David O'Boyle's Universe…

Actual Forward: By me. Because it’s Self-Publishing. So that’s how it Should be.

A cartoon image in a bold black outline style, depicting the backs of an anthropomorphized computer and a grown man, both as silhouettes, holding hands and joyfully skipping down a brightly lit city street at sunset. The scene is framed from a slightly low angle, emphasizing their playful gait. The silhouettes are detailed enough to suggest their forms, with the computer's silhouette hinting at a screen or monitor shape. The street is suggested by simple lines and a few subtly rendered buildings in the background. The image purpose is to show that writing a children's book and self-publishing it will require you to interact with computers, and in a lot of cases, at least moving forward, that will be with AI and ChatGPT.
People like to tell me ’bout my best friend. Image rendered using Canva AI.

Self-publishing is tough. It’s often unprofitable. It’s also brutally beautiful.

Nice alliteration.

Not bad for a human, huh ChatGPT?

Maybe us two-legged folk can still do a little writing after all. Enough to avoid AI altogether though? I don’t think so. As the little guys in the literary space, self-publishing authors need all the help they can get. If that’s the case, then we might as well get it from a very cheap, very smart, very fast big guy.

Ready for Your Come-to-the-Computer-Moment?

This is a cartoon image of a computer embracing a man who is smaller than him. It is a metaphor for how easy AI is and how you want to use AI as your friend as a self publisher because the little guy needs big friends.
Little Guys now have Big Friends. Image rendered by Canva AI.

Consider this: Using my trusty Canva AI, I literally just made the image adjacent image captioned “Little Guys now have Big Friends.” If all you need if a few illustrations all that is stopping you from doing the same thing is a click of the mouse, assuming you use a mouse, and don’t rely on that poor carpal tunnel pointer finger like I do. If you want more than a few illustrations and the capability to do a ton more stuff relevant to bookmaking and general graphic design, sell enough crypto to manage the $15 a month subscription service.1

One thing about children’s books or illustrated books in general is that they give you tons of marketing material to work with that is your own and can be repurposed for other uses. These images are taken from Safkinsop: Dealings with a very Dangerous Vampire, an illustrated epic poem I wrote for Halloween last year. It is my first attempt at a meme. I used a Canva format blank template. Originally I was going to use a template image but got concerns about whether I would have to read the Canva licensing policy. Rather than read the fine print I just said let me make one with my own stuff. Illustrations by my illustrator, Tan Ngo.
This was the meme that was template in Canva that I was going to use. Note that I came up with the words, it had something on there before in Spanish as the default. For purposes of intellectual property considerations, you would want to look at the terms of use for such templates. There could be a distinction between being able to USE and being able to SELL. Put differently, it is possible that you have permission to use but not permission to sell. The interesting questions would be, regardless of license, whether this image has been changed enough by your words on the meme to make it something completely different altogether, and then therefore something you could sell, the license provisions notwithstanding.

Note on When Things Get a Lil’ Spammy ‘Round Heere

(NOTE: could I link to apple music to let somone here the song by Chingy because that is what made me think of this caption. Then the question is, “what benefit is it to link to Chingy song beyond just giving the reader a funnel to a fun song! Answer in footnote for now until I reorganize this.2 Also note that I can use these as a side-by-side comparison in a social to promote engagement to say what meme is better. That also will subtly promote Safkinsop! My guy! I mean my Vampire! Now watch this plugin. Understand that this would be a wholesale purchase and I would make $1.00 commission. MORE ON HOW TO DO THIS LATER using the INGRAM ecommerce feature. All you need to know now is that Safkinsop is expensive to make. And expensive for you to buy IF I wanted to make any decent margin.

Safkinsop: Dealings with a Very Dangerous Vampire: ….
O’Boyle, David and Ngo, Tan

DISCLOSURE: Let’s then make this very clear. This document serves a dual purpose.

While it’s designed to help writers, it’s also part of my effort to drive traffic to my website—so people will discover and buy my books, and hopefully, generate some additional income along the way. This may involve linking to other webpages or allowing advertisements on my site, but only if they’re genuinely useful or promote my own books and products.

I’m still figuring out how to navigate things like Google AdSense and similar platforms—they can be tricky to manage—but once I start earning some revenue, I’ll share insights so you can make some too.

If you want to survive in self-publishing, understanding and sharing the behind-the-scenes process can be just as valuable, if not more so, than the actual products you create. There are many aspiring self-publishers hungry for this kind of guidance, even if the number of readers for the material itself is smaller. Don’t get discouraged—this is actually great news.

I’ll refine this language in future drafts to make it more encouraging, I promise. And you might find that the marketing side of publishing becomes as rewarding as the writing itself. For me, exploring the entire publishing process beyond just writing has opened up new passions I hadn’t expected.

Back to the Canva Stuff: With the Canva subscription I can make dozens and dozens more images than that. Come to think of it. I’m going to make another one right now, just to flaunt how easy (and fun) it is, as well as to justify the cost of Canva’s service. Remember, self-publishers likely have to work on shoestring budgets. Spend where you need it wisely. Look for the freebies (like Bing image creator!) Also alwass look to monetize, even in places where you spend- in my case Canva.3

When Chat gets moody, like when I don’t put alt text in an image box. Image rendered by Canva AI.

Disregard the second image. That was just a flex (more image flexes to follow). Returning to my point, not long ago, making an image like that meant emails, invoices, contracts, and the occasional awkward exchange about artistic vision.

Not anymore. Let’s break it down.

To start, if I didn’t know an artist that was available and in my price bracket, I’d have to find one that could make this image for me that was. I’d accomplish this either on a gig website or on a paying job board like CRAIGSLIST (good for local traction). The efforts involved were different. Unless you have a really desirable gig you have to hunt for artists on a gig website. On CRAIGSLIST you are the hunted. Both take up time in their own ways.

In either case, a few days and $25 to $100 dollars later I’d have my drawing. Add on a little more time if it was a $25 fee to a local artist. In that case I’d expect some whining about exploitation coupled with expletives. At that point I liked them more and would tip. Then I’d probably hire them again.

Networking is everything.

By contrast, overseas is usually faster and cheaper, and the dollar goes farther there. There’s also less yelling about exploitation—though ironically, more of it may be happening behind the scenes. Careful about replacing their lack of yelling with your own. It’s easier to be tough when an ocean divides you from a well-deserved slap in the face.

Better to turn the other cheek. And not when they are trying to slap you to make them miss. I mean beforehand. The reason for this is that reputation matters A LOT for authors, especially children’s book authors. Better to write about trolls in your stories. Don’t be one.4

This is an image of a troll at a computer keyboard. It is meant to warn about not being an internet troll, as it part of the point of this intro to the guide.
Internet trolls have a declining market share of the self-publishing market. Image rendered by Canva AI (in literally two seconds).

Back to the Bigger Issues

Where were we. Currency conversion? International labor rights? Company values with respect to worker compensation? Localism v. globalism? Proper, not to mention ethical and legal use of AI in art5?

Quick note on process: I don’t use ChatGPT or AI AT ALL for any of my fiction. It’s not about ethics or legal concerns—I just want my stories to be fully human. I do use it for the dryer business stuff, you know, like this.

To think, all of those concepts to consider, all deriving from a silly picture(s) of a giant robot standing next to a man that I don’t even like all that much. Get used to it. Children’s books contain a lot of silly pictures. When you consider marketing, adult books do too, though depending on your genre, they might not be so silly. These issues will arise in self-publishing.

And they are solvable.

And they are interesting.

And they will teach you about yourself and your values in theory versus in practice. In other words, it’s easy to hold steady to a position when you are distanced questions in practice that actively challenge them. Questions like :

Should I make my book merchandise overseas to get greater margins or stick with a locally made, eco-friendly version that could actually lose me money.

This is an image of a dog running with a fire hose in its mouth. The purpose of the image is to show that in self-publishing you have to run towards the noise like a firefighter.
Some things are black and white. Image rendered by Canva AI.

I’m not saying you’ll go from a tree hugger to oil man while partaking in the self-publishing quest, but you may see yourself changing, or at least appreciating other perspectives. To me, that alone is a good reason to embark on the journey. Sure, as artists this may sound some alarms. I mean, you’ve spent a lifetime trying to avoid all that capitalist yuck.

Time to be a firefighter. Run towards the noise.

Capitalism Slithers in.

Unless you can pay someone to remove you from it. But that’s not really the self-publishing way. Ironically, it may actually be more of the traditional publishing way. Theoretically and practically, self-publishers enjoy the DIY path. They also tend to reach that path with limited resources. What does that mean? It means capitalism is coming through your door like an in-law at Christmas…whether you like it or not.

Don’t worry. All of this is like that non-venomous snake in your garden. It seems scarier than it is. Handle it with care and it’s mostly harmless.

The rest of this guide outlines my self-publishing process. Forgive me up front, it’s constantly evolving, always shedding its skin. Really, again with the snake stuff?6 What I’m trying to say is this: while my points will not be universally true, they are honest, and true to me, until further notice, at which point I will do the whole snake-shedding evolving thing.

So give me a little grace. Give snakes some grace too. Ever since Genesis they’ve been cast as the super-villain. That’s a lot to carry when you have no legs.

An image of a snake carrying an anvil. The snake has legs. This image has a purpose to show that AI has flaws.
As smart as AI is, it responded to my prompt to design a snake carrying an anvil on its back with this image. Notice the legs. Let that be a reminder that AI isn’t perfect. You hear that, CHAT! Image rendered in Canva AI in two seconds.

If you want to know more, come along. This (in-progress) guide walks through what I’ve learned—creatively, financially, ethically, and emotionally—while self-publishing my books from scratch.

Or maybe you just want individual help with your own project?
I offer self-publishing services for writers who want to publish their work independently. From planning to production, I can help you navigate the process and avoid the pitfalls I’ve already been through.

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