Putting Together Your Team - Tips for Writers

Whether your traditionally published, an indie, or somewhere in between, you’ll need to put together a team to help you produce and market your books. Here are some tips that can help you as you find the right resources.

• Writing is a business, and you need to treat it that way. Make sure you have a contract or statement of work before someone starts the job.

• Make sure you have clearly explained your requirements up front for the task.

• Understand the fee structure and payment before the work starts. Is it a one-time cost? If it’s ongoing, how much and how often are you charged?

• Know exactly what you’re getting for your money.

• Get the person’s contact information at the beginning. You may have a need to reach them other than through a website contact.

• Ask other writers for references.

• Check out samples of the person’s work.

• Understand the timeline (theirs and yours).

• Keep a list of your contacts. You may need to reach out to them in the future.

• A lot of the tasks (e.g. website maintenance, graphics, book trailers) you can do yourself with a little training. Google and YouTube are your friend. There are a lot of tutorials out there that will teach you how to use the software.

• Make a budget and determine what you have the time/interest to do yourself and what you need to hire others for.

You’ll receive lots of offers from people and companies to help market you and your books. Make sure you know what you’re buying. Do your homework and find the right resources for your brand.