Literary UX | UX by Mike

Self-Publishing Through a UX Lens

Turning a personal writing project into a case study in accessibility, iteration, and user-centered design

Overview

This project documents the complete independent creation of a series of literary horror novels. It includes story development, editing, cover design, formatting, and publication across digital, print, and large-print formats. The scope spans both the creative and production sides of authorship, with later phases incorporating accessibility-focused revisions informed by UX principles.

Problem Statement

The goal was to create a reading experience that worked across formats and was accessible to a wider range of readers, including those with visual or cognitive impairments. Most self-publishing tools offer limited support for accessibility, and genre authors rarely address it directly. This project treated accessibility as a core requirement, not a secondary concern, despite the constraints of solo authorship and platform limitations.

Users & Audience

The primary audience was adult readers of horror, gothic fiction, and vampire literature. These were readers drawn to character-driven stories with darker themes, similar to the work of Anne Rice or Stephen King. As the project evolved, the scope of that audience expanded to include readers with visual impairments, cognitive differences, or chronic fatigue. Accessibility became a core consideration after identifying the lack of large-print options in horror, which directly influenced the design and formatting of the final editions.

Role & Responsibilities

This was a fully independent project. I wrote the novels, handled multiple rounds of editing (including one pass with a professional editor), and designed the book covers and interior layout myself.

Writing & Editing
Drafted in Scrivener, self-edited with Grammarly and Hemingway App, and received professional editing and critique from Michael Garrett of Manuscript Critique, Stephen King’s first editor and publisher.
Design & Production
Custom cover design in Photoshop and Illustrator with hand-lettered title typography. Interior layout adapted for standard print using Kindle Create, and redesigned for large-print editions using Scrivener and Adobe Illustrator.

“[Mike's] writing skills are quite strong. In fact, I’d say [his] basic mechanical writing skills are among the best I’ve seen.”

—Michael Garrett, Manuscript Critique

Scope & Constraints

I had no formal training in fiction or publishing. I wrote while working full time, relying on self-guided research and trial and error. The first draft came in at 240,000 words, which I later learned was far beyond what’s typical for a debut novel. Several publishing experts recommended splitting it into two books, but doing so would have weakened the story. The structure and pacing depended on it being experienced as a single work. I revised the manuscript 14 times and eventually brought it down to 140,000 words.

There were also technical limitations, especially with Kindle Create and Amazon KDP. Both platforms made it difficult to control fine details in layout, spacing, and typography across formats. Large-print formatting required workarounds to preserve readability without breaking pagination or structure.

But the most significant constraint was not knowing the rules. That lack of structure allowed me to work without hesitation or second-guessing.

Orson Welles once said of Citizen Kane, “I didn’t know what you couldn’t do. I didn’t deliberately set out to invent anything. It just seemed to me, why not?”

That truly resonated with me. Not knowing what I was supposed to avoid gave me room to figure things out on my own terms.

The Work Behind the Words

From messy drafts to accessible design—how I wrote, revised, and rebuilt a book series from the ground up

Planning the Story

The project began with a structured outlining approach known as the Snowflake Method, which builds from a one-sentence summary into progressively deeper plot and character development. This provided a clear foundation for drafting without introducing unnecessary complexity upfront.

Drafting & Iteration

The initial manuscript reached 240,000 words. After conducting research and receiving expert feedback, the manuscript was revised fourteen times and reduced to approximately 140,000 words. Revisions focused on pacing, structure, tone, and continuity.

Cover Design & Visual Testing

In 2014, prior to the first edition’s release, I conducted an informal A/B-style test across four distinct cover designs. The covers were shared through a poll on my personal website and promoted via social media. While the red-cover design received the most votes, it later proved ineffective. The title became unreadable when reduced to thumbnail size, limiting its visibility on digital storefronts.

Although the testing was not statistically rigorous, it produced several useful design insights:

Offering too many options created decision fatigue. This aligns with UX principles such as Hick’s Law and the Paradox of Choice.
Design effectiveness varied depending on context, particularly when comparing full-size covers to how they appeared in digital marketplaces.
User preference did not always match performance, highlighting the difference between subjective feedback and practical usability.

These observations informed future visual decisions and reinforced the importance of testing in real-world contexts.

Feedback & Beta Testing

Prior to publication, I recruited a group of approximately fifteen beta readers with a shared interest in horror and vampire fiction. The group included a mix of adult readers across genders and was selected to reflect the intended audience.

Each participant reviewed early drafts of the first two novels and provided qualitative feedback on pacing, tone, clarity, and character development. Input from female readers was especially valuable, identifying areas where characters lacked nuance or relied on common stereotypes. That feedback led to revised scenes, adjusted dialogue, and reworked character arcs that improved overall cohesion and reader engagement.

The process reflected core UX practices: recruiting representative users, identifying friction points, and iterating based on direct feedback. After the revisions, several readers followed up with unsolicited praise, noting stronger emotional clarity and more believable character behavior. Many later submitted public reviews on Amazon and Goodreads, helping validate the work and support visibility in a crowded marketplace.

“The most valuable feedback came from the women in the group. Their insight helped me move beyond the surface-level archetypes I hadn’t realized I was relying on. They challenged me to write with greater emotional clarity and to treat my characters as people, not patterns.”

User Personas (Narrative Roles as Functional Models)

During early development, I created detailed character profiles to clarify each major character’s goals, emotional patterns, and behavioral tendencies. This approach functioned similarly to user personas in UX design, allowing me to anticipate how a character would respond within the structure of the narrative.

The exercise improved narrative consistency and helped streamline revisions. It kept character actions aligned with established traits, supported stronger plot logic, and reduced the risk of introducing emotional or behavioral inconsistencies. Like personas in product design, these profiles grounded decision-making in defined characteristics rather than assumptions.

Each character was developed with the same clarity and intention used when creating user personas in product design. These profiles guided story structure, emotional tone, and pacing by grounding narrative decisions in consistent, character-driven logic.

Protagonist

Ayden Bauer

Primary viewpoint character. Restless, curious, and often overwhelmed by circumstances he struggles to understand. His search for truth initiates the plot, but his arc is shaped by internal conflict. He navigates the tension between logic and instinct, resistance and change. Ayden does not remain a passive observer. He is changed by the events around him and, over time, begins to change them.

Catalyst

Ella Bauer

Emotional anchor and intuitive guide. Ella is perceptive, grounded, and emotionally intelligent. She often recognizes shifts in tone or motive before others do. Her presence adds nuance to Ayden’s path, functioning as both a quiet stabilizer and a source of friction. She influences key narrative choices through steady, consistent insight.

Contagonist

Det. Kalista Rassam

External pressure and ethical complexity. Kali is structured, logical, and trained to follow evidence, but she understands when rigid systems fall short. Her presence introduces scrutiny, conflict, and clarity. She forces characters to explain themselves and reconsider their direction. She operates within established rules but is willing to push against them when the situation calls for it.

Enigma

Hendrik Krueger

Narrative disruptor and system-level wildcard. Hendrik’s goals are unclear, his influence far-reaching. He is observant, strategic, and difficult to define. His presence shifts the behavior of others, alters pacing, and reveals hidden motivations. He introduces uncertainty into the narrative and challenges both characters and readers to reconsider what they think they know.

Reframing Through a UX Lens

During preparations for the relaunch, I used a keyword strategy service from Paper Raven Books to evaluate Amazon search trends. The data revealed a noticeable gap: readers were actively searching for large-print vampire and horror fiction, but very few titles were available.

This presented a clear UX problem. Readers with mild to moderate vision impairments, particularly those who preferred physical books over screens, had limited access to accessible genre fiction. From a design standpoint, this was both a usability issue and an opportunity to align the publishing approach with the accessibility standards I apply in my professional work.

To address this, I rebuilt the interior layouts using Scrivener and Adobe Illustrator for large-print formatting. Kindle Create was used for standard digital editions. Additional attention was given to type size, contrast, spacing, and structure to support readability and screen reader compatibility across formats.

Outcomes & Lessons Learned

The books were originally self-published in print and digital formats without any formal marketing. Despite that, they received thoughtful reviews and developed a small but consistent readership. That early response helped validate the work and built a foundation to expand on.

A full relaunch is now planned for summer, including The Well of Gilgamesh, Midnight at the North Shore (a retroactive prequel), and Origin of Species, the second full-length novel in the series. This will mark the beginning of the project’s first formal marketing campaign, combining a targeted keyword strategy with the release of new large-print editions designed for accessibility.

Much of the original process was shaped by inexperience, but that lack of structure allowed for flexibility and focus. My goal seemed simple: to tell my stories the way I knew they needed to be told. When I realized I could do that in a way that made them more accessible, the work took on a greater sense of purpose. It wasn’t just about finishing a book. It was about making sure the right readers could reach it.

Amazon Customer

A fascinating, quick moving read.

I purchased “Midnight at the North Shore” to read before diving into “The Well of Gilgamesh: A Wampyr Novel”. The novella is a well written story that makes for a quick, suspense building read that practically dares you to try and put it down. I look forward to reading the next novel in the series!

M Odendaal

Read this first

I’m really glad I read Midnight at the North Shore before reading The Well of Gilgamesh. It serves as a great little primer to the central story. Well balanced mix of humor and suspense, thoroughly enjoyable read.

Amazon Customer

Great, great book

If you’re a fan of Anne Rice Vampire Chronicles you need to read this novel. If you’re not a fan of vampire stories this novel will convert you, it’s that good. Such a riveting tale from start to finish – I felt like I was actually right there with these interesting characters. This will definitely make for a great movie someday. Read it now.

I.W. Stansbery

Refreshingly original!

I seriously couldn't put this book down. Great stories start with great characters and this one is full of them. What a fun read!

Kendra Willis

Keeps you guessing in the best way!

Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. This story creates so many mixed emotions- I find myself empathetic and understanding towards Oliver, very much admiring Ella, amused by Ayden and his combination of genius and naïveté, proud of Taven yet concerned for him at the same time—and still very unsure what exactly to think of Hendrick.

The Relaunch, Informed by UX

The updated editions reflect the shift in mindset that came with working in UX. The original approach of publishing quickly and adjusting later has been replaced by intentional planning, accessible formatting, and a more iterative, reader-centered process. Every element was reviewed with usability in mind to create a consistent and inclusive reading experience across formats.

Highlights of the second-edition relaunch:

Interior formatting revised for consistency, with clear type hierarchy and balanced margins
Cover designs optimized for contrast and legibility in both print and digital settings
Backmatter updated to support continuity, encourage reviews, and introduce related titles
Author website rebuilt with accessibility as a core requirement (currently in development)

The second editions of Midnight at the North Shore and The Well of Gilgamesh, along with the official release of The Origin of Species: A Wampyr Novel, are all scheduled for Summer 2025—marking the launch of my first full-scale marketing campaign.

Reflections & Learnings

Test with purpose.

Rushing to launch or relying on instinct alone leads to missed insights. Good testing starts with humility and a willingness to learn.

Accessibility is reach.

From font choices to color contrast, accessibility is a multiplier, not a constraint. In self-publishing, it can even help you find new audiences.

Clarity over cleverness.

A cover’s visual impact means nothing if the title isn’t legible. Accessibility and design go hand in hand, and visual UX extends far beyond the screen.