Self-Publishing Mentorship

Barry Eisler is an author of bestselling thrillers who decided to give up traditional publishing—and a nearly half-million dollar two-book deal—for self-publishing. In this online discussion, he said, “If you think about it, for years publishers have been steadily outsourcing their core business functions. Culling the slush pile went to agents long ago. A lot of editorial devolved to agents, too. Marketing has increasingly become the responsibility of writers, who are expected to blog and be social media demons. I think publishers felt comfortable outsourcing all these functions because they felt the lock they had on their core function—distribution—made their overall position impregnable.

“The problem is, they’ve lost that lock, and they’ve already outsourced so many of their other functions that it’s getting hard for them to offer a writer a coherent value proposition. For now, they have enough cash to offer advances, which most authors will need to live for the same reason most people need a mortgage to buy a house. But even that advantage is being eroded by digital, because with digital, you publish right away and start earning right away.”

But doing it on your own is scary. How do you know if your work is ready? How do you wade through the complicated world of e-publishing and print on demand? How do you even know where to start?

Well, now you have the chance to get some guidance, while doing something to help the earthquake victims in Japan:

#Kidlit4Japan Auction #53 from Chris Eboch

Auction #53: Self-Publishing Mentorship from Chris Eboch

Description: Are you considering self-publishing your novel? Let a mentor help you through the process,
from determining if your work is really ready for print, to understanding the details of proper layout and hiring a cover artist, to the nitty-gritty of making your book available through e-book services and print on demand. You’ll even get tips for marketing the work once it’s available. (Please note, this includes advice on what type of editing, proofreading, and other services you might need, but does not include those services.)
Estimated Value: $400
Minimum Bid: $50
Auction Begins: Tuesday 3/29 @ 1:00PM EDT
Auction Ends: Friday 4/1 @ 1:00PM EDT

Follow the link above to place a bid.