Every good poem deserves to be read and appreciated.

After months or years of writing your masterpiece, it’s time to let the world read it.

Luckily, self-publishing your work lets you skip the hard and tedious process of finding and working with a publisher.

With so many tools and self-help platforms online, publishing a poetry book has become an incredibly easy and rewarding experience.

One reliable online resource is the Kindle Direct Publishing Success Guide which gives you access to ideas, instructions, and unique tools for customizing your content.

Before we dig deeper into that, let’s cover the steps on how to self publish a poetry book.

How to Self Publish a Poetry Book: 6 Steps

Publishing a collection of poems is a great accomplishment for any writer.

Yet, it can be difficult to get poetry published since the traditional publishing industry is highly competitive.

Even though you have really beautiful poems, it can take months or even years before you land a publication.

One reason is that most publishers are very specific about the niche they want to publish.

Another is that publishing companies receive a lot of submissions, making it challenging for authors for their work to be noticed.

The good thing is that you don’t have to take the traditional route to publish your work.

You don’t even have to be a best-selling author to get your book published.

Follow these steps to publish your poetry book independently.

1. Organize Your Book of Poetry

The publishing process for independent authors begins with organizing their poetry collection.

Essentially, you need to be sure that your poetry is ready for publishing.

A poetry book typically contains between 30 and 100 poems, but it isn’t simply a collection of poems sandwiched under one book cover.

The best books contain poems that are in conversation with one another or are unified by a specific theme or writing style.

In short, you have to curate a collection.

Doing so will make advertising and selling your book much easier as you have a certain theme or vision to pitch.

Some good signs that your collection of poetry is good to go are:

You’re Getting Good Feedback

Consider showing your piece to other people, such as friends, relatives, or even beta readers.

They can give you helpful feedback about your work.

You’re Confident With Your Collection

You can always tell if your book is ready to get published.

Find that inner voice telling you that you’re satisfied with your creation.

You Know Who and What It’s For

The best poets write poems to deliver a message close to readers’ hearts. 

2. Edit and Format Your Work

Editing a poetry collection is an important step before publishing.

You may choose to do it yourself or hire a professional editor who will provide helpful feedback to improve your book.

Next, you need to format your poetry collection.

Since most poems are so short, it’s important to pay attention to the style and presentation of your piece.

You can accomplish this through interior formatting, which an essential step for the book design process.

Many authors face various challenges when it comes to formatting their collections.

If you struggle with designing, you may consider working with a professional formatter.

Many online vendors offer formatting options in a wide variety of sizes.

Alternatively, you can use online tools that allow you to format your collection while maintaining full control over your project.

Interior formatting involves the use of white space, images, font styles, and alignment.

Take note that the design of each page can add or detract from the value of your book so give effort on this step.

Once you’re done with this, it’s time to jump into the cover design.

3. Design the Cover

Your cover is the biggest marketing element of your poetry book.

Investing time and money on a quality, attractive, and contemporary cover for your poetry collection is a good practice.

It’s okay to brainstorm and make a draft of the cover images before completing the interior formatting.

However, you should not complete the cover until your interior design is finished.

Doing so ensures that you already have an actual page count, and it won’t affect the spine dimensions of your book.

It’s only when you identify the final page count that you can determine the cover’s sizing.

On another note, leave some room for finishing touches.

Once you’re satisfied with the interior formatting, finalizing a more cohesive book cover becomes much easier.

When brainstorming cover ideas, consider your poetry book’s overall theme and what images and colors best describe that theme.

Maybe you’re thinking about a specific image, an artwork, or something more abstract.

You could hire an illustrator to put together your design ideas.

A book designer can help you create an attractive cover that best reflects the theme of your poetry collection.

However, if you choose to work with a professional, be sure to prioritize and finalize everything in your interior design and content.

Even though most designers will allow for post-design corrections, they usually do it for a fee. 

4. Choose a Publishing Platform

A crucial step when learning how to self publish a poetry book is finding a publishing platform.

What are the best places to self-publish a poetry book online?

Your first option is Amazon, through its Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) service.

KDP allows independent authors to upload their work, design their book cover, and earn up to 70 percent of royalties on sales.

Kindle Direct Publishing Success Guide

If you choose to publish your book on Amazon, you might find this guide extremely helpful.

It contains niche ideas, keywords, low-content book ideas, and custom interiors that are updated monthly.

Thus, you will know the trending topics for each month and, from there, plan on when to start promoting your poetry book.

The KDP Success Guide provides six custom interiors in all major formats, so creating a book cover and design is much easier.

Plus, the guide includes an actionable bonus section that covers helpful topics like how to fill out your Amazon keyword boxes.

You also get an opportunity to connect with other writers and network with them.

Lastly, the creative concepts change each month, depending on trending topics.

Personal Blog Posts

Another good place to publish your poetry collection is through your blog.

Creating a blog where you regularly post and publish your writing is a great way to build your poetry community of readers.

However, it takes time to build a following, but it’s definitely worth the effort.

 Social Media Platforms

Websites, apps, and social media platforms are well-known self-publishing or book marketing methods.

The only caveat is most traditional publishers won’t be willing to publish your book once you’ve published your writing on these platforms.

That said, if you prefer a traditional book publisher, make sure to do that first.

If self-publishing through your website or social media page, consider announcing it through your newsletters and encourage your readers to subscribe.

E-book Publishing

Lastly, make an e-book.

The rise of e-books makes self-publishing poetry a lot easier.

Many independent authors create e-books using a dedicated online platform with customizable layouts and designs.

Also, many self-publishing platforms offer e-book publishing as their cheapest publishing service.

5. Establish Your Online Presence

Now let’s talk more about the importance of your website and social media in self-publishing poetry.

Essentially, you want an audience interested in your work as these people will be your primary buyers.

Social media networking sites, especially Instagram, are great places to showcase your poetry collection and build a following.

Another good option is Tumblr which is perfect for poems as it is designed for publishing short posts.

Since Tumbler has many different posting options, including videos, quotes, and images, you can get creative at presenting your work to your target audience.

6. Promote Your Poetry Book

The internet is the best place to market self-published books.

Before your book launch, you want to build a community of followers that will be interested to read your poems.

Here are some of the best ways to market your self-published poetry book:

Submit Individual Poems to Literary Journals and Magazines.

Getting one of your writings published in a journal or magazine is an excellent way to gain exposure and build your reputation.

Make sure to check the specific poetry submission guidelines of the literary press or magazine, as each of them may have unique submission criteria.

For instance, some may require you to send a query letter, a book synopsis, or a sample of your work.

Join Online Poetry Forums.

Join online communities where you can meet poetry lovers and promote your book of poems.

You can also connect with other poets via social media platforms.

Set up an Amazon Author Page.

Get your book on Amazon if you’re book isn’t there yet.

Then, create a personalized author’s page where you showcase your personality, interests, writing experience, and why you write poetry.

Make sure to include an RSS feed for your website or blog, post videos, or a bio.

Let the World See Your Work

At this point, your poems are ready to be read and appreciated by the world.

Self-publishing a poetry book is not always easy, but it’s a great alternative to traditional publishing.

It gives you more creative freedom and control over your finished book.

Again, start by organizing your poetry collection, edit and format the book interior, design the cover, and choose a publishing platform.

Finally, make sure to get your book on Amazon using the Kindle Direct Publishing Success Guide to reach a bigger audience.