Use this page to ask any questions! Hopefully I will be able to answer them. 

Inline or Personal message your questions, and I'll put them up here as a Frequently Asked Questions section.

If I can't answer the question, I'll let you know. There may come a time in this journey where I CAN answer it, but may not be there yet. At the time of this posting, I am about 5 weeks into this journey, and it is a seven month process (with this company).

So ask away! 

[I will continue to update this chapter as questions come in]

1. How long did it take you to find a company you were happy with?

Thanks gothicwillow for this question! It should be answered when I start updating the "journal" side of all this. For a quick answer, I wasn't actively seeking a publishing company of any kind. I was actually looking for an editor, ending up putting my email and phone number in for a "self publishing guide" from FreisenPress, and next thing I knew I was talking to a consultant on the phone. Obviously said consultant was great at his job, because it was only a few days later that I officially agreed to team up with them. 

But they hit my criteria of: Canadian, local, within my budget, I keep 100% ownership of my book.

2. I'm honestly just confused as to what a self-publishing company does exactly. So FreisenPress is publishing the book for you? Is it like you hire them or something?

Thanks azzie89 for this one!

So yes, basically someone who were to publish their book on Amazon would likely hire an editor, cover designer, and have to pay for barcodes and ISBN (I believe ISBN's cost in America but are free in Canada, though do not quote me on that). I spoke with a friend who did this with her book "Ignition" (by Nicole Stillwater, check it out!), but she had to do a lot of the work herself (formatting it to fit on Amazon, all that tricky tech stuff I couldn't do to save my life.

What FP does is assigns you a team - so basically I sent my manuscript to them, and got the editors evaluation back. They suggested what kind of editing I would need (they trusted me to do the content editing myself). I had paid for copy editing only, so that worked out well. I made the content changes, and sent the manuscript back to them. 

My team includes my publishing specialist, designers, and editor. Right now they are editing my book while the designer is making up three different covers (I had a choice between three similar designs or three dramatically different, I chose different because I don't have a cover in mind and I want a creative artists eye to come up with something I couldn't!). I will get revisions with this, and I also get to double check and confirm ALL editing done to my book. 

Furthermore, with what I paid (on top of three rounds of editing and multiple cover designs), I also get two hours of one-on-one coaching for book marketing skills, I got a free MasterClass on self-publishing (which I will admit, I was really into but have been too busy to keep at it). I also get a dozen copies of my book when it is ready to go to give away or keep at my discretion. I get assistance with building my website too. 

So I feel comfortable with what I paid and what I get from that payment. 

Sorry that was SO long winded!

3. Everything I've read about getting published suggests starting with a literary agent. Did you bypass this or does FP offer that as well?

Thanks J_ettle for questions 3-7!

There are no agents as far as I am concerned with self-publishing. So yes, this is bypassed. I did not pursue any traditional companies, nor any literary agents simply because I wasn't actually looking into fully publishing at that time! I'll be posting the first part of the "journal" side of this today to explain how I ended up here.

4. Do you think you will try to go the "traditional" publishing route as well? If so, does FP act as a springboard? Have any of their other clients transitioned that way?

I very well may. I've heard that traditional companies do not like to publish anyone, or even consider anyone, who has not published something before. I haven't chatted with them regarding other clients using FP as a stepping stone to traditional publishing, but I imagine it has been done. If I have something (even the whole Blood Bound Series) published with FreisenPress AND it does relatively well, then I imagine it would be easier for me to seek out traditional publishers.One of my books is REALLY long, and I think I would seek out a traditional publisher to publish "Project Date Levi", rather than self publish. Because it is such a big book, it would be a massive undertaking and expensive to print, so self-publishing that book would be like shooting myself in the foot. But for my little 250 page fantasy books, I think it is ideal to self-publish

.5. Why "Red" as the first book to be published? Was that your choice or did they review several of your manuscripts and feel it was the most complete/best shot/whatever?

It is the first book in the series. This is simply the one I sent, as it is Book One of the Blood Bound Series.

6. Does FP offer any marketing for your book or does that fall to you?

They give me coaching to market, so that does fall in my lap. However, I believe I will get an advertisement in their website. 

7. Because "Red" is part of a series, did you sign a contract for them to do the rest, or do you go book by book?

One book at a time. But I have informed them it is a series and if all goes well and I think what I paid for and get out of this experience is worth it, I don't see why I wouldn't use FP again for the future books. Especially already having a team of people who have invested time in one of the books, they would understand the development of the rest of the series. That sounds like something I would want to hold on to, a relationship between the team, the book series, and myself.