BOOKWORM
Independently Publishing The Right Way By Marsha Casper Cook If’ve been an advocate for independently published authors for years. However, only if you take the time to do it right. There are several steps that are required, but the most important is the story has to be good. Take time to write the story you want to tell, and don’t cut corners to save time. Take as much time as you need, and promise yourself you will not rush through your writing. Some authors are faster than others in getting out their stories, but this is your story, no one else’s. I have asked three extremely competent women to answer some of the questions that make Independent Publishing easier, Fran Lewis,Robin Surface and Melissa Smith.
Robin Surface is the
President/Owner of Fideli Publishing, Inc. She has a BA in Journalism, with a minor in creative writing. She has worked in various jobs in the printing/ publishing industry since 1985, including typographer, production manager for a national trade magazine, news reporter, weekend magazine editor, graphic artist, and book production/printing coordinator. Her specialties are book covers and text design. 34 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
Robin has helped hundreds of writers start their career the right way. Her knowledge about publishing is an author’s greatest tool. Her thoughtfulness and caring demeanor are an author’s greatest ally.
Why did you decide to become an independent publisher? And is there a difference between the term self-publishing and independently publishing? I originally worked for another publisher, but that turned out to be a scam business. Once I realized what was going on, one of the other women in my department and I decided we could do it better and in a legitimate way. So, we worked on a business plan, decided on a name, and created a logo, then talked her husband into renting one of his buildings to us at a reduced rate. Several of the other people we worked with at the
other place joined us. Self-publishing, to me, means the author is doing everything to get their book published themselves. Independently publishing, my definition again, is the author keeps control of every aspect of the process, but pays professionals to help out with things like editing, cover creation, text formatting, and even setting up accounts with IngramSpark, Amazon, etc. This is what Fideli does. We provide the services, and oftentimes the guidance,
