Are you an aspiring writer? Do you have a manuscript just sitting there, wondering what you should do with it? Or maybe you’ve got a few chapters written, and can’t wait to get it out to your readers before you type “The End”. Either way, you’re probably wondering how to get your book self- published online. But worry not, dear authors. Fictionate.Me can help make your dreams of becoming a published author come true!
Fictionate.Me is a self-publishing fiction platform that allows you, the writer, to publish your own book for free! You don’t have to hire a costly team to get your book out there or wait for years to get published with a big publishing house. You can literally be a published author within a few minutes!
Keep reading for some of the amenities we offer writers here on Fictionate.Me.
Publish your book online—at no charge to you.
On Fictionate.Me, you can upload your finished manuscript or your work-in-progress, chapter by chapter. Web serials are also popular on this platform as well, so you can post episodes as often as you want to keep your readers happy.The best thing? You can publish for free!
You don’t need a costly literary agent, and you don’t have to chase down a big publisher to get your beloved novel out there to your readers. There’s also no ISBN to register. You don’t even have to hire a cover artist or editor (unless you want to).
On Fictionate’s platform, upload your manuscript in a matter of minutes, whether it’s completed or not!
Fictionate has its own on-site editor software, so you can write right in your browser or copy and paste your manuscript from Microsoft Word or Google Docs. You can also add copyright-free images or your own artwork into your book as well, so you can make your book a visual delight to your readers if you so choose.
Maybe the best part? Keeping all the rights to your work and all your royalties.
Create your own audiobooks
Fictionate also boasts a new audiobook markup feature in the on-site editor, so you can make your own immersive audiobooks, at no extra charge to you or your readers! If you don’t have the time or desire to create a full-on audiobook, you can add AI narration (also free!) to your books with a simple toggle switch. It’s that easy! The addition of audiobooks will make your novels more inclusive for all, including readers with disabilities, thereby increasing your readership.
Keep your 100% of your royalties
They are your royalties, after all. While other platforms charge up to 30% commission to publish with them, Fictionate.Me doesn’t take a commission from their writers. The only fee that will come out of your royalties is the charge from the site’s payment provider Stripe, which is 2.9% + 30¢. The rest of your royalties are all yours!
Once your novel is uploaded (even if it’s just one chapter), you can start earning immediately!
Stay in control of your creative vision
When you’re thinking about how to get your book published online, you might consider a big publisher first. It’s how a lot of authors traditionally get published, after all. But less than 10% of authors actually get a deal with a publishing house, meaning your dreams can be dashed before you even get started on your publishing journey. And it can take up to two years between querying and publishing, and who wants to wait that long??
With big publishers, teams of editors can slice and dice your book until it’s unrecognizable. Your book cover might end up a disaster in someone else’s hands. The publishers will set a price for your book as well, even if you think it’s too much. And you’ll have to wait until you have a complete manuscript to start publishing.
If you publish on Fictionate.Me, you are in complete control. You won’t have to change anything about your book if you don’t want to, and you can work on your own timeline—not someone else’s.
You can design your own book cover (see below for tips on this) and upload it, so you can save yourself a pricey book cover artist and create a design you love for your book.
You also control the price of your book. You set your price from free to $9.99, whatever you think is fair. You can even make every other chapter free and every other chapter paid if you want. You choose if your readers pay by the entire book, pay by chapter, or sign up for a monthly subscription. The pay model for your readers is entirely up to you!
As a Fictionate author, you also have the ability to set a rating for your book in the same way shows and movies are rated. Ratings range from G (General Audience) to NC-17 (No one under 17) so you can help guide your readers to appropriate books, which is great for parents navigating the site for their tweens and teens.
You can also offer free “preview” chapters so you can draw your readers in even more. While you don’t have to add free chapters, readers appreciate being able to preview a book before they spend their hard-earned cash. Some authors offer one free chapter, but the average is usually three. If you publish with a major publisher, you’d never be able to offer this perk on your terms!
Be a part of a community
One great aspect about Fictionate that writers love is the sense of community on the platform.
Your readers can leave comments on your book landing pages, so you can interact directly with your fanbase. Readers love to be engaged with their favorite writers on the platform, and getting feedback is essential to you as an author, so it’s a win-win! This is especially helpful if you’re uploading your novel chapter by chapter, so it can help drive the direction of your writing if you get stuck or need inspiration.
You can also get to know other writers by following their social media pages or Patreons, so you can get tips and tricks from other self-published authors just like you!
The Fictionate team also supports their writers with excellent customer service, so you are never alone in your writing journey.
Grow your audience
Fictionate helps you grow your audience, even if you are just starting out.
Keep writing and publishing to get your books into the top charts like Top Paid, Consistent Writers, or Trending. The more you publish, and the more often you publish, means your work will stay relevant on the top charts, getting you even more readers. Then you can transfer your readers from one book to another!
The Fictionate social media team will also promote your books across their socials, helping you grow your audience even more. We also partner with Top Web Fiction to get our authors’ works boosted to help get you more exposure.
You can also add your Fictionate novel links to your Patreon, and add your Patreon link to your Fictionate profile to also help grow your fan base!
Tips and tricks for being successful on Fictionate.Me:
- Just do it. Get that novel out there, even it’s just one chapter. The journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step, or so the saying goes.
- Be a reader. Read other novels on the site, especially ones that are Trending and Top Paid. What are they doing right to stay on top and get the most readers?
- Be engaged. Interact with your favorite authors. Even as a writer, you want to interact as a reader as well to get a sense of the community on the site as a whole. Also, interacting with other writers will help inspire you and build your writer’s circle.
- Check the trending tags on the home page. Try to publish something in one of those genres. For instance, a historical fiction novel might not do as well as say fantasy, which is the top-trending tag at the moment.
- Make a book cover that pops. I know we all say “don’t judge a book by its cover”, but let’s be honest, we totally do. Great book art is what immediately catches our eye and makes us want to read the dust jacket. A nicely made book cover will go very far in getting readers to click on your novel! Here are some free websites for creating your own professional book cover for free:
- Sweat the title. Your title is the first thing readers see, besides the cover, so you want a title that clearly states what your book is about.
- Write a great book synopsis. After you grab your reader’s eye with a catchy title and beautiful cover, you’ll want to write a clear, descriptive synopsis of what your novel is about. This is the clincher in enticing your readers to buy your book. Unsure about how to condense your grand idea into one paragraph? Click here to read some tips on Master Class on writing a great synopsis for your book.
- Don’t forget to add tagswhen you upload your novel. This is essential in helping you get in the top-rated lists, as well as helping steer readers to your book when they search for a specific genre. But don’t overdo the tags either. Five to seven tags is plenty.
- Make some chapters free. On Fictionate, you have the ability to grant your readers access to free chapters. You will get more readers if you offer one or more free chapters, especially if you leave them on a cliffhanger! Then they’ll be more than willing to purchase your entire book.
- Add links. Don’t forget to add your Fictionate links to your Patreon, and vice versa, as mentioned above!
- Promote your work on socials. This increases your readership even more.
We hope this guide will help you learn how to get your book published online here with us at Fictionate.Me. If you need more in-depth advice or inspiration, read some more of our helpful articles here on our blog!
How to Publish Your Book on Fictionate.Me: A Step-by-Step Guide
Can Reading Non-Fiction Help You Write Fiction?
Making the Leap from Reader to Author
How To Overcome Writer’s Block