How do you self-publish a book?
- Self-publishing is an ordered checklist, not a single upload step.
- Canonical sequence: copy edit → proofread → interior layout → cover → metadata → ISBN → retailer setup → ARC → launch → post-launch QA.
- Skipping or reordering steps causes most avoidable launch failures.
- A typical solo timeline is 3-6 months from finished draft to live listing.
- Most retailers are free to publish on; costs are editing, cover, and formatting.
You self-publish a book by running a fixed checklist in order: copy edit, proofread, lay out the interior, design the cover, build the metadata package, assign an ISBN, set up retailer accounts, distribute ARCs, launch, and run post-launch QA. Most avoidable failures come from skipping a step or reordering it. A solo author typically needs three to six months from finished draft to live listing.
Chapter i·Why it matters
Authors who treat self-publishing as one "upload" button publish books with typos, bad covers, or broken metadata that no one finds. Authors who treat it as a sequenced checklist ship clean books that retailers surface and readers trust. The difference between an amateur and a professional self-published book is almost entirely process discipline, not budget.
Chapter ii·What to include
- A completed manuscript that has been copy edited and proofread.
- A professionally designed cover sized for ebook and print.
- A formatted interior for both ebook (reflowable) and print (fixed).
- A metadata package: title, description, BISAC codes, keywords, categories.
- An ISBN for each edition that requires one.
- Retailer accounts and an ARC list ready before launch day.
Chapter iii·Example
A first-time indie author maps the full checklist before she touches a retailer dashboard. She copy edits and proofreads, hires a cover designer, formats the interior in Vellum, writes her metadata, sets up KDP and IngramSpark, sends ARCs four weeks early, and launches on a Tuesday. Because she ran the steps in order, nothing breaks on launch day and the book looks professionally produced.
In WriteLoom
Everything this article talks about, in one project
WriteLoom holds the whole self-publishing checklist — manuscript, cover, metadata, ISBN, ARC list, launch plan — in one project, so the steps stay in order instead of scattered across tools.
Not ready for a workspace yet? Get the free six-part series on winning the writing game: finishing drafts, editing in the right order, querying with real math, and launching on a runway.