Tech-savvy

When it comes to using computers, Patrick Forsyth knows he’s not alone in needing a helping hand

Driven in part by the development of print on demand, the possibilities of self-publishing have currently never been more evident, and the range of options has never been wider. This ranges from the vagaries and false promises of vanity publishing (about which one only needs a single word of advice: avoid), through assisted publishing (of which there are some very professional and useful examples) to the simple process of putting your book on Amazon. Simple? Well that rather depends on one’s level of computer familiarity.

Many people find they use their computers a great deal, and certainly this is true for most writers, but most use only a tiny percentage of its features. Furthermore, when we do something for the first time then it often takes a while to get the hang of it; then it’s a frustrating and time-consuming process that some people would rather avoid. While promoting a self-published book is another matter it is possible to get help to actually produce a book (in both ebook and printed form), and there are many ready to assist.

Someone who knows the Amazon system backwards, can turn a word document into a published book in a short time and do so with little or no hassle can be invaluable. I was offered good advice by writer and designer Paul Burridge who also provides designs for covers at a good mix of quality and reasonable cost (his website is www. publishingbuddy.co.uk). You need to think about marketing as well and might also want to have a professional copy edit done, but I applaud the fact that such publishing services exist. Of course, you can do all this yourself, but it might well produce a better result with some assistance.