is not a novel to be
tossed aside lightly. It
should be thrown with great
force.”
Dorothy Parker
(1893–1967)
silent than merely to
increase the quantity
of bad books.”
Voltaire
(1694-1778)
truth about its hero;
but a bad novel tells us
the truth about its author.”
Gilbert K. Chesterton
(1874-1936)
number of really bad books.”
Bob Young, founder of Lulu.com
If Bob knows they’re really
bad books, he shouldn’t publish
them. Bob also misspelled
“misspell” and confused “less”
and “fewer.” A publisher
should know better.
readers to question your
credibility.”
Brent Sampson, founder
of Outskirts Press
In one of Brent’s books, he wrote
the wrong name of the publisher
of Roget’s Thesaurus and made
many other errors. A publisher
should do better.
Introduction
The book publishing business is changing significantly and rapidly, and the changes provide both limitations and opportunities for authors.
BAD NEWS:
1.Sales of books by bookstores are decreasing and bookstores are closing.
2.Surviving bookstores face growing competition from other types of businesses and from e-books.
3.It has become much harder for new writers to get published by traditional publishers.
4.Traditional publishers have fired employees and cut back on the number of books selected, author advances and promotional budgets.
5.Mergers and acquisitions have reduced the number of major publishing houses.
6.Most publishers judge books based on potential profitability rather than on literary merit.
7.Most terrestrial bookstores won’t stock self-published books.
8.Some book review media reject self-published books.
9.Some authors’ associations ban self-publishing authors from membership.
GOOD NEWS:
1.Online booksellers Amazon.com, BarnesAndNoble.com and dozens of others worldwide make a huge selection of books—including self-published books—available quickly to anyone, anywhere.
2.In 2008, for the first time, sales of print on demand (“POD”) books (which include most self-published books) exceeded sales of traditionally printed books. The number of POD titles has been growing by triple digits in recent years.
3.Independent publishers are following the path of “indie” musicians and filmmakers by cutting out the middlemen between the creators and the audience.
4.Technology has made it much simpler and less expensive for any writer to have a book published, either on paper or electronically, without approval by the gatekeepers of traditional publishing.
5.There are many ways to get inexpensive or free publicity.
6.Many businesses are eager to sell publishing and distribution services to authors. They are able to produce excellent books—and terrible books.
7.More and more online venues review self-published books, and new organizations and online communities support self-publishing authors.
Although it has become relatively easy to self-publish, it’s also easy to make serious mistakes in writing, design and marketing that can seriously limit the acceptability and sales of a self-published book.
While there is great satisfaction in seeing your name on the cover of a book, I hope that you will write what other people will want to read, and that they’ll like what you write.
I believe in absolute freedom of the press. I don’t believe in prior censorship or the licensing of writers or publishers. Unfortunately, the ease of publication means that a lot of junk gets published.
It’s sad—and funny—that some of the worst self-published books I’ve found, and the majority of the books in this book, are books that try to provide advice to other authors.
This book will help you avoid the worst mistakes of others, so you can publish a book that you can be justifiably proud of, and perhaps enlighten, entertain and inform others—and maybe you’ll even make some money.
Michael
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What makes a book a stinker?
1.Most stinkers are ugly.
2.Most stinkers are poorly written.
3.Most stinkers violate the rules and customs of book design.
4.Many stinkers are inaccurate.
5.Some stinkers make promises they do not—or cannot—deliver.
6.Some stinkers are padded—including unnecessary information, information that is readily available elsewhere for free, or too much empty space.
7.Some stinkers are really advertisements—even bad advertisements—masquerading as books.
8.Some stinkers are absurdly overpriced.
9.Some stinker authors either got help from the wrong people or got no help at all.
10.Some stinker authors are extremely careless—or just don’t care about producing good books.
11.Some stinker authors don’t accept the advice
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