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Self-Published Books That Became Bestsellers, and How They Did It
By AuthorWings editorial team
8 min read
Short answer
Books that began self-published include The Martian, Wool, Still Alice, Eragon, Rich Dad Poor Dad, The Celestine Prophecy, What Color Is Your Parachute?, milk and honey, Slammed, Legends & Lattes, and The Tale of Peter Rabbit. Each was first published by its author, posted online, or released through a paid service or a family press, then went on to a New York Times bestseller list, big sales, or a publisher deal.
Many “famous self-published books” lists repeat the same titles without checking how each book was really published. We checked every book below against the author’s or publisher’s pages, or major press coverage, and labelled how it first came out. Some are pure self-publishing; others went through a family press or a paid service. If you’re new to the term, see what an indie author is.
- Self-publishedThe author published it: on their own imprint, their own company, Amazon KDP, or privately printed.
- Online firstThe author shared it free online first, then published it.
- Family pressA small press run by the author’s family published it.
- Paid serviceThe author paid a self-publishing service to publish it.
11 self-published books that became bestsellers
Filter by how the book first came out, or by the kind of book.
Showing all 11 books.
The Martian
Andy Weir
- How it started
- Weir posted the novel free on his website, a chapter every few weeks, then put it on Amazon’s Kindle store for 99 cents after readers asked for an ebook.
- What happened next
- Crown, an imprint of Penguin Random House, published it in February 2014, and it debuted at No. 12 on the New York Times hardcover fiction list in March 2014. Ridley Scott’s film came out in 2015.
Sources: Wisconsin Public Radio interview; The Hollywood Reporter.
Wool
Hugh Howey, 2011
- How it started
- Howey released Wool as a 99-cent Kindle ebook through Kindle Direct Publishing in 2011, then added more parts.
- What happened next
- The collected edition reached the New York Times ebook list. In December 2012, Simon & Schuster signed a print-only deal, and Howey kept the ebook rights. The story became the Apple TV series Silo (2023).
Sources: Publishers Lunch; Publishers Weekly; Writer’s Digest.
Still Alice
Lisa Genova, 2007
- How it started
- Genova published her first novel in 2007 through iUniverse, a paid self-publishing service.
- What happened next
- Simon & Schuster bought it and rereleased it in January 2009; iUniverse says it spent more than 40 weeks on the New York Times list. Julianne Moore won an Oscar for the 2014 film.
Sources: The Globe and Mail; iUniverse author story; Connecticut Public.
Eragon
Christopher Paolini, 2001
- How it started
- Paolini’s parents published his novel through their family company, Paolini International, with the first copies in late 2001.
- What happened next
- Knopf republished it in 2003, and it became a New York Times bestseller. A film followed in 2006.
Sources: Christopher Paolini’s official site; The New York Times (2003).
Rich Dad Poor Dad
Robert Kiyosaki and Sharon Lechter, 1997
- How it started
- After publishers turned it down, the authors published it in 1997 through their own company, Cashflow Technologies.
- What happened next
- It reached the New York Times list in 2000 and stayed for years; Publishers Weekly calls it one of the first self-published books to do so. Warner Books later took it on, and Publishers Weekly put sales at upward of 44 million copies in 2022.
Sources: Publishers Weekly (2000, 2022).
The Celestine Prophecy
James Redfield, 1993
- How it started
- Redfield self-published the novel in 1993, and it had more than 100,000 copies in print within about six months, according to his publisher’s author page.
- What happened next
- Warner Books bought it and published the hardcover in 1994. It reached No. 1 on the New York Times hardcover list and stayed on the list for over three years.
Sources: Penguin Random House author page.
What Color Is Your Parachute?
Richard N. Bolles, 1970
- How it started
- Bolles self-published his job-hunting guide in 1970.
- What happened next
- Ten Speed Press took it on in 1972, and it became a long-running New York Times trade paperback bestseller. The Washington Post put its sales at more than 10 million copies.
Sources: The Washington Post obituary (2017).
milk and honey
Rupi Kaur, 2014
- How it started
- Kaur shared poems on Instagram and Tumblr, then self-published the collection in 2014.
- What happened next
- Andrews McMeel Publishing released an expanded edition in 2015. By late 2016 it had spent 33 weeks on the New York Times list, according to Publishers Weekly.
Sources: Publishers Weekly (2016).
Slammed
Colleen Hoover, 2012
- How it started
- Hoover published Slammed on Amazon in January 2012.
- What happened next
- It reached the New York Times ebook list that year, and Atria, part of Simon & Schuster, signed her to a two-book deal after a bidding war.
Sources: Associated Press (2013); Writers Write.
Legends & Lattes
Travis Baldree, 2022
- How it started
- Baldree self-published his cozy fantasy novel in February 2022, and readers spread it on BookTok.
- What happened next
- Tor and Tor UK republished it later in 2022, and it reached the New York Times bestseller list. It was a Hugo Award finalist in 2023.
Sources: Locus; Reactor (Tor); The Inlander.
The Tale of Peter Rabbit
Beatrix Potter, 1901
- How it started
- After publishers turned her down, Potter had 250 copies printed privately in December 1901.
- What happened next
- Frederick Warne published it in 1902. The V&A museum’s website puts its sales at 40 million copies worldwide (checked October 2026).
Sources: V&A museum.
Often called self-published, but not quite
Fifty Shades of GreyNot quite
It began as fan fiction posted online, but its first book edition in 2011 came from The Writer’s Coffee Shop, a small Australian publisher, not from the author. Vintage, part of Random House, re-released it in 2012.
Legally BlondeNot quite
The film rights sold from an unpublished manuscript, and the novel was self-published in 2001, the same year as the film; a Penguin imprint republished it in 2003, according to Phoenix New Times. We found no source for a bestseller-list placement, so we left it off our list.
What these authors had in common
This is our reading of the 11 stories, not a formula:
- A clear genre: science fiction, romance, fantasy, self-help, poetry, and children’s books.
- Readers before the deal: for several, a website, Instagram, Tumblr, or BookTok built an audience first.
- A clear next book or series: Wool grew in parts, and Hoover had a sequel, Point of Retreat, on the ebook list alongside Slammed by July 2012.
- Rights kept until the right offer: Howey kept his ebook rights in a print-only deal.
- Persistence after rejection: Potter, Kiyosaki, and others were turned down first.
These stories are rare. We found no reliable count of how many self-published books become bestsellers, so treat them as proof of what’s possible, not what’s typical. Good book marketing and a professional-looking book help every title find its readers.
Your turn: publish your book
Self-publishing today means uploading to Amazon KDP and other stores yourself, or with help. Our guide on how to self-publish a book covers every step, and self-publishing vs traditional publishing compares the two routes.
If you’d rather have help, our self-publishing services handle editing, cover, formatting, and publishing, with every account in your name and 100% of your rights and royalties kept. Publishing setup starts at $249, and Publish-Ready packages from $537. We can publish your book on Amazon and every major store.
Self-publishing services
Publish your book, keep your rights
We handle editing, cover, formatting, and publishing, with every account in your name and 100% of your rights and royalties kept.
- Publishing setup from $249
- Publish-Ready packages from $537
Self-published bestsellers: FAQ
What is the best-selling self-published book?
There’s no single verified ranking, because many of these books moved to traditional publishers and their later sales are counted together. Two big sellers that began self-published: Rich Dad Poor Dad, which Publishers Weekly put at upward of 44 million copies in 2022, and The Tale of Peter Rabbit, which the V&A museum’s website puts at 40 million (checked October 2026).
Can a self-published book become a New York Times bestseller?
Yes. The Times’ methodology, as quoted by Ooligan Press in 2021, said self-published titles are eligible, along with large and small presses, and that ebooks sold by only one vendor were not included, which can matter for books exclusive to one store. Wool and Slammed reached its ebook bestseller list in 2012 while still self-published. The Times’ rules have changed over time, so check its current methodology.
Is it still possible to self-publish a bestseller?
Yes, but it’s rare. Legends & Lattes was self-published in February 2022, spread on BookTok, and became a New York Times bestseller after Tor republished it later that year, and Colleen Hoover’s Slammed did it in 2012. Both were in popular genres and spread by word of mouth; Hoover also had a sequel out the same year.
Do self-published authors keep their rights after a publisher deal?
It depends on the contract. Hugh Howey signed a print-only deal for Wool with Simon & Schuster and kept his ebook rights. Publishing contracts often cover print, ebook, and audio rights together. If you self-publish first, keep your rights and your own ISBN, so you’re free to negotiate if an offer comes.
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AuthorWings editorial team
The AuthorWings editorial team writes and updates our guides for first-time authors. Every post is read and edited by a person on our team before it is published.
