Before You Indie Publish: 5 Tips, Myths Debunked, & Resources for Aspiring Authors

I've been asked about indie publishing so much, I finally decided to go ahead and write a blog post with a rundown on what I consider to be the most important aspects of indie publishing. So this blog post is for all those aspiring indie authors out there. And if you're not a writer, you're welcome to skip this post and head on over to the bookshelf to find more fun reads (don't worry, I won't be writing about writing too often on here).

Indie publishing seems simple, but it’s definitely an experience that can seem big and daunting once one gets into the nitty-gritty aspects of it. In this blog post, I’ll be going over ten things you must know before indie publishing, and debunk a few myths while I’m at it.

✨ But for starters, what is indie publishing? ✨

Indie publishing is a shortened term for independent publishing, which is, in essence, the process of publishing a book by yourself through a small independent publishing platform like Kindle Direct Publishing (Amazon), Lulu, FastPencil, or Blurb.

Self-publishing is another name for this—but that name is sometimes negatively associated with books that are rejected by traditional publishing houses (which is simply untrue), so for that purpose, I like to refer to it as indie publishing.

In my opinion, indie publishing not only includes submitting information onto an indie publishing platform but also doing the following:

• Putting together your novel (writing the novel, getting feedback, an editor, cover designer, etc.)

• Marketing your novel (gathering supporters to spread the word, reaching readers, promoting your release, building hype pre-launch, etc.)

So, essentially, think of indie publishing as the process of putting your book out into the world, and doing it all yourself at that.

✨ Why indie publish? ✨

That, my friend, is a very good question.

Setting aside the stereotypes of novels that are rejected by traditional publishing houses, indie publishing can be a great way to help you grow in your skills, build connections with readers, and have something to offer. Plus, there’s no better way to grow and practice your marketing skills than to do it yourself (the correct way, that is)!

✨ When should I NOT indie publish? ✨

So often, I see young writers making a mistake of indie publishing—in fact, I did it too often myself in my younger days.

With that said, you should NOT indie publish if:

• You’re doing it for the wrong reasons (getting famous, earning a sufficient income, proving yourself, etc.)

I believe your big reasons are so very important, and will determine a book’s success or failure. There is an extremely low chance of an indie-published novel being able to support you entirely, or even halfway. So be realistic with yourself, and look into indie publishing beforehand.

• You just want a few copies to give to friends and family.

Indie publishing means putting your novel on Amazon for the whole world to see. And while no one might see it on Amazon, or even purchase it (besides your friends and family), it could negatively affect your chances of being traditionally published later on. Instead, try printing copies of your novel from a site like Lulu, which allows you to print for a small price without making your novel public for buying.

• You’re not willing to put any time or money into your novel.

By this, I mean not being willing to pay an editor, hire a cover designer, or work to make your novel high quality (note I didn’t say perfect. More on that later). Because the hard truth is that the work you put into your novel really shows, and the less work you put into it, the more your reader can tell.

• You don’t have a solid platform or any potential readers.

I cannot stress this enough either. Without readers, your book will remain in its lonely corner of Amazon (or whatever publishing site you’re using), gathering dust. It doesn’t matter if you’ve poured your heart and soul into your novel. Without readers, no one will see—or appreciate it.

That’s why it’s extremely important to build an author following and hype before a book launch. This definitely takes time and effort. And trust me, building an author following is not as simple as posting a blog post every couple weeks—it’s building genuine connections with your readers over time. Yes, it definitely takes time—sometimes a lot of it—but let me tell you: it. is. so. worth. it. Not only will you make supporters who are willing to spread the word far and wide, but you’ll make friendships and connect with people who love and support you as a person. Because really, building a platform is about serving your readers, after all.

• You don’t take indie publishing seriously.

Enough said. Indie publishing is not just something to be done for fun, or for the wrong reasons (see above). It’s something to be taken seriously—so I definitely suggest treating it as such.

Now, onto the 5 tips I wish I'd known before indie publishing!

1. Get feedback before deciding to indie publish.

I honestly cannot stress this enough. Feedback is so essential in deciding whether you want your book to be published or not. And I don’t just mean family and friends telling you it could be the next New York Times Bestseller. I mean, harsh feedback from readers and professionals. Professionals, especially, will stare down to the very roots of your novel and see if it has what it takes to be good.

And their opinions should weigh into your decision.

Of course, God’s should even more than that, so be sure to pray about whether indie publishing this piece of work is what He wants to do!

2. Sometimes it’s better to wait.

Not all is rush-and-hope-everything-works-out for indie publishing. Unless you’re good at dealing with stress, deadlines, and paying various freelancers (unlike me), waiting until you’re ready and have a sufficient amount of time on your hands is definitely a good idea when considering indie publishing.

And who knows? I’ve known some writers who were going to indie publish but decided they weren’t ready and waited. And guess what? That gave them enough time to publish something even better. All because they waited.

I totally understand the excitement that comes with wanting to indie publish. But rushing into it is definitely not a good idea. So spare yourself the mistakes I made and wait, even if it’s just for a bit, until you know you’re ready.

3. Learn from more experienced indie authors. Research beforehand.

This is something I definitely wished I’d done before indie publishing my earlier novelettes. There are thousands of articles on indie publishing, marketing, and platform building (which, in my opinion, are all linked one way or another). Those resources are gold to any aspiring indie author out there. Researching the process of indie publishing beforehand before jumping in can save you a lot of trouble in the long run.

4. Build launch teams.

In short, launch teams are groups of people, usually from your author following or platform readers, who are there to spread the word about your book launch. Different launch teams specialize in different areas of spreading the word, but this can definitely be the trickiest step, since all authors organize launch teams and their tasks differently.

For me, personally, I assembled three launch teams/groups of people: one for reviewing my book on launch day (which is, in my opinion, the most important), one for revealing the cover on social media, and one for those participating in the blog tour.

There were some overlaps, but each group had a general task, as listed above.

For more details on book launches, I recommend this blog post: How to Run a Book Launch for More Sales

5. Value your writing, first and foremost.

This is where it’s definitely necessary to have a balance. You can market and build launch teams and have a lot of supporters willing to spread the word, but if your writing isn’t quality—and if you don’t value it or see it as worth it, the reader can probably tell.

So start viewing your writing differently. Start valuing it. Start thinking that your writing can touch readers’ hearts and be a special contribution to the world. Because once you do that, you’ll start putting quality into it, piece by piece, and readers may even start to tell.

With that said, I’ll now be switching over to debunking three common myths surrounding indie publishing, and wrapping up this blog post with some resources and a checklist for aspiring indie authors.

Myth #1: Indie-published books are low quality.

Now, I do want to say, I understand the reasoning behind this myth. In fact, I’ve seen a lot of poorly put-together indie-published books, thrown out there because it’s so easy to do so nowadays. That has to do with a lot of things. The cover and editing are some of the most common mistakes I’ve seen. Oftentimes, I can see how much work an author puts into a book by a quick glance at the cover.

And while that can be the case, not all indie-published books are low quality. Some of my favorite books are indie published, and they’re very brilliantly done.

That’s why quality is so important. Investing time and money into your book is always worth it. That could mean paying for a high-quality cover, fitted exactly to genre. That could mean paying a professional or freelance editor.

And in doing so, I believe that we can turn this stereotype on its head—and completely change the way indie-published books are viewed.

For more details on the topic of cover design, I recommend this blog post: Sell More Books With These Critical Cover Rules

Myth #2: Indie-published authors are just lazy.

This is honestly not true at all, thus the reason it’s categorized as a myth. :) Honestly, going through the indie publishing process has not only opened my eyes to marketing and building connections, but it’s also made me respect hardworking indie authors so much more. Because, in truth, they’re the ones doing everything—not the publishing houses, not the agents. Them.

Myth #3: Amazon helps with marketing indie-published books.

As much as I want this to be true, unfortunately, it just isn’t. If you put forth the time and effort (and have a hefty amount of readers at that) your book may end up in the top 100 bestselling books in its genre, causing Amazon to possibly make your book show up more often on readers’ screens. However, other than that, all Amazon does is provide a corner for readers to come and purchase your book—and Kindle Direct Publishing does print it and ship copies, of course.

✨ Resources for the aspiring indie author ✨

I highly recommend checking out a few of the below websites and books for more tips and in-depth approaches to indie publishing!

Published. by Chandler Bolt

Published. was one of the first books that got me into marketing, and helped me see that there was so much more I could be doing after the release of my historical fiction novelette, A Change of Heart. While geared toward mainly nonfiction and memoir writers, Bolt provides a breezy rundown of the steps from blank page to published author. The marketing tips can be applicable to aspiring authors of any genre.

A Marketing Expert Blog by Penny Sansevieri

As the title indicates, Sansevieri specializes in marketing. While she also provides services for indie authors, I find her blog to be an excellent resource. There’s a lot of gold there, regarding reaching book reviewers, marketing strategies, and the part your book cover plays into all of this—because it most certainly does.

Some of my favorite blog posts by her:

• 5 Things Indie Authors Need to Consider Before Giving Up

• Why Your Book Marketing Plan Needs a Newsletter

• How to Market a Book with A BOGO

• How to Get Free Book Reviews

Self-Publishing School Blog

Created by the author of Published., the Self-Publishing School blog is one of my favorite places to go to for just about anything marketing and indie publishing-related, but even in a writer sense as well—there are even articles on writing enchanting prose and a huge collection of writing prompts in different genres!

✨ The indie publishing checklist ✨

Want your indie-published book to succeed and reach readers? Here’s a practical checklist. Boiled down to the essentials, these are the things I daresay you need to have in place before clicking “publish.”

• A well-written, polished novel(la) edited by a professional or freelance copy/line editor.

• A well-written, polished novel(la) edited by one professional content editor or multiple content editors.

• A well-designed cover fitted exactly to the genre.

• A marketing plan AND a launch team/people to help you spread the word.

I hope this gives you a general idea of indie publishing! I may write up future blog posts regarding the different subjects addressed in this post to break them down even further, but for now, I hope you learned something new! If you have any questions, feel free to drop them below.

P. S. What was your favorite part of this blog post? Have you heard of any of the myths about indie publishing? Did you learn something new? I’d love to hear your thoughts and questions, so be sure to drop a comment below!