How do you budget for a book launch?
- Typical indie launch cost: $1,500-$8,000.
- Editing: $2,000-$5,000 (the largest line item).
- Design: $500-$2,000.
- Promo and ads: $500-$3,000.
- Contingency: 10-20% of total.
Most indie book launches cost $1,500-$8,000 total, split across editing ($2,000-$5,000 if professionally done), design ($500-$2,000), promo and ads ($500-$3,000), and contingency (10-20%). The right total depends on genre, sales expectations, and whether you outsource editing and design. Romance budgets often run higher; literary fiction lower.
Chapter i·Why it matters
Authors who launch without a budget either overspend (and lose money on the book) or underspend on the wrong line items (typically editing, which determines the next several books’ reception). A budget forces decisions upfront, prevents impulse spending during launch week, and lets you measure ROAS afterward.
Chapter ii·What to include
- Editing line items: developmental, line, copy, proofread.
- Design line items: cover, interior, ebook conversion.
- Metadata and setup: ISBNs, KDP/IngramSpark fees.
- Promo services: BookBub, Freebooksy, Reedsy Discovery.
- Ads: Amazon, Facebook, BookBub Ads.
- Contingency: 10-20% for unexpected costs.
Chapter iii·Example
A second-time indie author budgets her romance launch at $4,200: $1,800 editing (line + copy + proof), $700 cover, $1,200 promo ($600 BookBub + $600 BookTok creator), $200 ads, $300 contingency. She hits the budget within $150 and the book earns out in week six. Books three and four use the same template with minor reallocation.
WriteLoom’s Market studio tracks budget by line item against actual spend, so you can see ROAS by channel and budget book over book.
See the Market studio