As someone who has been writing stories since a young age and who did a Degree in Professional Writing and Publishing, it has been a dream (or fantasy) to write a bestseller and be published in the traditional way. In the past, it was near on impossible to find a publisher and literary agent and yet there was a stigma attached to self-publishing. It is no wonder that there are many out there who think they have really great stories to share but have had no platform in which to find readers.
Companies such as Amazon have changed the market for self-publishers with the option to create and publish any type of book through their KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) site. What has made it even more exciting for those in Australia, is the fact that from May 2021, books could be printed on demand in softcover or hardcover and distributed to customers within a couple of days. Although this has been happening in American and British markets, until 2021, Australians had to order books through the UK and it took a couple of weeks for them to arrive.
There is a difference with color printing costs though in the various markets. If you choose to print in black and white with a colored cover then there is no difference and the books will be printed at whatever cost is calculated, depending on size and page count. If you use color illustrations for example, then in all markets except Australia and Japan, standard color is used. If you wish to publish in Australia and Japan, a premium color version needs to be created and the price increased accordingly to make any money at all. This is not ideal on a few levels but if like me you are based in Australia and have friends or family who might like to purchase your color books, then it is better for the consumer to not have to wait so long for their order and be charged conversion rates and high shipping costs.
Although I always thought my first book to be published would be fiction, I decided to dive head first into the publishing world with a non-fiction Journal. The Journal I wrote is not a blank version, but an interactive one with 120 questions to prompt the reader to explore their unique self. Additionally, I have a nice quote per section and a page about the topic with anecdotes or subject matter information. I had an enjoyable time thinking up the questions and then being creative with illustrations and the layout.
I decided writing the journal was so much fun I created a massive Alphabet book to teach children their letters through drawing, tracing letters, finding objects starting with the letter etc. That then led to the same for learning numbers and finally a Reading Log in which readers can track 250 books they have read.
My books are on all Amazon sites worldwide but quick links for Australia, UK, and USA are:
Australia – https://www.amazon.com.au/Lindy-Haigh/e/B0BVGVFH94/ref=aufs_dp_fta_dsk
UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lindy-Haigh/e/B0BVGVFH94?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1&qid=1676674720&sr=1-1
USA – https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B0BVGVFH94
I have quite a few projects planned, including some fiction novels I have been working on for many years, a non-fiction coaching book, It’s never too late to… and my cat Minxy would like a series of children’s books featuring herself and her Instagram friends. I am sure that in between I will create some other low or medium-content books to add some more creativity to my work day.
Now that I have started this journey into self-publishing I am quite addicted and I hope that one day I can actually make some money from doing something that I truly enjoy.
Writing a book series
One day my cat Minxy said to me, “I think you should write and publish a book about my adventures so everyone can know about my Land of Catarnia, where I am Queen.” It sounded like a wonderful idea and not one I had previously considered. I had been writing stories since I was young…
Keep reading
Historical Re-enactments
Having studied History and now doing further studies in Genealogy, I am obviously fascinated by reading or watching anything historical. Having listened to Hilary Mantel’s three books in the Wolf Hall series, I gained a new fascination for Thomas Cromwell and with that the Tudor period. It was while scanning through YouTube looking for Tudor…
Keep reading
Possible drawbacks when using the 1841 and 1851 census returns
Although from 1801-1831 census data was collected every ten years from residents in the United Kingdom, it was of the statistical kind and it was not until 1841 that a more modern census was introduced where some personal information was asked for. According to the Enumeration Abstract, England and Wales was divided into Enumeration Districts,…
Keep reading
Loading…
Something went wrong. Please refresh the page and/or try again.
Lindy Haigh 