The following is an excerpt from Guy Kawasaki’s new book APE: How to Publish a Book.Don’t self-publish. That’s as good as admitting you’re too lazy to do the hard work.Appearance Is Everything
Sue Grafton, LouisvilleKY.com, August 7, 2012
This chapter helps you avoid publishing a book that looks cheesy, vain, and amateurish. Steve Jobs taught me that little details separate the mediocre from the excellent. The way to avoid the “self-published” look is simple, and it increases the attractiveness, professionalism, and marketability of your book.
The first outward sign that your book is self-published is a crappy cover design. This topic merits a long discussion, so we’ll address it in the next chapter.
The first internal sign that your book is self-published is crappy writing, but our writing and editing tips will help you avoid this. Sue Grafton notwithstanding (she did retract her statement in the epigraph above, but S for Self-Publishing is out of the question), the stigma of self-publishing has diminished. But it still exists, and there’s no reason why you can’t make your book look like it’s professionally published; remember, the goal is artisanal books.
Front Matter
Beyond the cover, the first sign of a self-published printed book is the lack of traditional front matter on the first few pages of your book. We recommend referring to The Chicago Manual of Style to ensure that your front matter is correct. This thousand-page tome also covers what you need to know about grammar, punctuation, and the mechanics of publishing.
Power tip: You should buy a copy of The Chicago Manual of Style because having one around makes you feel like a real writer, and it impresses people when they see it on your shelf. And you should not hire a copyeditor who doesn’t own one.
Full article at DBW
1 comment:
We well know the groans from the self-published look and the solution is easy - use a professional book design business like ours!
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