The Well-Fed Self-Publisher

The Well-Fed Self-Publisher
Peter Bowerman
Fanove Publishing
ISBN: 0-97670598-6-0
Non-Fiction, Publishing
Reviewed by Dr. Tami Brady

People self publish for many reasons. Many want to keep strict control over their intellectual property. Others just think it is ridiculous to receive royalties of a buck or so while the publisher takes in the majority of the profits. For Peter Bowerman control of his writing is important but making money is his main motive for self publishing.
In The Well-Fed Self-Publisher, the author shares his secrets to success, success meaning selling large quantities of books. Much of this material is the common sense notions that writers often completely forget when trying to promote their work: getting reviews, determining your target audience, creating name recognition, and selling without appearing you are selling.
It would seem that the author source of his success is that he takes these aspects to the extreme. Most writers think that a handful of reviews is more than enough, Bowerman sends out hundreds of review copies. He then follows though to get those reviews complete. The author does the same with gaining media attention. He is constantly trying to find and make use of a new angle to get his product recognized. Bowerman also states that in order to make money you have to spend money (on professional editing, covers, typesetting, review copy costs, etc), but do so wisely.