Fast-Track Your Publication: How to Publish Your Book ASAP

Speed versus quality. What’s most important?

Some argue that going fast is the most important thing. Just get ‘er done. Ship it! Others say things should be done right the first time. After all, if you don’t have time to do it right now, when are you going to have time to come back later and fix it? Good point.

The ongoing debate of speed versus quality is as old as time. And it’ll probably never fully be decided.

People usually want things done fast and done right. But speed and quality can’t always be achieved at the same time. Sometimes you have to pick speed over quality. Other times you have the liberty to go slow and do it right.

Fast-Tracking Your Publication

When it comes to taking the next step to publishing a book, should you take your time and slow-walk it? Or should you just publish the dang thing and move on to your next book?

At Publishing.com, we’re firm believers that people who want to self-publish on Amazon should start quick and dirty. In other words, start small—with just one short eBook. Learn how the process works, make a few sales, get the early mistakes out of the way and then move on to a full-length book.

So if you’ve ever wondered, “How long does it take to publish a book?” we’re about to share some strategies for streamlining the process. We’re not talking years here to go through endless rounds of polishing your book. (Plus, if you’re on Draft 37 of your memoirs, it’s probably time to publish it and start a new project.)

We’re going to show you how to write and self-publish an eBook in just seven days. Sounds too good to be true? Nope. We'll also share an analogy to illustrate the publishing process.

No More Gatekeepers

Once upon a time, if you wrote a book, you needed to send it to literary agents in the hopes that one would represent you. Finding an agent could take years. Once you secured representation, your agent would then pitch your book to major publishing houses, hoping to land you a book deal.

Now, let’s say you land the book deal of your dreams. That's amazing! But hold on… the publisher owns the rights to your book. This means they can make changes to it, edit it to fit their generic standards, choose an unattractive cover, and even delay its publication for a few years. That's not ideal!

While receiving an advance would be wonderful and having a book deal would enhance your credibility, there are significant drawbacks to this option.

Even with a book deal, success is never guaranteed. The publishing company may or may not invest in marketing your book. If your book doesn’t sell well, it's likely you won't receive another deal, leaving you back where you started. You'll be back to working on your next book and cycling through the process all over again, much like a gerbil on a wheel.

This is all less than ideal for the author. It’s a tiring process that can grind down even the most dedicated writer. It also doesn’t come with any guarantees like a pot of gold at the end of the book-deal rainbow.

Thankfully, there’s a better way…

Enter the Jungle

Amazon has become a major player in the publishing industry, providing a platform for self-publishers to reach a wide audience. Amazon's Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) platform offers tools and resources for authors to publish and market their books.

The main platform for self-publishers is called Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP). It’s totally free to publish your book on KDP and once it’s live, you have tons of ways to make money by selling it in multiple different formats. The technical process of uploading and publishing a book on KDP can be relatively quick.

Okay, now that we have some context about the history of publishing, and where the industry is today, let’s look at why self-publishing your first eBook as quickly as possible is the best route.

Let’s Make Some Pancakes!

Remember when we talked about the pancake analogy? Well, self-publishing a book is quite similar to making pancakes for the first time. You might recall your initial experience making pancakes or perhaps you're currently trying to teach your 4-year old how to do it.

You won't get the first pancake just right on your first attempt. It requires practice. You need to figure out the right temperature for the pan, the right consistency for the batter, how long to cook the pancake before flipping it, and when exactly to flip it. There are many crucial decision to make along the way.

The first one might come out a little burnt and you have to try again. Or maybe it’s undercooked. It’s just not right. Your dog doesn’t even want to touch it.

Then you try again and make another one. This one’s better. It’s actually edible. Maybe your friends and family would even be willing to try it out.

This is the perfect analogy for how it works with self-publishing books. Your first book isn’t going to make the bestseller list. It’s not necessarily going to sell a million copies so you can retire early and move to Panama and buy that beach house you’ve always dreamed of.

The 7-Day Challenge

You’re going to write and publish a short eBook (we recommend something around 5,000 pages) to learn how the process works. This will better prepare you for successfully writing your first full-length book. Keep in mind that your first book won't be perfect, and that's completely fine. Focus on speed rather than quality.

This is why our AI Publishing Academy program starts with the 7-Day Challenge. We want you to get your first book out of the way and move to the next one as quickly as possible. Don’t overthink it. Once you start strategizing too much, and planning and researching, etc., you’re going to probably talk yourself out of the whole thing and go back to your day job. This is why we say just do it.

Publishing something quickly will teach you a great deal about the process, knowledge that you can apply to Books 2, 3, and 4. We will guide you through every step of the self- publishing process so you know what to expect and what to do.

The 7-day challenge is an excellent starting point. Our experience shows that students who begin quickly tend to have the most long-term success.

Head over to our video introduction to learn more about how to start your online publishing career.