In previous posts in this series, we introduced you to some of the best free writing classes on the internet, as well as some our favorite paid online writing courses.
Today, we’ll be looking a little further into the future of your writing career, discussing some of the best self-publishing courses available to help you take the next step after writing that book.
Why Self-Publish?
We’ve talked at length in the past about the pros and cons of self-publishing your book, as opposed to taking the more traditional route with a standard publishing house.
And while the debate over which is the superior publishing method will likely rage until the end of time, the advantages that self-publishing affords an author (creative liberty, fast turnaround, and high profit share) cannot be overstated.
Self-publishing is changing the literary industry in a big way, and giving a voice to thousands of new writers across the country every year who might never have been able to publish a book otherwise.
Plenty of world-renowned writers got their start self-publishing, or even self-published a book after they got famous: Beatrix Potter, Marcel Proust, e.e. cummings, and Christopher Paolini have all published books through nontraditional means, and are all still big names today.
So if you do decide to self-publish your manuscript, know that you walk in good company.
Take a Self-Publishing Course
Of course, without the framework and support that traditional publishing provides, the world of self-publishing can be a big, scary place—and indeed, sometimes the process seems so complex, it can be difficult to even figure out where to begin.
Luckily, you don’t have to go it alone.
There are plenty of online courses an enterprising author can take to learn the ins and outs of self-publishing a book. These courses are led by expert teachers with years of experience in the industry and the high book sales to back up their claims, and are all dedicated to teaching writers just like you all about the business of publishing. Their courses are kept up to date by their creators, and reflect the cutting edge of best practices in the self-publishing industry.
But there’s no such thing as the perfect course—only the course that best suits your needs.
And to that end, we’ve compiled a list of our top 6 best self-publishing courses, so you can decide for yourself how best to conquer the literary landscape.
Let’s begin.
1. Real Fast VIP
Course Content and Features
Real Fast VIP isn’t just a program for writers. It’s a watering hole where authors, publishers, and content creators of all kinds can learn the secrets of financial success selling print books, ebooks, audiobooks, and other content.
Membership in the program affords users access to a variety of services, including:
- Super Packs of freestanding courses, each centered around a particular facet of the industry, including Kindle publishing, sales letters, and using public domain content
- Training and programs from partner authors Jim Edwards, John S. Rhodes, and Lina Trevedi—some of which can only be accessed by Real Fast VIP members
- Premium services like book cover critiques and personalized book publishing, marketing, and sales plans
- Members-only VIP group coaching conducted over exclusive Facebook Live sessions and webinars
- Every Kindle book in the Real Fast Results series
About the Instructor
Daniel Hall is a bestselling author, speaker, consultant, and entrepreneur. Hall is the creator of the popular “Real Fast” training programs, and the CEO of the brands Playtime Gadgets and the Backseat Nanny.
As the creator of Real Fast VIP, Hall is the instructor for the majority of its courses, but various other authors and guest experts make appearances as well.
Price
Real Fast VIP membership is $297 annually, $30 per month, or $1 for a 7-day trial.
Refunds? No, but you can cancel at any time to stop billing.
2. Mastering Book Marketing
About the Course
Mastering Book Marketing is an online book marketing course that teaches the latest and best internet marketing strategies for authors.
Mastering Book Marketing is one of the best online resources available for authors new to publishing, as it provides a comprehensive and easy-to-understand step-by-step guide to promoting your book.
You’ll learn proven free and paid traffic strategies to help you generate more sales, content creation and customer attraction tips, and ways to future-proof your business so that it’s not reliant on one platform.
You’ll also get access to other valuable resources, such as:
- Access to the Mastering Book Marketing Facebook group (a $197 value): get the support and accountability you need from others to succeed.
- A blog and website set up for you by Stefan’s team (a $1,000 value): All you need to cover is the BlueHost hosting fee, at $7/month.
- Stefan’s Book Funnel Training (a $297 value): This training will show you how to build your own email list, including tips for how to follow up with customers and ask them to write reviews on Amazon.
About the Instructor
Stefan James Pylarinos, creator of K Money Mastery and Project Life Mastery, is an entrepreneur, life coach, business coach, and philanthropist who has published more than 100 ghostwritten books.
Price
Mastering Book Marketing offers a monthly membership at $97/month.
Refunds? Yes, within first 30 days of training.
3. Self-Publishing School
About the Course
Self-Publishing School is advertised with a bold claim: “Write and Publish a Bestselling Book in 90 Days.”
The course focuses far more on the writing side of things than on promotion and marketing.
Self-Publishing School provides a great deal of encouragement to students through 4.5 hours of online video, as well as some supplementary materials like daily videos and success stories, SPS creates a powerful support system and tutorial guide would-be authors through the process of writing and publishing their first book.
And while no self-publishing course can guarantee success, Self-Publishing School does boast an impressive track record: big names like Steve Windsor, Azul Terronez, and Lise Cartwright have all used and praised Self-Publishing School.
About the Instructor
Chandler Bolt is an entrepreneur, proud college dropout, and co-author of four bestselling books—and is one of the biggest names in self-publishing today. He created Self-Publishing School as a tool to motivate young writers like himself to find their voices and use their time efficiently.
Price
Enrollment in Self-Publishing School costs $3997 for VIP and Fundamentals of Fiction and Story Programs.
Refunds? Self-Publishing School does not offer refunds for any products or down payments according to their Terms of Service, so you should know that before investing any money in the program.
4. How to Become a Bestselling Author on Amazon Kindle
About the Course
How to Become a Bestselling Author on Amazon Kindle teaches its members exactly that: how to write, edit, design, publish, and market a bestselling book on the Kindle platform—and all in as little as one month.
With a tight focus on enabling users to take advantage of the explosive growth of the ebook industry, “How to Become a Bestselling Author on Amazon Kindle” includes 9.5 hours of on-demand video, 38 minutes of on-demand audio, five articles, two supplemental resources, and equal access on your home PC, television, or mobile device.
This program’s 9 modules are broken down like this:
- Getting Started
- The Ultimate Writing Guide
- Cover Design Mastery
- Formatting for Kindle
- Publishing on Kindle
- Everything You Need to Know About Marketing Books
- Financial Management for Authors
- Bonus Videos and Interviews
- Affiliate Marketing Mastery
Not only does “How to Become a Bestselling Author on Amazon Kindle” have over five hours more content than competing Kindle publishing courses, but the program offers its first two lectures as free previews, so you know what you’re getting before you buy.
About the Instructor
Tom Corson-Knowles is an entrepreneur, blogger, and international bestselling author. His 20+ bestselling books include The Kindle Publishing Bible, Schedule Your Success, Rules of the Rick, and Email Marketing Mastery. Tom is also the founder of TCK Publishing, an independent publishing company that specializes in online marketing.
Price
$199.99
Refunds? Yes, within 30 days.
5. Authority Pub Academy
About This Course
On the surface, Authority Pub Academy might seem similar to Chandler Bolt’s Self-Publishing School: both brand themselves as schools rather than mere online courses, and both tout a focus on pushing their “students” to write and publish a book.
But beyond that, Authority Pub Academy is entirely its own animal. This course is better organized and more complex, for one thing, and is geared much more towards experienced authors with a few books under their belt.
The focus here is not only on writing and publishing a book, but also on helping the Academy’s “students” build unique author platforms and brands based around their name. Through more than 12 hours of videos and slide presentations, Authority Pub Academy not only teaches members how to write a successful book, but gives them the tools they need to build a successful brand based on that book’s success.
Authority Pub Academy’s six separate modules cover every facet of successful book publishing:
- Authority Publishing Mindset
- Bestselling Book Idea Formula
- How to Write Your Bestseller
- Book Publishing Made Easy
- Building a Bestselling Book Launch
- Leveling Up Your Book Business
Bonus Round: Membership in Authority Pub Academy also nets you access to supplementary materials like Canva tutorials and Evernote tips for productive writing.
About the Instructor
Steve Scott and Barrie Davenport are two of the most well-known and successful people in the self-publishing business.
Scott is a multiple-time bestselling author who used his success generating income from self-publishing to create DevelopGoodHabits.com and cofound Authority Pub Academy. Today, his business has published more than 70 books.
Davenport is the author of 13 self-published books and founded the high-ranking personal development blog, LiveBoldandBloom.com, which has more than 900,000 monthly readers.
Price
Enrollment in Authority Pub Academy costs $587
Refunds? Yes, within 30 days and with proof that you completed coursework. Read full details here.
6. Your First 10K Readers
About the Course
Now there’s a positive title for your self-publishing course!
For you fiction authors out there, Your First 10K Readers might be the best training system of the bunch, specifically because it’s one of the few courses out there actually created by a fellow fiction writer.
And not only that, but this course just might be the most detailed and comprehensive as well, with more than 10 hours of video, in-depth training on a variety of topics, plus loads of bonus content that explores some basic tenets of marketing, like creating landing pages and setting up email autoresponders. Membership grants access to a private Facebook group, as well as links to author interviews and how-to videos.
Your First 10K Readers follows the same 6-module system as Authority Pub Academy, but is more process-based and detailed, despite having two fewer hours of content.
- Rule the Retainers
- Drive Endless Traffic
- Convert Traffic into Subscribers
- Engage Your Audience
- The Ultimate Launch Template
- Facebook: Profit on Autopilot
While more seasoned writers might get the most out of Your First 10K Readers’s advanced systems, this online course is one you shouldn’t overlook.
About the Instructor
Nick Stephenson is a bestselling fiction and nonfiction author. He created Your First 10K Readers as a way to teach other authors and online entrepreneurs to find just that—their first 10,000 readers—and, of course, to sell more of their books. His program has helped more than 25,000 users expand their readership, and that number is growing all the time.
Price
This webinar is free!
A Final Thought
If you’re committed to self-publishing, any one of these fine courses could help you write, publish, and promote a bestseller—but only if you use them properly.
A lot of these programs have free trials. Use them. Don’t commit to a $100+ online course unless you’re positive it suits your needs as an author and businessperson.
And if you do decide to spend the money, take advantage of everything your membership gets you. Don’t leave anything on the table, or you’re just wasting money.
And for more deep thoughts on DIY writing and publishing, we’ve got the good stuff:
- Is Self-Publishing or Traditional Publishing Better Financially?
- How to Start Marketing Your Book Early: 6 Steps for a Successful Book Launch
- 7 Social Media Strategies Authors Use to Sell More Books
Jacob Mohr relishes the opportunity to work closely as an editor with the authors of tomorrow, creating new stories and exciting possibilities—and making the world a little more awesome, one book at a time.
When he’s not editing someone else’s writing, Jacob can usually be found reading Stephen King, riding rollercoasters, or crafting his own stories.
As a former student- I do not recommend this coarse. You can get the same education from other companies for $400-800. Also, after speaking with dozens of other authors in the program, not one of us actually made money from the endeavor. The coarse is $4000-5000. The costs of editing and cover design is another $500. Cost of initial advertising push is $100-200. Then you become a “bestseller” by asking everyone you know and then some to review your book the first week. After that your book disappears into the amazon black hole and no one will ever know it exists again unless you keep paying amazon to advertise it, which is typically a break even to a losing game. Any writer that claims to make over $100 a month from this program is either highly exaggerating because she’s employed by SPS, or she’s 1 in 100,000 authors. If your goal is to make money, don’t go this route. If your goal is to get an education, there are much more affordable alternatives.
Hi Jared, thank you for sharing your experience with SPS – I’m sorry you had a negative experience. We’ve tried to make it clear throughout the post that no self-publishing course can guarantee success, but we did also need to mention that SPS has a number of notable success stories. However, I’ll make sure our team discusses this and update the post as necessary.
A first time writer should never spend more than a few dollars to test the waters to see if it is something than will work for them. Many of us see the make big money ad for being an author and jump right in with eyes closed and wallet open. Writing as a career take a lot of time, 1 to to years to even start to see any kind of return at all. You have to constantly be marketing yourself and get your name out there. Thomas failed 10,000 times before he perfected the light bulb. In order to be a successful author you have to roll up your sleeves and get burned by 10,000 light bulbs before you will even become close to successful.
Hi Mark, thanks for sharing your thoughts! I definitely understand where you’re coming from. Self-publishing, however, can be an intimidating process for many new authors, so many of them find courses like these helpful for navigating it the first time. That said, we encourage all writers to understand what they’re signing up and paying for, and to make sure that they feel the investment is worthwhile for them.