You've Finished Writing Your Novel! Now What? Indie Author Edition Part One
Your go-to-guide for getting that manuscript to market
Congratulations on finishing your story! You are now in an elite club of indie authors. It is estimated that of everyone that starts a novel, only 3% actually complete it. Clearly, you’ve got grit.
That is excellent—because now that you’ve closed the door on the writing portion of your story, you are moving into publishing. It’s like the twenty mile mark of the marathon. You’re tired, but also, you got this!
I’ve been working on this exact to-do list for the past three months. While I hoped this process would be faster, I chose to work with a human editor and cover artist rather than relying on A.I. and my measly artistic skills. The benefit of this is that my cover is gorgeous and I’m confident that there are no dangling participles on page. The downside is that people are people and require time to do their work. If you are not a particularly patient person, waiting can be difficult.
Trust me—you want to do this right the first time. Be patient.
I did not follow this to-do list the first time I launched Rowena’s Song. That was an expensive and embarrassing mistake. Learn from my errors and launch your book with confidence. ✨
Step One: Hire an editor
If you haven’t already discovered this yet, your editor is one the person who really has your back in this process. While many aspects of self-publishing are expensive, if there is only one thing you invest in, please let it be an editor. Your future self thanks you.
Why?
When it comes down to it, your first book sells your second book. Rinse, repeat.
Also, there are reviewers out there that LOVE to tear books apart. Sad but true. Social media algorithms appeal to the lowest denominator. Snark gets clicks.
Even if your book is a literary classic, some people will still rate it one star. Authors that have won Pulitzer Prizes have one star reviews on Goodreads. Why? It likely comes down to personal preference. If you don’t like the taste of fish, for example, it doesn’t matter if Gordon Ramsey himself cooks and plates up some sea bass or smoked salmon just for you. You still aren’t going to enjoy it.
You can, however, avoid bad reviews due to poor structure. In addition to grammar, you want to make sure your story has narrative drive, a character arc, and a variety of emotional beats. You may have thought about all of these elements, but have you managed to get it onto the page? The editor will let you know where your story shines and where it still needs a bit of polish.
After the editor sends your marked-up manuscript back to you, make the suggested changes. Give yourself at least a month to sit with the feedback and make those changes.
Step Two: Create a Cover
Your cover is the second most important place to invest your time and money. This is the strongest marketing tools in your arsenal. People judge books by their cover. Influencers especially buy books because of the cover (and sprayed edges, but let’s not go crazy, at least not yet).
I chose to hire a cover artist because my art history background does not mean I have an understanding of design software and the intricacies behind font decisions. If you go this route, make sure you are working with a reputable artist. I chose to use the Reedsy Marketplace because there is a strict vetting process for the freelancers on that site. This means that I paid a bit more than average. But also, I am happy with the results.
I would be wary of artists on sites like Fiverr and Upwork. Be sure to vet the freelancer, especially if the price seems too good to be true.
Next bit of advice? DO NOT USE A.I. TO CREATE A COVER. I repeat, do not use A.I. If you are going to sell your book. Why? First off, A.I. was trained with images in violation of copyright laws. There may come a time where a distributor decides to no longer carry you book if old laws are upheld or new laws are passed. Secondly, there are many consumers who are anti-A.I. and may choose to boycott you if they believe you are acting in a way that harms other creators.
If you cannot afford to hire a cover artist, that’s ok! There are several low-cost options that allow you to create a cover while also ensuring you are adhering to all applicable copyright laws. If you are only distributing on Amazon, the Kindle Direct Publishing platform has basic cover design software for free. If you would like something that looks a little more professional, Canva has a free design option, though for a small monthly fee you can gain access to an enormous library of stock photography, graphics, and fonts.
I suggest making your e-book file first, as that will be the standard aspect ratio of 1.6:1. A paperback cover or hardcover jacket’s size will vary due to the page count. Your publisher of choice will be able to send you a calculator and/or a template so you can determine the exact measurements needed. Don’t forget to leave a space for the barcode and the ISBN, which is discussed in step four.
Step Three: Layout your edited manuscript
This is my favorite step! Time to transform your words morph into your book. As with everything else on this list, you can hire a professional. However, this is not necessary with advances in technology that have simplified the process.
As with the cover, if you are only distributing on Amazon, you can use the layout software in KDP. Reedsy also has free layout software.
If you are distributing through other avenues, there are a number of options. Click on the name of each one of these to learn about specific features and pricing.
I chose to purchase the Atticus layout software. It had many pros, including ease of use and the ability to import pretty images to use for chapter headings and scene breaks. There were a number of fonts and I was able to preview Rowena’s Song on a number of devices.
The biggest issue I had with Atticus is that I started out using one of their canned layouts, and then updated it to reflect the fonts and sizes I wanted. I learned after I finished the entire layout that the word “Contents” on the table of contents page has a sci-fi look, whereas the rest of my book is early Medieval.
I emailed the Atticus team. Their response was swift (yay!), but I cannot change it (boo). I will likely have to redo the entire thing from scratch. SOOOO don’t make that mistake either friends! Choose the canned font package you like the most, not the first one, because it is not fully customizable.
Another con is that I wrote the story in three parts. Each part has a small text associated with it that was laid out in a lovely manner when I hired the layout artist who used Vellum. However, Atticus only allows for a page that says “Part x”, again in the same, unchangeable font. The workaround for this is that you can insert a full page image. I created an image in Canva that says Part 1: Jutland, followed by an image of the little text on a burned up image of parchment. It is so cute and I love the way it looks.
However, anyone that is visually impaired will not be able to hear these texts if read by accessibility software. I am currently looking for a work around, as I want the story available to all.
Step Four: Determine where you are selling your book
Unless you plan on selling books out of your car trunk (or boot if in the UK), you will need to decide to distribute your books narrow or wide. Narrow, for most indie authors, means Amazon. This is certainly the easiest route, as they have all that free software mentioned above to create the book. They go one step further by providing you with a free ISBN (International Standard Book Number).
If you are selling anywhere else, you’ll need to decide where to buy purchase this important, legally-mandated identifier. Costs vary based on your country. Note that each version of your book (e-book, softcover, hardcover, CD audio, e-audio) needs a separate ISBN. If you make any major changes (for example, you change the cover or size), you will need a new ISBN.
If you live in the US, I suggest paying the extra money and buying from the official supplier of ISBNs, Bowker. Another mistake I made in with my first run is I purchased my ISBNs from a resale site. This allowed Primedia ebook launch LLC to be my publisher of record. Yuck. That sounds so spammy. My new and revised edition is being published by Romantasy Realms Publishing. 💖
Some of the most popular distribution platforms include:
There are a LOT of scam vanity presses out there that charge money for work you can easily do yourself. Vet your company carefully. If in doubt, send me a DM. I can let you know, using my magic librarian skills, if a company is legit.
Step Five: Proofread your layout
You are almost there!!!
I wasn’t joking when I compared this process to a marathon. At this point, you likely haven’t looked at your draft in a week or more. This distance is ideal for sitting down and reading your book on your e-reader of choice. In an ideal world, your book is perfect and ready to go.
But 2025 is not ideal, so have a paper and pen ready to jot down notes of where you need to fix any lingering typos, extra spaces between paragraphs, and any weird snippets of code that may have accidently snuck onto the page uninvited.
Fix them in the layout software, and then celebrate with your beverage of choice.
For physical copies, order a proof and repeat the above process. I did not do this for my first book, and was horrified to find said snippets of code hidden in the middle of a chapter. The initial wave of embarrassment nearly bowled me over. Please don’t let this happen to you.
Step Six: Upload your book to your sales platform
Hooray!!! This is the process in which you get your book into reader’s hands, and hopefully, hearts. This is the moment in which all the work finally pays off, and you get to hold your completed, typo-free novel in your hands.
Your soul will sing as you upload your documents to the distribution platform. They usually require you to submit an EPUB of the interior with table of contents, a PDF used to create the physical copy, and a PDF of the cover.
There may be less singing once you start answering all of the questions the distributor has for you. When is your publication date? Are you offering presales? Do you want to go with expanded distribution? Do you accept returns? Would you like to purchase a marketing plan?
These are great questions, all of which will be discussed in part two of this post, which will be published in the coming weeks.
Final Thoughts:
Being an indie book author requires a lot of work and thought. Anyone that promises you can write a book in a week and make a thousand bucks in a month is selling snake oil. However, in my opinion, the hard work is worth it. As an indie author, you have control over all aspects of your book, from the words on the inside to the cover to the name of the publishing company.
Thank you this was so helpful. I’ve just finished my 3rd draft / edit and sent it to my beta readers. I’m so nervous about sharing my work but I know it will strengthen the story in the long run. This was full of really helpful information as I’m planning on self publishing. Thanks again.
Congrats, Ivy! I'm on the poorer end, unfortunately, so I relied on Fiverr, haha. I checked their portfolios beforehand, but you never know until you actually work with them. At least Fiverr won't give them the money until you are satisfied. I worked with a book formatter on Fiverr and he was awesome! He used Vellum.
Though I say I'm on the poorer end, I'm already lucky. Some people can't even afford to pay $50 for a book cover designer, omg, as a couple of friends have told me. I think it's hard to imagine what someone on a very different socioeconomic level can afford. Some things I take for granted, I suddenly realize are unaffordable to someone else. (Then I feel guilty for suggesting it.)
I remember a friend suggesting book contests as a cheaper way to get feedback. Since judges give you feedback even if you don't win. (At least for the contests she recommended.). It was $25 back then. Then I saw an author say that $25 is hard to scrape up for her. 😱 I remember being shocked that even $25 is considered too much.
Heck, I told a friend who was working as a caretaker, that he could hire a designer on Fiverr for $10. But apparently even $10 is too much for him... (This was about a decade ago, so $10 meant more back then but still, wow.)