on, one of which was a picture book inspired in part by her family. The conversation turned to what had ever happened with THE BEDTIME KNIGHT. I don’t remember her exact words, but she said something about how she had really liked the book and hoped it would be available again one day. I know she’s my sister, but we’re not the kind of people to compliment each other and not mean it, so I knew she was being sincere in her praise.

As a traditionally published author turned self-published one, it’s been hard not to doubt myself. Hard not to wonder if my work is good enough. And very hard to find an audience. So many books come out every year, and it’s often hard to find readers even with the backing of a publishing company, never mind when you’re doing it all yourself. So the fact that my sister enjoyed my book and wished it to be out in the world again meant something. It reminded me that my books–even when they’re only reaching a small audience–are important.

So I slowly started thinking about republishing THE BEDTIME KNIGHT. This time I wanted to have a print version, not just a digital one. I eventually reached out the to the illustrator and asked if she’d be willing to negotiate for the rights to use her illustrations. And she was!

We came to an agreement, and I taught myself how to design and format a picture book. This was all done in between other projects, and learning a design program can be a time-consuming process, so writing out the process sounds much less complicated than it felt while doing it. But I did it.

Now I’m super excited to announce that THE BEDTIME KNIGHT will be coming out in paperback and ebook very soon. Stay tuned for links!