Self Publisher’s Toolkit: Includes Self Publishing in the 2020s and Marketing Your Book to Libraries

By Eric Otis Simmons

Self Publisher’s Toolkit is a two-in-one resource that shows you how to self publish a book and then market it to Libraries, a viable $30+ billion segment often overlooked by self publishers.

From January 2019 to June 2020, Eric Otis Simmons’ self published books appeared 64 times on the leading online retailer’s “Best Sellers” list and in just over two years had been purchased by over 97 Libraries around the world. His article How To Get Your Book Into Libraries, became the top Google search result, excluding Ads, out of over 2 billion, on the topic of “getting your book into libraries!”

Includes Self Publishing in the 2020s and Marketing Your Book to Libraries.

Your “Construction” and “Marketing” Blueprint!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Eric Simmons Enterprises, Inc.
• Release date: Jul 3, 2020
• ISBN: 057872393X

Eric Otis Simmons

Biography Eric Simmons is the CEO of ESE, Inc., a website development firm specializing in creating sites for small businesses, high school/college athletes, authors, poets, and others who seek to project their “Personal Brand” on the Internet.  A former college athlete, he enjoys sports and public speaking.  He self-publishes under his full name, Eric Otis Simmons, and his written works are branded under the name ESETOMES (pronounced ESE-TOMES) to represent a “volume of books.” Eric has written and self-published four books that have appeared on Amazon’s “Best Sellers” list 181 times since January 2019.  His Memoir, “Not Far From The Tree,” chronicles his life and underscores how his single mother’s teachings propelled him to excel academically, athletically, and in Corporate America.  “#HTSP - How to Self-Publish” is based on the steps he undertook to write, market, and distribute his Memoir.  “Getting Your Book Into Libraries” evolved from his well-received article, “How To Get Your Book Into Libraries,” which became the top Google search result, out of over 2 billion, on the subject of “getting your book into libraries.”  Over 200 Libraries have purchased Simmons’ self-published books.  “Self Publisher’s Toolkit” is a two-in-one resource that shows the reader how to self-publish a book and market it to Libraries, a viable $30+ billion segment often overlooked by self publishers. Social Media Facebook: www.facebook.com/esimmonsauthor Twitter: @esimmonsauthor

Book preview

Author.

Dedication

This book is dedicated to my mother, Wiletta. She touched many lives, especially mine, with her willingness to share information and knowledge with others, especially when she felt it would be helpful and beneficial.

Acknowledgments

My thanks to my wife, Cynthia, for supporting me in this writing endeavor. My appreciation also to the companies that have developed platforms, which enable us to share our self published works with others. Lastly, thank you to the hundreds of Librarians around the world for their vote of confidence in my written works.

About the Author

Without any prior book writing experience or knowledge of the publishing industry, on March 7, 2017, Eric Otis Simmons released his self published Memoir, "Not Far From The Tree. From January 2019, when Simmons began tracking the book’s Amazon Best Seller" sales results, through the date of this publication, the title had appeared on the list 24 times.

Eric, a Certified Webmaster, is the CEO/Founder of ESE, Inc., a website development firm. His company specializes in creating custom websites for Authors, Poets, compensation eligible College Athletes, High School Athletes, and others seeking to present their Personal Brand on the Internet for marketing, brand establishment, athletic recruitment, or similar purposes. His written works are copyrighted under the brand name of ESETOMES, which stands for ESE, Inc. plus the word TOMES (books in a work of several volumes). In addition to this book and his Memoir, his other self published titles, in order of publication are, "#HTSP - How to Self-Publish, ESETOMES Box Set, an eBook compilation of his first two books and Getting Your Book Into Libraries. At the time of this publication, and since January 2019, his titles, combined, had made 37 appearances on Amazon’s Best Seller list and since January 2018, the books had been ranked in the Top 1% in worldwide sales 80 times and the Top 10%, 501 times. His article, How To Get Your Book Into Libraries, became the top Google search result, excluding Ads, out of over 2 billion results on the subject of getting your book into libraries." Simmons and his wife reside in metro Atlanta, and they have three adult children.

ESETOMES Books

Website - www.eseinc1.com/esetomes-books

Facebook - www.faceBook.com/esimmonsauthor

Twitter – www.twitter.com/esimmonsauthor

ESE, Inc.

Website - www.eseinc1.com

Facebook - www.facebook.com/ESE-Inc-1431136640304095/?ref=br_rs

Contents

Dedication

Acknowledgments

About the Author

Contents

Publisher versus Self Publishing

Chapter 1 - Self Publishing in the 2020s

MarketOutlook

The ABCs of Self Publishing

A – Write Your Book

B - Package Your Book

C - Channelize and Market Your Book

Chapter 2 - Marketing Your Book

Chapter 3 - Setting Up Your Book Business

Chapter 4 - Managing Your Book Business

Chapter 5 – Marketing Your Book to Libraries

Why Libraries?

Chapter 6 - Getting Started Marketing to Libraries

Chapter 7 - Building Your Library Contacts Database

Chapter 8 - Creating a Mail Merge Document

Chapter 9 – Tactics

Chapter 10 – Methodology Summary

References

Publisher versus Self Publishing

For many, the decision to self publish a book may be intuitive and come quickly, whereas, for others, validation may be needed as to whether one should go through a publisher or self publish. I fell into the latter category, even though I was pretty sure I wanted to self publish my first book. To validate the direction I felt I would be heading in, I decided to invest some time doing Google research to gain a better understanding of the differences between going through a publisher and taking the self publishing route. I came across an article entitled, Pros And Cons Of Traditional Publishing vs Self-Publishing, which proved quite beneficial. The piece was written by Joanna Penn, a best-selling Author who had transitioned from the traditional Publisher route to self publishing. After reviewing Penn’s information, I created a T-Chart with Publisher on the left side and Self Publish on the right. Underneath each heading, I listed the pros and cons. As a visual learner, I felt seeing information in this format would help me in deciding between the two alternatives.

When I concluded my research, I was able to confirm Self Publishing would be the best route for me because the Pros outweighed the Cons, in my view. Following is a synopsis of my notes from my research:

Publisher

Pros

Prestige

Distribution to bookstores via Sales Representatives

An Advance (i.e., upfront money) to the Author

Note: Per Penn, …the advance is against royalties, which are usually 7-25% of the net book price. Royalties can be 10% on average. So, if you get an advance of $10,000, you then have to earn more than $10,000 out of your royalty rate on your book sales before you get any more money.

Cons

Slow process. Could take 1-2.5 years before your book launch

Royalties of 7-25% with the latter being generous. Hard to predict cash flow

Involves contracts and could be complex

May need an Agent

Self Publish

Pros

Total "creative control" over content and design

Faster time to market!

Higher Royalties.

Note: Amazon Kindle can be up to 70%!

Retain your rights to your book

Pick and choose who to sell your book to and through

Cons

Virtually, everything is on you

You may need to find:

A proofreader/editor

Cover Designer

The Stigma around Self Publishers (i.e., are you legit)

A lot of poorly written self published books

May be challenging to get into bookstores

Might be hard to get noticed for literary awards

Chapter 1

Self Publishing in the 2020s

Market Outlook

In researching the future of self publishing for this book, current indicators are, growth is expected for the industry in 2020 and beyond. In October 2019, Bowker, the exclusive U.S. agent for issuing International Standard Book Numbers (ISBNs), released findings from a study its affiliate ProQuest had conducted about the self publishing industry. ProQuest’s data revealed, … self publishing grew at a rate of 40 percent in 2018 – and shows no signs of slowing down. In the release, Beat Barblan, Vice President of Publishing and Data Services at Bowker and chairman