General | Ashfaq Ahmad

Self-publishing is an option for new writers

I am a writer besides that I never made any special effort to get my works published. I talked about it a couple of time with a publisher but it could not be materialized then. His terms were not acceptable to me.

However, now that I started to think about it again, I tried my hand with two different publications this time. In one publication, in a “Do It Yourself” mode i.e. I did the cover of the book, the interior, the proofreading and the editing myself and uploaded a ready-to-print file in PDF format. In other publication, I put it in Guided Mode, that is, you take the plan given by them, which can start from rupees Forty thousand and go up to Two-Three lakhs. You simply hand over your script to them, the rest of their job.

But they will join hands in marketing only when the package taken is above Sixty thousand. These two modes of self-publishing are covered by almost all the publications. Though platforms like Notion, Pothi, Createspace, Juggernaut etc. are good options for Self Publishing, everything depends on the package. If your book is in Hindi, then there is not much benefit going for a big package as the market for Hindi is limited, whereas any package can be taken for English because market for English is global.

In self-publishing, the production cost of “ready to print script” is higher.

One thing to keep in mind here is that although all these publications give you free service where you get the book printed by completing it yourself, you can sell it by marketing it yourself, but the thing to note here is that the production cost is on a per-copy basis which according to the calculation, can be quite high. For example, the cost of a 120-page book (this is the minimum size) can be up to Rs.150, whereas in bulk printing it can be from Rs.90 to 100. In this mode, obtaining the copyright and ISBN for the book is on your part.

Apart from this, many other small and local publications also give paid service, which can be from twenty thousand to forty thousand, in which they take all the responsibility related to the book. They will give you hundred copies in return for this price and other than that they will give you a royalty of 7 to 10% on what they sell, but you should know that you will not get an official record of their actual sales. Yes, some big publications which like your script will print without taking anything from you, but the problem here is again the same that the royalty is very low and the official sales will not be known.

While after removing the production costs, some other expenses and taxes the net profit in self-publishing is completely yours, but again if the book is sold on online platforms like Amazon, Flipkart, there is a cut of 50% on distribution charge plus production costs.

Think of it as a book of two hundred pages with a production cost of 90 rupees and if the MRP is kept at 250, then 50% as distribution charges means Rs.125 plus a production cost of Rs.90. A total of Rs.215 will be cut and you will only get Rs.35 on which you also have to pay a GST of 12%.\

You can also publish an e-book at no cost

Apart from this, you can also upload your book as an e-book at Amazon’s Kindle Store, but it’s better to use the Kindle software. There are two royalty options there. If you price the book less than Rs.100, then you will get 30% royalty and if you keep it above Rs.100, you will get 70%. There is no need for ISBN there. Yes, it is better for you to obtain copyright as the cost for that is only Rs.500 in the literary category.

However, after going through everything, it was well understood that until the writer is earning a big name, there is exploitation all around. Especially there is a very disappointing situation for new writers. Most people usually feel happy enough to get a book printed after spending money out of their own pockets. Making a career in the field of writing is a tough task.

In the end, it was my understanding that the publication should be started on our own and at this moment I am trying this only. At least by doing so, I can help people like me to a little extent. Now that I want to work now, I will need not only other writers but will also need for people for proofreading, editing, illustration, graphic designing, translation etc. Right now it will be started with novels but after a while, we will also be starting a magazine for which content will be needed constantly.