There are so many companies offering self-publishing services but how is an author to know whether a service provider can really do everything it claims to do, and do it well? Especially when they have no background in publishing, first-time authors can have a hard time knowing whether they are hiring a trustworthy company.
Dr. Victoria Harris had an idea for a novel series called “The Otherworld” and published the first book through an independent book publishing service. Unfortunately, they sent files to be printed with thirteen pages missing! This was a distressing discovery and when it was time to work on the second book in the series, Victoria was ready to find another way to self publish, and reached out to me for her novel design and layout. She provided the artwork for the covers and the pdf for the first book’s interior and I was able to match the fonts, style and sizing to create the rest of her series to match—but with no pages missing! Whew!
Read on to learn how we made her dream series a reality by bringing her young adult fiction series to life using Amazon KDP for printing and distribution.
Dr. Victoria Harris is a trained integrative psychotherapist with a specialization in creative techniques, including the use of metaphor, symbol, and story to unlock insight and healing. This passion led her to write this therapeutic novel series aimed at helping children and supporting parents in navigating a wide range of emotions.
“The Otherworld” series is comprised of three books so far, Wish (2021), The Shining Sword (2022), and The Golden Spear (2023). Victoria hopes to release the fourth and final book in the series in 2024 or 2025.
Victoria’s Book Done Takeaways
Tell me more about your book!
“The Otherworld” Series is a middle-grade fantasy adventure series. As secrets among the adults in her family emerge, twelve-year-old Cara O'Reilly’s world turns upside down when she encounters a real fairy, confirming the truth of her father’s old stories. Cara must now find the door to the Otherworld to retrieve an ancient treasure and battle darkness to save her family and the world.
When did you first have the idea for your book?
When I was completing my doctorate on using creative techniques in psychotherapy I couldn't stop thinking about a storyline for a middle-grade fantasy inspired by Irish folklore. I started writing it as soon as I handed in the doctorate manuscript. It felt like a story I had to tell.
Tell me a bit more about the cover art you chose, and what it was like working with an illustrator.
The cover images for the whole series are by the amazing artist Asur Misoa and really captures the essence of the book series - finding a portal and a journey to transformation. Creating the art was an iterative process. First I found an illustrator whose style suited my series. After hiring her I gave her an overall idea of what I wanted and images I gathered from Pinterest, to help her head in the right direction. The artist created initial sketches, such as the one below.
Then we went back and forth until the final artwork reflected the vision in my head. Below you see the final painting, before any of the text was layered on top.
Below you can see how Julie cropped the image to fit the proportions of the final cover, and added the text and bar code on top, checked the alignment, and made sure everything aligned and matched with the other books in the series.
Finally, Julie gave me the print-ready PDF for my chosen printer, which looks like the graphic you see below: back cover, spine and front cover all in one layout.
If you are planning artwork for a full wrap book cover, notice how important it is to know the final page size and approximate location of the back cover, spine and front cover before you even start the initial sketches! Only this kind of planning can help you achieve a truly professional-looking book cover. One of the biggest mistakes independent publishers make is creating artwork without thinking through if the proportions are correct for the final document sizes or without leaving space for title or body text! — Julie
When did you submit your book files to Julie for design and layout?
Once I had written my series, I tried the traditional route to publishing but was having no luck and felt so disempowered that I nearly gave up. Then I looked into self-publishing and employed a book publishing service to help set my book files up and promote my book. Unfortunately, as mentioned in the introduction, this company sent files to be printed with thirteen pages missing! Which I only discovered some time after so pre-sales had already been shipped. I was unable to stop the faulty copies from going out and was left distraught. This led me to seek another service and luckily I found Julie to help me with the design and layout of books two and three. I cannot say enough good things about her, she has been such a pleasure to work with.
What was the biggest surprise during your book project?
The biggest surprise for me is the amount of time needed to edit and check for typos! I use beta readers first for the big picture, then I use multiple people to do edits and proofread. Sometimes despite all this, I still find a typo after print!
Which part of your book project was the most fun or rewarding? Which was the most challenging?
I love outlining the plot! This is such a creative process and I can find myself having ideas throughout the day and even getting ideas in my dreams.
When you write another book, what will you do the same way? What will you do differently?
I have learned to take my time with the editing process and not rush it in my enthusiasm to get the book out.
The image above is of "the beacon" (white structure used to guide boats into harbor), a landmark which Victoria used in her map of "Ballymore" and which she based on the village of "Baltimore" near her holiday home in West Cork, Ireland.
This stone with a hole is a "fairy stone" found on a beach in Ireland. Cara, the main character in "The Otherworld" series, has a fairy stone and you can see her holding it on the front cover of "Wish".
How did you get into writing novels?
I did an online creative writing course to get feedback on my writing. Then I attended a writing course at the Faber Academy in London. It was really helpful to share work with others in the group and get feedback and guidance. I learned so much from listening to the others attending the course. There are also some excellent books and free online information about writing out there! It was a learning curve! I was helped by developmental editors who gave feedback. The editing process is where a novel really takes shape.
What service providers or partners did you have in creating and producing your book?
I needed an illustrator for the book cover, used a sensitivity reader because of the themes of loss and mental health, beta readers, copyeditors and proofreaders (I use at least 2 different people), Julie for book design (cover and interior) and Julie referred me to a publishing assistant who helped me with uploading files to Amazon’s platform and doing keyword and categories research.
What is a sensitivity reader? How did you find beta readers?
A sensitivity reader is a professional who reviews manuscripts, scripts, or other content to identify and address potentially harmful or inaccurate portrayals of marginalized or underrepresented groups. They provide feedback to ensure that the content is respectful, accurate, and free from stereotypes, biases, or offensive language. Sensitivity readers often focus on aspects related to race, gender, sexuality, disability, religion, culture, and other areas of diversity to help creators produce more inclusive and culturally sensitive work. I hired someone to read through the manuscript to give feedback on the mental health themes in the book. Usually, an author hires a sensitivity reader based on the reader’s lived experience.
I found and hired 3-5 beta readers through an online freelancer platform.
What is your best advice for marketing a book?
This is so hard yet important. There is so much competition out there and a self-published book can easily get lost. For Amazon, keywords and categories are vital, and then getting as much press as possible. I do use Amazon advertising at times, especially key times such as the run-up to Christmas, but it can be very expensive. You have to invest time and money into the marketing (within reason and depending on what is doable) in order to get book exposure. I do have an Instagram account, but posting there is mostly a hobby and not an income source; I love creating art inspired by my writing. It helps to have a platform where your readers can find you and learn more about you and your books or get additional resources. On my website people can find out more and download free parent/teacher guides that go with my books.
Book Done Technical Details for “Wish” (Book 1)
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Page Count: 230
Dimensions (Page size): 5 x 8 inches
Binding: Paperback
Interior Details
Ink colors: Black
Interior paper: Creme
Bleed: No
Cover Details
Binding: Softcover, perfect bound
Ink colors: Full-color
Laminate: Glossy
Printer: Amazon Kindle
If you have a novel series that you are wanting to produce independently in a creative but professional way, and have questions or don't even know which questions you should be asking, a good next step might be to book a consultation call, especially if your book has a lot of artwork or images.
If you know what you need, go ahead and fill out this book project questionnaire (journal projects have their own questionnaire) or just send me a message with any question you have about book planning, design or formatting, through my contact form.
Maybe your novel series will be featured here next!