Writing a book is a challenge filled with frustration, grief, joy and stress. Of course, if you’ve just finished writing your first novel then the stress aspect is probably haunting you, right? Trying to figure out what to do with your novel is one of the hardest aspects of the process. From self-publishing and traditional publishing to just putting it away for a rainy day, this process can be daunting. If you’ve decided publishing is the route to take then you may have to be prepared to jump through some major financial hoops. Don’t give up though, because if you know a few tricks of the trade then you should be able to get your book selling in a very short amount of time.

1. Get an Editor
If you want to save money on publishing then this is one of the best things you can do. Why? Because you’re human and there’s no way you can catch every mistake or inconsistency in your novel. If you’re wondering how this saves money then you have to look at the different forms of publishing. If you’re going a traditional route then there’s a good chance the publisher will send the book back for edits before actually sending it to their professional editor for a final look through. This can be costly and time consuming as you’ll have to keep printing and mailing the new manuscript, unless the publishing company is a bit more modern than other publishers. If you plan on self-publishing then you’re going to want your book to look its best. This will help with your reputation as a writer as it will with the reputation of the book. When it comes to self-publishing, your reputation and reviews are going to be what helps you the most when getting sales. So, splurge a little on the editor to help make a whole lot of difference. You can even ask family, friends or a student to help out for a little less than you’d ask a professional. To save even more money, you can join a peer-review group to get free help on a weekly basis.

2. Talk to an Author
If you really want to walk the walk, then you should talk the talk with an author that has already been there and done that. Before you have a conversation with the author make sure you write down questions and concerns, so you won’t forget anything. If your plan is to self-publish then you should try to find an indie author to help you out. This actually isn’t a difficult task because there are so many to choose from online. There’s lots of forums and blogs dedicated to indie writers, so do some simple browsing around until you find someone that can make a difference. Traditional publishers may be more of a challenge, but there’s still a lot of these writers available that are willing to help. One great place to try is a writing convention. Generally, most authors won’t charge you for a quick chat, so you should be ready to move on to the next step without having spent a dim.

3. Research
Before you decide on anything, a little research is in order. You may actually be amazed as to how many websites are available to help you learn how to get more out of your publishing experience. From websites dedicated to saving you money to blogs with self-publishing tricks that will set your mind to ease, the web is filled with advice just for your needs. The only problem with research in this topic is there is a lot of information to sift through. So, unless you’re ready to bury your nose in tips, you may want to specialize your search a little. All the same, all of the tips online should help you find the right method for your book, as well as several different ways to avoid the high costs of publishing. If you’re going on the traditional publishing route, then you’ll be happy to find there’s lot of trips to prepare your book for the process, which can make publishing this way go a little faster.

4. Start with an E-Book
If you want to self-publish your book then one of the first things you should do is start your book out as an e-book. You can easily format the book on your own with basic tutorials, so there’s no extra fees for this process. Once your book is put into the e-book format then you can easily sell it on your own, or use a specialized website to help you out. For instance, there’s many programs like SmashWords which works with indie authors to not only get their book published, but to also draw in a market for it. The program will put your book into a genre list, so that people can browse around and hopefully purchase your novel. Generally, these programs are free to use, but they will take a portion of your profits to help pay for the service. Amazon is also another popular place for indie writers to sell. Generally, you do very little work here too and Amazon takes their cut of the profits to help pay for the service. Of course, if you have your own store then you will obviously gain all of the proceeds and will have better knowledge of the traffic your book is pulling in.

5. Make Your Own Book Cover
They always say, never judge a book by its book its cover, but in all honesty, most people do. So, you want to have a cover that speaks to your audience while doing your book some justice. When it comes to covers, you can pay someone a pretty penny to do it for you, but they may not be able to grab the concept you were going for. Not to mention, you’re out the money for the cover that could go for other areas of the publishing process. Luckily, in this day and age, making a book cover can be easy and totally free. There’s actually online programs that can help you out for free, which comes in handy if you’re not experienced with many of the programs. Of course, if you have knowledge of Photoshop or other editing software then your cover could be a masterpiece awaiting publishing in no time at all. You may even want to make a few covers and have people vote on them to see which attracts more eyes.

6. Shop Around for Printing
If there’s one item that’s probably going to cost you a bundle, it’s printing. So, if you do decide to take your book from digital to tangible, you may be in store for some major charges which will hit your budget hard. All the same, there’s a few ways to save money on just about everything. Looking around for printing companies is probably one of the best routes to go. You should check out the pricing per page/per word as well as potential discounts, such as bulk buys, and coupons. Many companies will offer a wide variety of book options too, so you can always choose one of the cheapest options, if that’s available. Last but not least, you may want to look into printing companies that will only print the book when ordered. This will avoid large stacks of unsold books since many people mostly shop digitally now.

7. Get Online
Book publishing won’t be complete with a little promotion action though. One thing you should do when you’ve published your book is start creating social media pages for advertising. You can contact people who have liked similar books this way and you can appeal to fans who may be more likely to share your novel with their inner circle. Social media is now one of the top ways to advertise because it hits such a wide audience and allows so many people to learn about your book while widening your reach. Keeping up with these accounts will also look good to fellow writers, which can help with your much needed networking connections.

8. Host a Giveaway
One way to truly get your book noticed is to give it away for free. No, I don’t mean you don’t have to charge for the book. Simply set up a giveaway and have fans win a copy or two of your e-book. Generally, when you choose to do this with an e-book you won’t really lose out on money. Many websites, such as Good Reads, will host your giveaway and will even draw potential fans to the book. When your giveaway is over, there’s a great chance the winner will reward you with a book review, which could help boost sales even more. If you’d like to further your giveaway process then ask fans to share the giveaway for a chance to win! This is truly one of the easiest ways to advertise without spending a dime! Not to mention, you may peak the curiosity of those that didn’t win, who may potentially buy your book.

9. Ask For Reviews
When it comes to publishing, a lot of people feel embarrassed to ask for reviews from people. At the end of the day, reviews are one of the main ways your novel is going to get noticed, so don’t be afraid to get out there and get your reviews rolling in. For starters, you can ask friends, family or book fanatic acquaintances to lend a helping hand. Usually, people in your inner circle will be more willing to leave behind a review for you. Of course, when people do begin to purchase your book, you can easily send them a formal request to leave a few words about your novel. A lot of book lovers will do this anyway, but when a writer reaches out to someone, then a review is more than likely going to be written. Of course, if you’re having no luck here you can always browse around for reviews you particularly like. Then, you can email the reviewer about reviewing your novel, if you’re willing to give them a free copy in exchange.

10. Go Traditional
Sometimes, going the traditional publishing route is the only way to go. This is due to the fact that there’s very little cost on your end. In fact, one of the only major costs will be sending in your manuscript to publishers. Usually if you include a SASE, you can resend manuscripts that are returned. Of course, some publishers will accept emails now, which is great news for your budget. Traditional publishing also means you don’t have to pay out of pocket for an ISBN and other hidden costs. Plus, all of the problems with advertising and promotions won’t be yours to bear as the publishing company will take care of it all for you. Plus, you will never have to worry about the cost of printing out your book, which can leave you spending thousands of dollars with no promise of getting a return on your investment. Of course, you may end up earning less from your book, but it will make initial fees a walk in the park.

Publishing a book is probably one of the more stressful things you can go through for both your psyche and your budget. There are a few ways you can combat the costs though, which may make the process seem even more incredible for you. With a few simple tricks, your book can be shining on the shelves in no time at all, which will mean you can kick back and enjoy the feeling of being a published author.