Self-Publishing Resources

This is not an exhaustive list. However, these are resources which I have utilized in my author journey. I also plan to return to this post and update it, so feel free to check back!

Book recommendations link to GoodReads to provide more information. You can determine where to purchase the book for yourself.

Books on Self-Publishing:

Self-Publishing for Canadians by Jennifer Samson

How to Publish a Book on Amazon by Sam Kerns

Books on Writing:

Wonderbook: The Illustrated Guide to Creating Imaginative Fiction by Jeff Vandermeer

Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert

Writing into the Dark: How to Write a Novel Without an Outline by Dean Wesley Smith OR Take Off Your Pants! Outline Your Books for Faster, Better Writing by Libbie Hawker - read both and choose which style works for you!

Damn Fine Story: Mastering the Tools of a Powerful Narrative by Chuck Wendig

Beginnings, Middles and Ends by Nancy Kress

The Kick-Ass Writer: 1,001 Ways to Write Great Fiction, Get Published, and Earn Your Audience by Chuck Wendig

On Writing, a Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King

How to Enjoy Writing: A Book of Aid and Comfort by Janet and Isaac Asimov

Formatting:

How to Format a Book in MS Word by Derek Murphy (Youtube series):

Part I: a step-by-step Tutorial to Book Design

Part II: setting up headers, page numbers, and section breaks

Part III: front matter, back matter and section breaks

Editing:

Reedsy is a resource for hiring professional editors and book designers. You can also find help with formatting, marketing and more on this website.

Maps:

Illustrated Page Design - if you need a map for your project, I highly recommend Sarah Waites! She did the beautiful map of Notrane in Blue Revolution.

Book Covers:

Book Cover Zone

The Book Cover Designer

Articles on Writing (free to read!):

Getting Dialogue Right: How to Use Dialogue Tags and Action Beats by Ali Luke

Cheat Sheets for Writing Body Language

Body Language Master List by Maria Korolov

How to Find Filter Words and Filter Them Out by Leah Wohl-Pollack

How to Vary Your Sentence Structure (And Stop Boring Your Readers) by Ali Luke

Show, Don't Tell: Tips and Examples of the Golden Rule

Software:

calibre - FREE Ebook Management software to help you create ePub files and more!

Canva - design tools to create graphics

Canadian-Specific Information:

Self-Publishing for Canadians by Jennifer Swanson

ISBN Canada - Library and Archives Canada

Legal Deposit Program - Library and Archives Canada

See Also:

The State of Indie Authorship in 2021 by Clayton Noblit