In today’s Publetariat Dispatch, Savvy Book Marketer Dana Lynn Smith enumerates important pitfalls for self-publishers to avoid.

Let’s face it – writing, publishing and promoting a book is a lot of work. Some authors pour their soul (and sometimes considerable expense) into their books and are disappointed when sales don’t materialize as they expect. In this series of posts, I’ll be discussing five of the most common mistakes that self-published authors make, along with tips on how to avoid them.

Mistake #1 – Neglecting to learn about the publishing business.

Whether you are writing to share your story or expertise with others, or to earn money, it’s important to understand how the publishing business works. Many authors devote a lot of time to writing, but they don’t take the time to understand the pros and cons of various publishing options, the financial aspects of publishing, the sales potential of their book, or how to distribute and promote it successfully.

Publishing is a business like any other, and most authors need to learn some new skills. See my Aspiring Authors resource page for links to articles and in-depth books that will help you learn about publishing and equip you to make informed decisions about your books.

Stay tuned for the next post in this series of The Biggest Mistakes Self-Published Authors Make.

See part two, part three and part four in the same series, by the same author. 

This is a reprint from Dana Lynn Smith‘s The Savvy Book Marketer.