Ever thought about writing a book? Well, you're reading this, so odds are: yes.

With the rise of self-publishing stars like Andy Weir ('The Martian') and E.L. James ('Fifty Shades' series) we now fully realize that you don't need a book deal to make it on the bestselling list.

Whoohoo! Hooray! But, wait. How does it actually work? What does creating a best-selling book without a traditional publisher look like? We're glad you asked. Our friends at Reedsy gave us the lowdown on how to successfully self-publish that book you're finally going to finish, dammit!

Producing The Book

File this under duh, but to publish a best-selling book, you have to write a book that's worthy of being a bestseller, or, at the very least, will appeal to your specific audience. Countless blogs and guides will teach you the 'craft' of writing, but, for now, focus on developing healthy writing habits:

1. Read as much as you can. Never be an author who writes more books than they read.

2. Create a profile of your target reader. It's easier to write when you can picture the reader as a real person, rather than a faceless, genderless entity.

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;img src="http://static.digg.com/images/9da9d25229b14a83b140ac64ebf9a13a_5621e66973b84655897738e8ae60965d_1_post.gif" alt="" /&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

3. Start with a plan. Some people write by the seat of their pants but that's an easy way to write yourself into a dead end. (Looking at you, LOST.)

4. Give yourself a deadline that means something. Enter a novel writing competition or tell your SO to sell your Xbox if you don't finish 40,000 words by the end of the month.

Rewrite And Rewrite And Rewrite

Don't show your first draft to your buddies, to an online forum, or to a professional. Your first draft is a stank pile of garbage that someone left to bake in the hot August sun. And that's okay. Take time away from your manuscript and then come back and tear it apart. Kill your darlings: if any scene isn't necessary, trash it or rewrite it.

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;img src="http://static.digg.com/images/65eeeab700f3495690af81b61ea0a0f3_5621e66973b84655897738e8ae60965d_1_post.jpeg" alt="" /&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

Work With An Editor (And A Copy Editor. And A Proof-Reader.)

A good editor will be your best friend, and you can find some excellent freelance ones. They help you find holes, tighten plots and deepen characters. And if you want to make a good book great, editors are essential. And often you need more than one to get the job done.

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;img src="http://static.digg.com/images/c8e1cea187d64e669264ce0588a316d2_5621e66973b84655897738e8ae60965d_1_post.gif" alt="" /&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

1. A Developmental Editor (sometimes called a content editor) assists you with the big picture stuff. If the characters are unbelievable, or the plot has more holes than swiss cheese, they will show you how to fix it.

2. After that, Copy Editors help you on a line-by-line basis, moving commas, un-splitting infinitives, and suggesting ways to make your sentences clearer.

3. Then there are Proofreaders, who go over your manuscript with a fine tooth comb and weed out every last mistake hallelujah amen.

We won't sugarcoat it. Working with professional editors cost money. On Reedsy, getting "the works" for a book of 60,000 words will run authors an average of $3,240. But if you're serious about publishing your book, it's worth it. The number of consistently successful writers who don't rely on editors can be counted on zero hands because they exist about as much as unicorn steaks and fat-free croissants.

Get A Professional Cover Designer

Just as nobody should do their own dental work, authors should never design their book covers. That is unless you're in some 'Brewster's Millions' situation where you need to lose money as quickly as possible. Go to the Kindle store and you'll see thousands of ebook covers that are so god-awfully bad that they're actually brilliant. But most are just bad. Readers judge books by their cover. If yours looks amateurish, they will think it was written by an amateur. (And not the wunderkind kind.)

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;img src="http://static.digg.com/images/60eaa111ff734f51bab2db6f328781ef_5621e66973b84655897738e8ae60965d_1_post.jpeg" alt="" /&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

Format Your Book

Once you have a watertight manuscript and a compelling cover, you need to assemble everything into a book. There are professional book formatters that will handle stuff like margins, bleeds, kerning – whatever that all means. Unless you're working with a picture-heavy project like a cookbook, the Reedsy Book Editor is a good way to save some dough.

The Reedsy Book Editor is a free online tool that lets you professionally format your book. You can copy-and-paste chapters from MS Word or Google Docs, keeping all your existing formatting like italics and bold text.

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;img src="http://static.digg.com/images/46d5f9aa1e6e4201bf96471ab865b5fe_5621e66973b84655897738e8ae60965d_1_post.gif" alt="" /&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

The editor lets you insert images, scene breaks, even hyperlinks. It automatically creates your table of contents and copyright page and typesets your book so that it's easy to read. Once finished, just upload a cover and hit 'export'.

One more thing! The Reedsy book editor will export your book in EPUB, MOBI and PDF formats, which will allow you to sell your book through virtually any eBook platform or print-on-demand service.

Hey! Look at that! You've got a fantastic book that readers are going to love.

But before you quit your day job and tell Tyler in accounting what an asshat he is, you need to sell some books. Tomorrow, we're going to look at the part of self-publishing that decides whether your writing career will flourish or flounder: distribution and marketing.

——————————————————————————————————

Reedsy is an online marketplace that connects authors with a curated community of editing, design, and marketing talent. They've helped hundreds of writers realize their dreams by putting them in touch with the right people, and they can help you do the same. Sign up today to get started.