Many authors spend months and often years writing a book and getting it published—only to be disappointed that they didn’t achieve the results they had hoped for.

The reasons for disappointment vary: unrealistic expectations about the industry, the publisher’s role in a successful book, or their own role in marketing the book.  And the most frequent surprise as an aspiring author? The effort and time involved in researching, planning, drafting, and marketing their book.

In simple terms, they select a publishing path that can’t possibly get them to their goal.

Does the Publishing Path Match Your Long-Term Book Writing Goal?

For example, let’s say an author wants to get major media coverage for their book in order to generate leads for other, high-ticket products or services they hope to sell. But let’s say that selling their book to a major publisher takes longer than they expect. So instead of waiting for a lucrative contract from a big publisher, the author decides to self-publish.

As a result, that self-publishing path doesn’t get them to their specific goal of major media coverage and credibility to sell more lucrative, high-dollar services or products.

Consider the Right Questions to Set Your Expectations

My point: Before jumping into the book publishing fray, consider all the relevant questions to help you nail down your long-term writing and publishing goal:

• Do you plan to use this notoriety from the book to launch a brand and build a business with a national or international reputation?
• Do you want to use the book for credibility and positioning in the marketplace?
• Do you hope to spend NO money on the effort and instead have a publisher to pay YOU to produce and promote your work?
• How much time can you spend (and do you want to spend) writing and promoting the book?
• How much time can you spend (and do you want to spend) in handling production of the book?
• Do you plan to use your book primarily as a “business card” and “giveaway” to generate leads for high-ticket offerings such as keynote speaking engagements, consulting engagements, public seminars, or online courses?
• Do you plan to reach a wide, international audience with your message? Or, are you satisfied to have readers only among the audiences you yourself can reach within your own circle of influence?
• Is writing a book something you want to accomplish as a legacy—even if you are unable to generate a profit on the effort?
• Is this the ONLY book you plan to write? Or do you have others in mind?

Which Do You Need: Self-publishing, Hybrid Publishing, or Traditional Publishing?

Your answers to these questions—and so MANY MORE—will dictate the best book publishing option for you:

—Self-publishing (You bear all the costs and earn all profits from your sales.)

—Hybrid publishing (You pay a third party to handle book production at a cost typically about 50 percent higher than your own costs as a self-publisher.)

—Traditional publishing with a major publishing house (You have no costs. The publisher pays you an advance upfront against royalties per unit sold.  You can buy your own books from the publisher at a significant discount to resell to your followers.)

Get the facts on the following: The time commitment for each option. The costs and earnings for self-publishing and hybrid publishing. The TOTAL revenue and profit long term on typical books like yours.

Certainly, with technology that allows anyone to self-publish today, self-publishing does not have the stigma that it once had. But for me, I’ve always chosen to go with mainstream publishers, and so far, things have turned out very well.

In any case, your answers to the earlier questions will make decisions down the line MUCH easier—not to mention eliminating timewasters and dollar dumps.

Join me at the next Booher Book Camp (B-o-o-h-e-r, like my name) for a  complete 12-step process for actually getting the draft done quickly in a couple of weeks. Plus, you’ll complete your book proposal and query and get invaluable feedback from me and other attendees. For details, check out BooherBookCamp.com

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