Planning to Self Publish ?
- What do you want? -

Planning to self publish is like any big decision - the more forethought and research you put into it before going ahead, the smoother the task and better the result. So if you are infact, planning to self publish your book, to make the whole process a little easier here are some questions you need to consider.

WHO IS THE BOOK FOR?
A simple question, but no less important. Before anything else you need to decide who the book is for and what you want to do with it.

• Is the book for your family and friends to read or is it something you would like every bookstore to sell?
• Are you going to need a print run of 50 or of 1500?
• How much are you willing to pay per copy?
• How much would people be willing to pay for your style of book?


WHAT WILL IT LOOK LIKE?
After all, if you're planning to self publish just a handful of copies to give as Christmas presents, do you really need the book to look as professional and glossy as if you wanted it to become a best-seller? Of course, as always, the choice is yours - but so is the printer’s invoice.

The best way to research the answer to this question is to visit a library or a bookstore, pick up books and look at everything. As you do that ask yourself questions about presentation Here are a few just to get you started.

Cover (front, back and spine)
• Think about colours, font, pictures/photos, information, layout, reviews and blurb.
• Will you want an ISBN and barcode?
• Is the cover to be hard back or paper back.
• Do you want it printed matt or glossy.
• Would it be better laminated?

Size of the book
• What page size, as well as thickness of the book appeals. Remember that the standard page sizes are A5 and A4 anything that is not that size will have to be cut down from one of these sizes. Which means even if you don't use the complete A4 sheet you will still be paying for it.

Layout inside the book
• What size and style of fonts, margins, headers and footers. Yes, smaller margins and smaller fonts mean you will need less pages, but will it make the book harder to read.
• Do you want, photographs and/or diagrams? There is significant added expense required for using colour on pages, so seriously consider if it is needed - perhaps put all your photos on 2 or four pages in the middle or end of the book.
• Do you want first page of each chapter to be ornate?
• Are you considering a contents/index and advertising.

Printing supplies • What thickness and quality of paper would you like. If you can see the words through the other side of the page, will it distract the reader? Remember anything even slightly unusual is going to cost more, will you be able to recoup it?

Binding
• Is it to be stapled, perfect binding, plastic slides, stitched or spiral bound?

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