Being published today is a lot easier than ever, thanks to self-publishing. With this strategy, you no longer have to submit your manuscript to dozens of publishers and hope that the editors will see a marketing potential in your work.
If you’re thinking of becoming a self-published author, then taking time to understand the self-publishing space is critical, especially now since the competition is huge. Luckily, taking one of the following self-publishing courses will prep you for the task ahead.
When looking for an online publishing course to take, you want to look for one that covers essential topics such as:
- Book formatting for different publishing platforms
- Planning the launch
- Marketing your book
- Step by step process to effective self-publishing.
Did you know that some of the big titles started off as self-published works before being picked up by traditional publishers? Think:
- Fifty Shades of Gray by E.L James,
- The Celestine Prophesy by James Redfield,
- Ten Tiny Breaths by K.A Tucker,
- Switched by Amanda Hocking, and
- Still Alice by Lisa Genova
These are just a few titles that prove there’s nothing wrong with the self-publishing route; you just need to have a great book idea and a publishing strategy.
Online Publishing Courses
Let’s now explore some of the best self publishing courses available that you should consider taking to prepare you for launching your new book.
1) Create And Self-Publish Your Book Or Ebook
- Offered by: Fiverr Learn
- Instructor: Billy McIntyre
- Course duration: under 2 hours
This is a crispy self publishing course that will only take you just under 2 hours to complete. Offered by Fiverr Learn, it’s high-quality content in HD videos spanning over 24 topics.
In the Create and Self-Publish Curriculum, you’ll learn:
- Identifying your audience and book Idea
- Staying organized and motivated by setting your goal upfront
- Finding your story
- Doing your research
- Managing voice and style
- Editing to perfection
- Proofreading your work
- Self-publishing on Amazon
By taking this course, you’ll learn how to work through your book incrementally so that you aren’t overwhelmed and hence quit along the way. The instructor of this course is Billy McIntyre, a top-rated ghostwriter who has worked with over 10K clients worldwide.
2) Amazon Kindle eBook and Book Self-Publishing for Beginners
- Offered by: Udemy
- Instructor: Brian Jackson
- Course duration: 5 hours
Amazon Kindle is the go-to platform for self-publishing, so this course comes in handy in helping you understand how it works, so you can better leverage it to your advantage.
This course doesn’t touch on the book writing process but rather the publishing process. You will learn how to transform your manuscript into a ready-to-publish format for Kindle.
Some of the topics covered in this 5-hour course include:
- Traditional document formatting
- Working with Kindle Create Microsoft Word plugin
- Book formatting for Kindle
- Book cover design using Canva
- Publishing your book to kindle with KDP
- Copywriting Kindle book description
- Creating a Paperback version of your ebook
- Book marketing
This is a great beginner publishing course for those who want to do the work themselves instead of hiring a freelancer or working with a self-publishing agency. You should be able to easily navigate the KDP platform easily after completing this short class.
3) Self Publishing Keyword Analysis
- Offered by: Skillshare
- Instructor: Vincent Noot
- Course duration: 2 hours
Keyword research isn’t something unique to SEO content writers; it’s a process crucial to anyone who wants to rank a page online. And yes, that includes ranking your Amazon book as well.
Self-publishing is a competitive landscape, so when researching an idea for your non-fiction ebook, take time to find a niche that you love and is less competitive. Keyword research will also help you when creating a listing for your book. Tagging your book appropriately could make a difference in the sales that it generates.
This Skillshare class takes you through everything you need to know about keyword research. Topics covered include:
- Finding book ideas
- Fiction vs. Non-fiction
- Spying on the competition
- Book ranking
- Book niches
- Choosing your book category
- Using multiple keywords
- How to optimize keywords in ads
4) Your First 10K Readers
- Offered by: Nick Stephenson
- Instructor: Nick S.
- Course duration: Extensive
From the course title, you can tell that this course isn’t about writing or even publishing your first book but marketing it. It assumes that you already have published works and want to get readers.
Unlike most of the other self publishing courses in this post, Your First 10K Readers is a more intensive premium course that dives into the nitty-gritty of Amazon algorithm and keywords. It discusses several strategies of attracting and retaining your fans, from email marketing, merchandising, landing pages to giveaways.
In this course, you’ll learn:
- Driving traffic to your landing and book listing pages
- Converting visitors into fans
- Building engagement
- Selling without being ‘salesy.’
- Launch strategies
This is the only course that also covers how to use Facebook advertising to generate book sales while being profitable.
Pricing: $597
5) Amazon Vella — Write a Bestselling Novel in 15 Steps
- Offered by: Udemy
- Instructor: Brian Jackson.
- Course duration: 3 hours
Novelist who is yet to write a single word? You can take this course even when you don’t have a plot yet, and at the end of the course, you would be able to complete your first story and release it as a chapter on Amazon Vella.
Kindle Vella is a new concept where authors can release their books as stories, a chapter at a time. The book is referred to as a story and the chapter, an episode. If you are familiar with Wattpad, then the concept is the same.
This short course covers critical topics of novel writing such as:
- Story description and planning
- Story description editing
- Story image, categories and tags
- Publishing your story
- Episode writing
- Publishing your episodes
- Story/episode modification
6) Authority Pub Academy
- Offered by: Authority Pub.
- Instructor: Steve Scott
- Course duration: Extensive (Self-paced)
This course is centered around building an authoritative author platform, making it possible to turn a simple book idea into a viable business.
Authority Pub Academy was created by Steven Scott and his partner, Barrie Davenport. Steven Scott is a well-known figure in the world of self-publishing, having released nearly 80 titles.
In this program, you will learn:
- Develop author mindset
- The state of self-publishing
- Profitable book models
- Daily writing habits
- Accountability
- Researching and picking a winning niche
- The writing process
- Self-publishing logistics
- Kindle publishing and much more
7) eBook Publishing Masterclass
- Offered by: Skillshare
- Instructor: Rebecca Wilson.
- Course duration: 3 hours
This is another complete online publishing course that takes you through the process of writing, editing, formatting, distributing and marketing your book.
Topics include:
- Audience and competition determination
- Planning book content
- Working with an editor
- Canva cover design
- Formatting for eReaders
- Book distribution methods and sites
- Creating a book marketing strategy
- Paid ads etc.
Choosing the Right Self Publishing Course
Knowing what self publishing course to take can be tricky, but the key is understanding the skills you need to get your book written and prepped for publication.
If you are limited on a budget, you can opt for Skillshare classes since you only need to pay a monthly fee and get access to all the courses on the platform.
An extensive self-publishing course may be a good fit if you are looking for a structured path towards writing and publishing authoritative books.
