You Hit ‘Publish.’ What’s Next?
The Many Lives Your Book Can Live After Publication
Publishing a book can feel like crossing the finish line. You worked hard, you made it through editing, and you hit that “publish” button. But here’s the truth many writers don’t expect: Publishing is not the end. It’s just the beginning of a new phase in your book’s journey.
Many authors focus so much on writing and launching their book that they forget what happens after it’s out in the world. But if you want your book to find more readers, gain reviews, and keep growing, you can’t just let it sit on the shelf and hope. You can give your book a second life through new formats, new audiences, and updates that make a big difference. Sometimes, a fresh cover or a new edition is all it takes to open new doors. Other times, it’s about reaching out to a new reader group or republishing your work in a different place to keep sales moving.
Keep the Buzz Going
It’s easy to think once your book is out in the world, it can take care of itself. Some authors believe that publishing the next book is the only way to promote, with the first book becoming a backlist option that relies on the sales of the second. Although it’s true that having more books helps, your first novel still deserves attention.
Books often sell best when readers see them more than once. Marketing’s “rule of seven” reminds authors that one post or ad is not enough; your audience must see your book many times before they’re likely to take action. That’s why a consistent, low-stress promotion is key. This doesn’t mean posting about your book every day. Instead, plant small seeds of interest with readers each month. Share a short quote from your book on social media, write a blog post about a theme in your story, or join a podcast as a guest to talk about your writing process, about your favorite book genre, or about yourself as an author.
You can celebrate little milestones, such as when your book gets its twenty-fifth or hundredth review, or on the anniversary of its launch. These are great opportunities to remind your audience that your book is out there or, even better, to connect with new readers who may not have seen it the first time around.
If you’re just starting with marketing, don’t try everything at once. Choose one method, and do it well. Once it feels comfortable, you can add something else. A slow and steady approach will help you keep going without getting overwhelmed.
Pro Tip: Set up a twelve-month content calendar the week after your book launches. Plan just one small activity per month, like a post, interview, or giveaway. It’s enough to keep your book visible, and it gives you something to build on. Consistency is more important than doing everything at once.
Explore New Formats and Mediums
Online publishing platforms, such as Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Draft2Digital, or Lulu, give authors a range of options for publishing their books in either ebook or paperback formats. But readers have different preferences. Some enjoy listening to audiobooks while commuting. Others may need large print for easier reading. By offering your book in more than one format, you make it easier for readers to discover and enjoy your work.
Audiobooks are becoming more popular every year. A survey released by the Audiobook Publishers Association shows that audiobook sales grew by 13 percent in 2024, with 99 percent of the revenues generated by digital audiobooks. You can record your book yourself if you have the right setup or hire a narrator to bring your story to life. Audiobooks can also help you reach a different audience, especially those who are too busy to sit down and read.
Creating a large-print edition can be helpful for older readers or those with vision issues. The setup is simple and often very similar to that used for other print versions. To get a large print book template, download a standard book template from a self-publishing service like Lulu, KDP, or BookBaby, then increase the font size to size 18. You may also need to select a larger trim size, as larger fonts can significantly increase page count, which affects pricing and maximum book specifications.
If you’ve written a complete series, bundling your ebooks into an omnibus is another smart move. This encourages readers to buy more than one book at a time and can help you run special promotions. Some readers prefer box sets or to buy a group of books of a similar genre together to save overall. Having an omnibus available helps you capture that market and gives you the chance to offer boxes at a discount to promote the full set.
You can also try publishing your works-in-progress in serialized form on platforms like Patreon or Substack. These websites let readers follow your story in short episodes, which can build excitement and keep them coming back for the next installment, plus provide extra income between releases. As a bonus, readers may buy your completed book after it’s been published to keep it in their private library.
If you’re not sure where to start, begin with just one new format. Track how it performs, and decide from there whether readers are interested and which additional formats your audience may prefer.
Reprints, Rebranding, and Relaunches
Sometimes, a good book doesn’t catch on the first time around. That doesn’t mean it failed. It may need a fresh look or a better introduction to find the right readers. Even for titles that sold well on their first launch, rebranding and relaunching a book can give it a second chance to build an audience and promote sales.
When deciding whether to relaunch a book, first inspect your book’s cover, title, and blurb. Do they convey what kind of story it is? If you write Cozy Mysteries, does your cover match what readers expect in the genre? If your title sounds poetic but your book is a Thriller, it might confuse potential readers. Shifts in cover design or marketing trends within a genre can also make a difference in whether your book sells well.
Pro Tip: If your book hasn’t gained traction after a year, line it up next to the top ten sellers in your genre. Ask yourself whether your book looks like it belongs with the other books in the genre. If it doesn’t, it may be time for an update to help it stand out but still fit in.
If you decide your book could use a makeover in one category, treat the update as a complete relaunch. This is your chance to fix anything that might hold your story back. Maybe you’ve gotten reader feedback that your blurb is confusing. Maybe the cover art looks dated or doesn’t match the genre anymore. Perhaps you would like to make minor changes to the text. Consider each piece of your book closely to decide whether it’s still the best way to present your book to audiences.
A relaunch often works best when paired with a goal. Do you want more reviews? Do you want to reach a new group of readers? Plan your book’s relaunch with this in mind, and promote it with all the excitement and energy you would a new title. Consider planning a small event around it, like a social media campaign or a free book giveaway. That way, your relaunch has a reason to get people’s attention. Readers will still get excited about a book that feels new or is new to them, even if the first edition is a few years old.
New Markets, New Audiences
Your book doesn’t have to stay in one place. There are many ways to introduce your work to new readers, even long after it’s been published.
Some literary magazines, online journals, and anthologies accept published work. This is a chance to give a scene, chapter, or short story from your book a second life and put it in front of a new audience. Be sure to check the rights you hold. If you’re self-published, you have full control and can reprint at will. If you’ve worked with a publisher, check your contract to find out whether you can publish excerpts with other outlets.
Pro Tip: I prefer to use Medium as a platform for reprints. If you qualify as a partner, you can earn money on your reprinted work by the view, but even if you don’t qualify, you can still share your work and place a link to your book at no cost.
If your book has appeal in other cultures, you may have an opportunity to sell the foreign rights for a translated version. You can research foreign publishers or work with an agent who specializes in rights sales. Another option is to hire a translator and publish the foreign language editions as an indie author. Book distributors such as Draft2Digital can easily distribute your translated book to markets all over the world.
Pro Tip: Do not rely on automated translations; hire a human translator who understands the nuances of the language you wish to target. Otherwise, you risk having inadvertent meanings or mistranslations crop into your work. The additional steps can take time and add to your expenses, but the extra care you take allows you to open the door to new income and new fans with confidence.
You can also reach new audiences for your books by utilizing your smaller writing projects. If you write poetry or short stories on the side, you can use those to lead readers back to your book. Publishing in themed anthologies or popular blogs gives you more exposure and builds your name in different circles. Add information about your other titles to your byline to let new readers know where they can find more of your work.
Pro Tip: Start small by submitting a short story, poem, or book excerpt to a magazine that accepts reprints. Use tools like Duotrope or Submission Grinder to find matches. Every new publication can guide fresh readers back to your principal work, one piece at a time.
Your Book Still Matters
Not every book takes off the moment it’s published. That does not mean your story failed. Sometimes it just needs more time or the right reader to discover it.
Publishing is an ongoing relationship between you, your work, and the people for whom it was written. It’s okay to return to a book months or even years later to improve it, relaunch it, or introduce it to a new audience. Your book can grow with you, and you can grow with your book. The most important thing you can do as an author is to stay open to new opportunities and remember your book still matters.
Wendy Van Camp
