Do you have a book inside you that’s waiting to be shared with the world?
Are you worried the process will be too complex, time-consuming, or expensive?
Traditional publishing can be all of those things. But there are faster, simpler, and far less costly ways to get across the finish line.
I’ve published seven books: four traditionally, two through hybrid publishers, and one self-printed, which I only sold in bulk to clients.
From a cash perspective, traditional publishing is best — they pay you for the rights. But it’s slow, hard to land a deal, and you give up control, rights, and a share of the long-term revenue.
Hybrid publishing is faster and gives you complete control while keeping 100% of the rights. The downside? Upfront costs that can run into the tens of thousands.
Back in 2010, Portfolio Penguin published my book Personality Poker. The attached deck of cards often fell off, and the oversized book didn’t fit in standard shelves. Five years later, we retired it, and it sat unavailable.
With my renewed focus on Personality Poker, I decided to rerelease it — this time through self-publishing. And what I discovered is this: the process is easier (and cheaper) than most people imagine… if you know the right resources.
Here’s my toolkit:
🔹 Writing – Since I was updating a previously published book, I didn’t need any serious writing, only editing what was published 15 years ago. However, for new projects, I always draft in Scrivener (great for organizing thoughts). But for most, MS Word will be just fine.
COST: $0. Scrivener is only $59 if you choose to get it.
🔹 Editing/Proofreading – For this book, since 90% of it was from the previously published version, I didn’t do a lot of editing. Instead, I asked trusted colleagues to comb through the manuscript and give me their feedback. For proofreading, I uploaded the entire book into ChatGPT (not to rewrite or edit, just to catch errors) and used Grammarly purely as a safety net to flag typos. For professional help, Reedsy or Wordsru.com are great places to hire an editor or proofreader. I also recommend HelpThisBook.com ($30 a month), which is an amazing beta testing tool for anyone who wants feedback early in the process.
COST: $0. Professional editors and proofreaders are typically the biggest expense. I’ve hired them for every book, even those that were traditionally or hybrid published. If there’s one place to invest, it’s here.
🔹 Layout – For clean, professional interiors, Vellum (Mac-only) is hard to beat. It makes formatting simple for both print and ebook. But it has limitations. When I released the Personality Poker manual in 2007, the layout was much more complex, so I hired someone from Upwork. For my Little Book of BIG Innovation Ideas, I just used MS Word for the layout. Another no-cost option I’ve not tried is Reedsy Book Editor.
COST: $0, because I already owned Vellum, which is $295. However, free options are available.
🔹 Covers – I had mine designed at GetCovers. They are fast, affordable, and surprisingly good. You just need a good idea of what you want and they can bring it to life. You can see what they created for me in the image below.
COST: $30 plus a tip to GetCovers, but no-cost options are available, such as Canva.
🔹 Distribution – KDP (Amazon) handles most of the sales. For global reach beyond Amazon, I use PublishDrive. Draft2Digital is another option.
COST: $0. Amazon only takes a percentage of sales, with no upfront cost. PublishDrive and Draft2Digital have a no up-front fee version where they only take 10% of your sales.
🔹 ISBNs – If you’re serious about publishing multiple books and want your own imprint (mine is FAST Innovation Press), buy a block of ISBNs from Bowker—it’s much cheaper per unit than purchasing them individually. Although you can get a free ISBN from Amazon, it’s often best to purchase your own.
COST: This was the priciest part for me, at $295 for a block of 10. Don’t buy barcodes as you can generate them for free online. If you stick to Amazon only, you can use their no-cost ISBNs and barcodes.
🔹 Marketing Visuals – For polished 3D book mock-ups, AuthorLab.pro is a gem. The image below was generated using this tool.
COST: $0 for me as I had previously purchased lifetime access to AuthorLab years ago. Today it’s $120/year.
🔹 Marketing – Although it might seem desirable to outsource marketing to someone else, I believe this is the author’s job. I’ve never had success having someone else do my marketing. I created my own Amazon A+ graphics and posted them. You can hire someone to do this for you.
COST: $0. Just my time.
🔹 Book Printing – Although I use Amazon’s print-on-demand service for books purchased through them, I prefer 48HourBooks for longer print runs. They offer plenty of options. For this book, I selected a special run with a thicker cover and a silk laminate to make the colors really stand out. I also create special custom editions with them, featuring the client’s logo on the cover and a personalized message from the CEO on the first page.
COST: $0. With Amazon, there’s no upfront cost. They simply take a share of each sale. 48HourBooks has a price calculator if you want to explore them as an option.
Self-publishing can feel overwhelming, but once you have the right toolkit, it’s a straightforward process. As you can see, there are plenty of no-cost or low-cost options.
Hopefully this list saves you time, money, and a few headaches.
P.S. None of the links above are affiliate links. I am just sharing what I learned as a way of helping others.