This page lists all of the resources mentioned in Self-Publishing for the Broke Author, and then some. I try to keep it as up-to-date as possible. If you know of a good resource or tool that I’ve missed, feel free to drop it in the comment section below.
Disclaimer: This page contains affiliate links. Any purchases made through those links will result in my receiving a small commission which will NOT affect what you pay but which WILL help support the continuing existence of this site and the future existence of more books like Broke Author.
Self-Publishing Strategy Work Sheets
E-book readers: click here to download a set of printable strategy work sheets, or click here to access an editable Google Docs version (be sure to make a copy to your own Google Docs account before you make any changes!)
Editing and Proofreading
Formatting and Book Design
- Scrivener
- Vellum
- Calibre
- How to Format Ebooks with Many Pictures in Calibre
- Open Office Writer
- Smashwords
- Smashwords Style Guide
- Draft2Digital
- Reedsy Book Editor
- Download a free MS Word template from Kindle Direct Publishing
Cover Design
- The Book Designer
- Fiverr (for a short list of cover designers, click here)
- Canva
- DIY Book Covers Design Tool
- Gimp
- Gimp + Canva Tutorial
Publishing Platforms
- The Creative Penn explains Amazon key words
- Kindle Direct Publishing
- Draft2Digital
- Smashwords
- IngramSpark
Audiobook Publishing
Platform and Author Brand
- The Book Designer – How to Build Your Author Brand from Scratch (Blog Post)
- The Creative Penn – 7 Best Ways To Build An Authentic Author Brand (Blog Post)
- Kobo Writing Life – The Essential of Book Cover Design (Blog Post)
Your Website
Your Mailing List
Content Marketing Tools
Advertising & Social Media Graphics
Books
- Your First 1,000 Copies by Tim Grahl
- How to Market a Book by Joanna Penn
- Newsletter Ninja by Tammi Labrecque
- Let’s Get Digital and Strangers to Superfans by David Gaughran
Blogs
- The Publishing School Blog at Daydreamer Publishing
- The Creative Penn
- The Book Designer
- David Gaughran
- Dean Wesley Smith
- Kristine Kathryn Rusch
Podcasts
- The Creative Penn
- The Self Publishing Show
- Kobo Writing Life
- AskAlli: Self-Publishing Advice Podcast
- Happy Self-Publishing Show
- Dabblers vs. Doers
- Smart Author with Mark Coker
Free Courses
- My free editing course at Daydreamer Publishing
- Tim Grahl’s free e-mail training course at Booklaunch.com
- Nick Stephenson’s First 10,000 Readers Course
Short list of Cover Designers on Fiverr
DISCLAIMER: These are all affordable cover designers with good portfolios who consistently get good reviews, but I have not worked with any of them. Do your due diligence by reading the reviews and starting a conversation with any seller on Fiverr to get a feel for them before deciding whether to work with them. It’s always a good idea to see what kind of sample they can provide for $5 so you can see what it’s like to work with them before committing to a larger project.
Self-Publishing for the Broke Author 