How-to Guides

old car in the grasslands

I wrote each guide after doing the process a few times. I’m not an expert, but I hope my notes might help others. The information may be dated.

A Short Guide to Self-Publishing

PDF: https://emilybuehler.com/wp-content/uploads/Guide-to-Self-Publishing.pdf

Note: The focus of my guide is what I call DIY self-publishing—that is, doing the process with as few intermediaries as possible. This means more work but a larger share of the “royalties” per sale. Even if this route is not for everyone, understanding it can be useful to make informed decisions about which services to use. I wrote this before print on demand was available, so it is very dated!

The Editorial Freelancers Association published a more thorough and rewritten version of my guide in 2017, but has since stopped selling it because it is outdated. If they ever republish it, I will share a link. In the meantime, the 2017 version is here:

PDF: https://emilybuehler.com/wp-content/uploads/Self-publishing-for-EFA_FINAL-for-website.pdf

Much of the information is also in slides from a talk I give at the local library:

PDF: https://emilybuehler.com/wp-content/uploads/SelfPublishing2019.pdf

How to Lay Out a Book in InDesign

If you dare.

This version is simpler and better, and describes the steps I follow when laynig out my fiction novels:

PDF: https://emilybuehler.com/wp-content/uploads/Indesign-How-to-Updated2022-simpler.pdf

This is an older version from my nonfiction days. It contains some additional steps (mainly creating running headers) but it less well written:

PDF: https://emilybuehler.com/wp-content/uploads/Indesign-How-To.pdf

How to Self-Publish an eBook

Here are the relatively simple instructions I follow when I publish my fiction novels (updated in 2022):

PDF: https://emilybuehler.com/wp-content/uploads/EBook-How-To-2022.pdf

And here are more thorough, but outdated instructions:

PDF: https://emilybuehler.com/wp-content/uploads/EBook-How-To.pdf