Are you thinking about writing a book? It’s a great way to make money, and it’s also a fantastic way to learn something new. But, if you want to do it the right way, you need to follow a specific formula that will help you reach a whole new audience. In this blog post, we will go over how to write a book and sell it to Amazon.com.
The Formula To Write A Bestseller
To start our journey to becoming a bestselling author, let’s examine the exact steps that we need to take. As you’re probably aware, writing and publishing a book is a very costly and time-consuming process. It usually takes a lot of trial and error to figure out what works and what doesn’t work in terms of marketing a book. To save yourself a lot of heartache and to get your book onto Amazon’s bestseller list, you can follow the exact formula outlined below.
The key to writing a bestseller is to find the right platform. It doesn’t matter what kind of book you’re writing – romance, fantasy, thriller, etc. – the platform must match the book. So, if you’re looking to publish a crime novel, you’ll need to look into self-publishing on Kindle because that’s the platform most associated with crime thrillers. On the other hand, if you’re writing a historical romance, then you should consider looking into traditional publishing because that’s the route most likely to lead you to a whole new audience.
Once you’ve found the right platform, it’s time to move on to the next step.
Step One: Find An Agent Or A Publisher
You can’t write a book and then just throw it on Amazon hoping for the best. You’ve got to find a way to market it properly and to get it into the hands of readers. The first and most crucial step in doing this is to find an agent or a publisher. An agent will take your book and present it to various publishers that they think are a good fit. A publisher will take your book and, in turn, offer it to readers via a physical book store or an online book store. So, depending on your preferences, you might want to look for one or the other.
Here’s the good news: there are plenty of reputable agents and publishers out there, and they’re all willing to take a look at your book. All you need to do is to find the right one. It won’t be easy, but with a little bit of research, you’ll be able to pick out a few good candidates.
Step Two: Set A Price
The second step in the process is to set a price. This is something that you should do even before you’ve found a publisher. It’s a good idea to look into the market values of similar books to set your price at a level that you think will make you profitable.
If you’re writing a fiction book, determine how much you think the book will sell for and set your price accordingly. For non-fiction books, it’s a little more complicated because you have to take into consideration how much someone is willing to pay for your expertise. So, if you’re not sure, ask other authors for their opinion or look into online forums to see what others are charging for their work. Also, think about the costs of printing and shipping and whatnot. Then, add all these expenses together and set a price that you think will make your book profitable. If it doesn’t make sense for someone to buy your book at that price point, then you’ve potentially wasted a whole lot of time and effort in vain.
Remember: the more you set, the harder it will be to move. So, do your best to set a high price for your book. Believe it or not, low prices can work in your favor if you want to become a bestselling author. This is because people are more likely to buy your book if they think it’s worth what they’re paying. Once you’ve set your price, it’s time to move on to the next step.
Step Three: Determine Your Book’s Length
This step is pretty straight forward. You need to decide how many pages you’ll need to get your book from start to finish. There are no hard and fast rules here. It’s all about what works best for you.
If you’re writing a traditional book, then your agent will likely suggest a word count that will fit within the constraints of a standard book. For instance, normally a novel needs to be somewhere between 150 and 250 pages. So, if you’re planning to pitch your book as a traditional fiction novel, then you’ll need to keep your pages between 150 and 250. There are pros and cons to both approaches. If you’re looking for a more traditional publishing route, then keeping to the standard word count will help you reach a whole new audience. On the other hand, if you want to try self-publishing, then you’re free to go wherever you please in terms of page count.
Step Four: Final Steps
Once you’ve set your price and determined your book’s length, it’s time to take a deep breath and begin the last lap. The final steps in the process are more akin to putting the finishing touches on a fine piece of art. Your agent or your publisher will help you with the rest of the details.
Your agent will need to make sure that your book is formatted according to guidelines set forth by the Amazon Publishing team. Your agent will also need to ensure that your book follows all of Amazon’s guidelines for formatting and design.
Your publisher will need to format and print your book, as well as get it bound and warehoused. After all of this is done, it’s time for you to send your book to be judged by Amazon’s literary team.
Hopefully, you’ll have a new bestseller on your hands by the time all of this is done. If you’ve followed these simple steps and have been smart about the choices you’ve made, then it’s pretty much a sure thing that you’ll reach Amazon’s bestseller list. So, what are you waiting for? Get to writing.