The term “self-publishing” is rather misleading. Just like making a film, publishing a book professionally requires more than one person. It’s a team effort drawing on the diverse skills of many experts ranging from: editors, designers, promotion, publicity, and distribution experts.

With roughly a million new books entering the market every year (and that’s just in North America) it’s more important than ever that authors ensure their books are as good as they can be, inside and out.

This guide explains how you can take your manuscript from a rough draft to a professionally published book. We touch on some common pitfalls, provide tips for success, and leave you better prepared to publish a book you’ll be proud to sign.

Publishing a professionally edited and designed book is an investment. But what many authors don’t know is that there is a way of easing or eliminating the financial burden of your investment—a path that can also help you sell books and build an engaged readership before you’re published. It’s called crowdfunding.

Dozens of FriesenPress authors have published incredible books after raising the funds through crowdfunding campaigns, but we also know how overwhelming the idea of crowdfunding can be for an author.

That’s why we’ve written the Definitive Crowdfunding Guide for Writers. We’ll guide you through the entire process, from beginning to end. There’s no experience necessary. All you need to get started is an idea that you believe in.

Book proposals are an excellent and under-utilized guiding light for self-publishing writers. What makes them so powerful? They get you thinking about your target audience before you write—what’s in it for your readers? How are you going to find them? How are you going to make them want your book?

You don’t need to have all the answers, nor do you need to worry over the questions. But the earlier you begin to consider your book’s building blocks and your marketing strategy, the better off you’ll be down the road. A book proposal leads to stronger writing which leads to a higher chance of success.

To help you put together a great book proposal, we’ve created an easy-to-follow template for writers of fiction, nonfiction, and children’s books. Whether you’re in the idea phase or you’re almost finished your first draft, your proposal will be a helpful signpost throughout the writing and revision processes, and well into publishing.

Professional editing isn’t just a glorified spell-check. Sure, a computer might catch typos and a missing comma, but software can’t understand your sentences in the context of your overall message. The ability to review a piece of writing and edit it for style and effectiveness—including elements such as plot and character development—is a wholly human skill.

A professional editor brings an objective eye to the persuasiveness of an argument, the logic and flow of content, the effectiveness of description or development, as well as dozens of other creative and technical considerations. Learn more about the hidden power of professional editing in this helpful mini-guide!