Here's a hard fact: You will only succeed with your self-published book if you've written a book that others want to read.
Here's another hard fact: Even if you've been rejected by every single publisher and agent in New York City you may still have written a book that others want to read.
Some of the best writers in the U.S. cannot get published through traditional means. They suffer doubt and heartache, and yet they've written something spectacular that may never get published. However, technology has caught up with these incredibly gifted writers. Now anyone can get their book published. That's the good news!
The bad news? Writers are so anxious to get their books out there and start selling they forget one vital aspect of the traditional publishing that is truly a good thing-editing. Even the best self-published books suffer from a lack of editing and that's something that can turn some readers off.
Just think about it. Even great authors like Stephen King, Lisa Gardner, and David Baldacci have their books edited by at least two professionals before it hits the shelves-or your e-book reader. That's not to say they are not good technical writers, but everyone makes typos, uses incorrect grammar, sticks a comma where it doesn't belong, makes a silly mistake like using further when they should use farther.
Make enough mistakes, however, and people start to get annoyed. The last thing any author wants is to read their book after it's published and find a cringe-worthy error. It happens far more often than you'd think--even for books that have been professionally edited!
Some people can write a fantastic story, but have all sorts of copyediting mistakes sprinkled throughout it. A fresh set of eyes can make all the difference, especially to someone who wants to make a big splash in the competitive world of self-publishing. That's why you can find mistakes that others have made, but miss them in your own work. People tend to read what they want to read, not what's in front of them when self-editing.
Hiring someone to edit your book will mean dipping into your profits a bit, but it's worth it in the end if you are serious about your writing. Chances are, if you're reading this article, you're already excited about your book and looking forward to it going live on Amazon or another e-book publisher. Why not make it the best it can be?
