The truth hurts but I’m not going to lie to you—book royalties are pennies. PENNIES.
Unless you’re a NYT bestselling author, you’re probably not going to make real money selling your self-published book.
I mentioned this briefly in the 5 Myths of Self-Publishing but really, self-published authors see book royalties as the sprinkles on top of the cake.
Reality: even NYT bestselling authors use their books to launch other things like speaking tours, interviews, and other non-book activities.
Let’s look at real-life examples
One of my friends, Imad Elabdala at Kidnovation, used Kickstarter to launch his children’s illustrated book for Syrian refugees and has since spoken on the TedX stage about vulnerability and confidence, been a guest on countless radio stations, and has won national awards for his work in community outreach for refugees.
The book highlighted his mission and all of the work he was already doing in that space and exposed more people to his work.
Another great example is self-published author, Stephanie Espy who created the book STEM Gems and has since launched a movement to get more girls interested in STEM fields.
Stephanie has been nurturing her career for the past 10 years and the successful launch of her book has led to her receiving numerous awards and multiple features in the press.
And finally, Estonian entrepreneur, Tiina Bruno, became the thought leader in creating sustainable workplace environments for families after publishing her book, Föräldramart, in Sweden.
Her company, ParentSmart Employers, is helping companies around the world make better use of parents’ skills developed during parental leave.
She was the first person to quantify the competencies and skills gained during parenthood and translate them into real value in the workplace.
All of these authors have the same thing in common—their work was further enhanced and validated after they published a book on the topic.
External validation
When you publish a book you can always say you are, “First name Last name, author of Book Title,” on your bio and in introductions at conferences and at speaking engagements.
Hello, external validation.
People who are interested in your work will take a look at your book on Amazon. They’ll browse through your reader reviews and lo and behold, your expertise and professionalism in your subject area just increased tenfold.
So, whether it be a dream of yours to see your name on a book’s spine, your desire to tell a story that is currently missing on your bookshelf, or a way to translate and preserve your experience and expertise in a book, you will reap untold benefits after you publish your book.
After you’ve published a book you’ll not only be able to raise your rates but you’ll also have more…
– Speaking opportunities and engagements
– Podcast interviews
– Newspaper coverage
– Collaborations with others in the field/genre
– New projects and activities that result from the book
Your book is the final frontier in your career but a stepping stone to countless other opportunities that can make you money, increase your professionalism, and establish your expertise on a topic and that is why you should do it.
It’s not about the book.
It’s about everything that comes after you hit “Publish.”
