Welcome to a virtual self-paced workshop on publishing your own book. The information below will help you become familiar with internet based self-service publishers. In just a few steps you will learn how to upload a completed manuscript and make it available for sale in a variety of online marketplaces. You can also follow these steps if you just want to create your own book even if you do not plan on selling it (photobooks for your family and friends, magazines for your business, etc.).

This workshop assumes you already have completed your manuscript and focuses on the technical aspects of getting your work set for physical and digital distribution. If you need help writing your book, check out the Newport Beach Public Library's other resources like the Chris Epting Memoir Writing series or our vast collection of books on the subject. 

Both of the slideshows below work as stand-alone lectures about their respective topic, and each platform provides a variety of options. For example, one printer may charge more for color pages, while the other might charge more for black and white - so take a look at both if you'd like and experiment to find which platform best suits your needs. 

You can also supplement this workshop with the Great Courses series How to Publish Your Book available through Kanopy - a streaming service free to use with your NBPL library card.

Feel free to ask our reference staff for help or contact the creator of this guide, Librarian Alex Jenkins, directly via email at ajenkins@newportbeachca.gov.