Guest Post by Heather Erdmann
Are you an aspiring author who has long dreamed of seeing your name in print on the cover of your published book, yet wonder if you can afford to self-publish? Maybe you’ve heard stories of people hiring self-publishing companies, called “vanity publishers” and paying thousands of dollars to print their books. Yet, another, more affordable option exists when you self-publish. You can do it yourself! And, It is the cheapest way to publish a book! But, just how much does it cost to publish a book?
From editing to design, printing, and distribution, self-publishing costs can vary. Here we will break down the main expenses you can expect and give you an idea of book publishing prices.
How much does it cost to publish a book: Self-Publishing Prices for Editing
There are four main areas you can expect to incur a cost for publishing a book. After you complete writing your first draft and have self-edited the entire manuscript, it is highly recommended that you hire a professional editor to make sure your book is the most polished and professional it can be. This is generally the most expensive part of the cost of self-publishing a book, yet without it, your book may suffer in the long run from a lack of sales or poor reviews if readers find errors in spelling, grammar, punctuation, citations, and overall flow and organization of your book.
Editing costs vary depending on the experience of the editor you hire and what type of editing you need. Basic proofreading for spelling, grammar, and punctuation will be the most inexpensive self-publishing cost for an editor at around .02-.04 per word. Developmental editing, where you need help with the big picture and organization of your plot or outline will be more expensive and can run up to .12 per word.
It is recommended that you choose a few editors that you are considering and see if they will do a sample edit (usually a few pages) to determine if you like their style and service. Discuss prices before hiring. Most editors charge either by word count or by the hour. That is why it is imperative to self-edit first so that your manuscript is in the best possible form before sending it for professional editing.
How much does it cost to publish a book: Self-Publishing Prices for the Design of Your Book
The next step of self-publishing a book involves the design of both the interior and exterior of your finished book. The interior will require specific formatting for uploading to the publication site you choose. If you are using Amazon KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing), they have templates and software you can use and do it yourself if you feel confident. That would be the most inexpensive self-publishing cost for the interior design of your book.
If you are not tech savvy or prefer to have a more experienced person format and prepare your book for publication, you can hire someone relatively inexpensively. Places like Fiverr.com have numerous freelancers who offer both formatting and cover design services for anywhere from $10. to under $100 for formatting and up to $170. for cover design. Make sure you check references and discuss exactly what services you will need and what they offer before agreeing to use a provider there. Color books or books with photos or illustrations will be considerably more expensive than the prices listed here.
The price for publishing a book and hiring someone to do the interior and cover design will be less if you are only creating a digital or e-book format due to the simpler format of the digital cover. You can also learn to format yourself. This would save you money for the self-publishing cost, especially if you plan to produce multiple books in the future.
How much does it cost to publish a book: Self-Publishing Prices for Printing and Distribution
The next stage of self-publishing your book is to use a printing service, or print-on-demand service like Amazon KDP or Ingram Spark. There is generally no cost to upload your book. Also, there is no cost for publishing a book until you sell a copy. The service you use will take a small percentage of your book’s cover price for printing and distribution. Currently, Amazon royalties are between 35-70% for Kindle e-books and 60% for print books. Though these are not upfront self-publishing costs, they do come out of your overall earnings once you start selling books.
How Much Does it Cost to Publish a Book?
Another optional but important cost to self-publish a book is an author website. This can be free or up to several hundred dollars per year depending on what features you would like.
Marketing costs are not part of your book publishing prices, but are important to consider and necessary in most cases. They vary widely and are generally determined by the budget you have to spend. Amazon ads, Google ads, social media ads are just a few to consider.
So, just how much does it cost to publish a book? You can expect to spend anywhere from a few hundred to over a thousand dollars. But, the nice thing about publishing yourself is that you are in complete control of your book publishing prices. Before you know it, your publishing dream can soon become a reality!
About the Author
Heather is a Christian wife, mom, dental hygienist, devotional writer for Lifeway, and best-selling author. Her current books include:
- “Unlocking the Mystery of Marriage: Loving Your Spouse the Way Christ Loves the Church”
- “A Week in the Word: Dig Deep into God’s Word One Passage and One Week at a Time”, which is an inductive Bible study journal that lets you take any passage of Scripture and explore it deeply, so you can more readily apply it to your daily life.
Her experience includes online training from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and the Biblical Counseling Institute. She has written devotions and Bible studies for women, taught children’s Sunday School, VBS, and women’s Bible studies.
Get bible study resources for women at her website Good Portion Promises.
Resources for Self-Publishing Costs for Editing
- How Much Does It Cost To Hire A Book Editor? What you need to know.
- Line Editing vs Copy Editing vs Proofreading | Types of Editing
Resources for Self-Publishing Costs for Design
- Format Your Paperback
- 24 Best Kdp Formatting Services To Buy Online | Fiverr
- Book Cover Design Services on Fiverr
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