HOT Networking: Become An Author – self-publishing with Fi & Books

Meet Fi. Self-published book author who has officially been there and done that (with picture books).

Self-publishing, it’s a tricky business. I learned the hard way – by trial and error.

Many moons ago (approx eight years) I had this clear vision: to write and publish a children’s picture book I could take into schools and inspire kids to love reading. I also planned to make a bob or two by selling my books wherever I could… if possible.

I wrote the story, illustrated the pictures (luckily I’m a graphic designer so I could do that bit myself!), got my first book printed and obtained the essential ISBN code I needed for my book to officially exist and be sold in bookshops.

I (bravely!?) decided that I didn’t want to commit to a publisher because I didn’t want to sacrifice the majority of my earnings to the commission fees. Back then I didn’t realise that self-publishing would be such a good decision! I’ve gone on to sell 10,000+ copies of my books mainly via author2school author visits. I now have four books in my Once-Upon-A-Slime series and I still sell thousands every year – all without having a publisher!

If any of this sounds familiar… I promise you can do it too! I can help and I have a trusty team of lovely freelance people including editors and talented picture book illustrators who are experts in all the useful bits. And we are a huge part of the author2school team to get your books sold in large quantities.

Event format:

08:00 – 08:30 – arrival and open networking

08:30 – 09:00 – 60 second pitches

09:00 – 09:30 – presentation from Fi

09:30 – 10:00 – Q&A and close