The
author used to wait for the postman hoping for a letter from a literary agent who
plucked your book from the slush pile because he loves your book so much, he wants
to offer you a publishing contract or a book advance. But those days are gone
in the self publishing revolution. Now, the writer doesn’t have to wait for a
publishing house to open the gates to becoming a bestseller (or not, as the
case may be). The writer has a choice.
Why
Choose Self Publishing?
Why Self Publish? The Argument for and Against |
Self
publishing and traditional publishing form two sides of the publishing world.
Both have pros and cons, which I shall briefly describe.
Being
self published can be immensely satisfying. You are in complete control of your
book. You write, edit, design the book cover, format and market the book. Being
an adept self publisher means you have to learn many skills. It can be
frustrating but also liberating. You please no one but yourself. If the audience
loves your books, you take all the credit (and the royalties). If they don’t,
you have no one to blame but yourself.
Big
Book Royalties on Self Published Books
Another
thing is that the self published writer reaps bigger royalties. On the Kindle,
the writer can earn up to 70% of the book royalties, and more on some online
book retailers. Authors published on the traditional path earn smaller
royalties of between 5 – 20% of the book’s high street price.
Self
publishing means the book will never be out of print. Createspace enable the
writer to sell paperback copies via a print on demand arrangement (POD), which
means the book is printed only when it is ordered. The downside is that the
production costs are higher than the mass produced paperbacks of the trad
published route, and the paperbacks of the self published writer will not be
seen in Waterstones or Tescos.
Why
Self Publish: an Author’s View
Now
for the argument for traditional publishing. Here, the author gets validation
that the self published world cannot offer. You earn credence because you have
been published by one of the big six, such as HarperCollins or Simon &
Schuster. You are backed by editors, proofreaders, designers, and mostly a
marketing team that cannot be beaten by the lone self published writer.
The
traditional publisher has further reaches than mere twitter, facebook or a
modest blog. They have tendrils into avenues the self published writer will
find hard to reach. If your book is successful, it can be translated into many
languages and the hardcopy of the book can be mass-produced and sold in many
book stores and libraries or maybe even made into a film.
Bestselling
on Kindle Bookstore
But
being traditionally published, you have little control over the look and the
feel of the book. You might be offered a choice of a few book cover designs
that you may not like. A picky editor may not like your plot twist and may smear
the red pen all over your manuscript. There may be a creative difference in opinion.
A
smaller royalty cut is offered because there are others who have to take a
slice. You have little control over the marketing and the pricing of the book.
Getting
Book Reviews for the Lone Publisher
Another
big difference is when it comes to book reviews. The lone self published writer
will find it extremely difficult to get book reviews. Family and friends cannot
leave reviews if Amazon have anything to do with it. But numerous reviews
magically appear on a traditionally published book even before it has been
released! This can cause the self published writer frustration.
But
despite the privileges of being traditionally published, some authors have defected
to becoming self published because of the freedom and bigger royalty cuts. Certain
brand authors of crime thrillers or fan fiction have chosen to retain digital
rights, so that big royalties can be earned on ebook sales.
Conclusion:
is it Better to be Self Published than Traditionally Published?
On
the whole, the self published writer has complete creative control over the
book with bigger royalties. Independence can feel liberating, bringing with it a
bigger understanding of the publishing world. But the trad published writer
will be given validation and the support of a production team and therefore more
time to write. But small royalties are the cost of this support.
Articles on Self Publishing
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