Have you self published before or are looking at self publishing in the future?

[Arrogantstep367]

I self-published a book which some of my friends told me was brilliant, but I've never believed it was good enough. It's available on Smashwords.com. It's been there since 2010. I have sold two copies.

In September I began self-publishing the novel I'm currently working on. I originally intended to serialize it, thinking the serialization would help me set deadlines for myself and hit them. I quickly saw that wasn't going to work and took the book down from Amazon and Createspace. Now I'm hoping to have a completed novel ready for self-publication within two months.

I have mapped out a thirteen-novel paranormal series. I already have chapters completed in four of the successive novels and I have outlines of varying detail prepared for the rest of the stories as they detail the collapse of human civilization due to a convergence of paranormal threats. Beginning this year, 2014, I intend to release two or three novels a year in this series.

I have a number of friends who are also involved in self-publishing, though none of them is making enough money to live off of yet.

In my opinion, a few things are required for success in self-publishing.

1. Good/commerically viable writing. You sell books primarily by word of mouth. Someone reads your story and it resonates with them enough that they recommend it to friends.

2. Branding. People develop an expectation of the sort of story they're going to get from you. That's what will compel people to buy multiple stories from you. It's highly unlikely that by writing *one* good self-published novel, you're going to enjoy financial success. The people who make the most money self--publishing do it by writing either series fiction or by writing consistently within one genre. The more books you have available, the more likely it is that someone will come across your writing, enjoy it, and look for other works by you. People who like one book are eager for the next one because they expect more of the same.

3. Internet marketing. You have to have a means of getting the word out that your book exists when there are literally MILLIONS of books available on Amazon.com.

4. Real-world marketing. You need to have a marketing plan for your novel(s) beyond just Twitter acounts or blogs or what have you.

So that's my take on self-publishing. Check back with me in two years and I'll tell you how it's gone for me. Until I've had success, all these ideas may just be pipedreams.