by Anne R. Allen
Talk about self-publishing has diminished in the last few years. Most of the “Kindle Millionaires” that surged onto the scene a decade or so ago have evaporated from indie writing communities.
Some of them are, of course, busy writing their next bestseller. But a lot either got traditional publishing contracts, like Hugh Howey and Amanda Hocking (remember them?), or they moved on to more lucrative careers.
Writing about self-publishing isn’t wildly fashionable these days. Formerly prolific indie advocate Joe Konrath has only updated his blog, The Newbie’s Guide to Publishing, once since 2019. D. D. Scott, of the Writers Guide to E-Publishing dropped the blog long ago
But the hottest phenom in publishing last year, Colleen Hoover, started as an indie author — and she still self-publishes some of her books. You can’t argue with her amazing success.
Why Self-Publishing is No Longer Big News
Here’s the thing: The Self-Publishing “Revolution” of the previous decade was tied directly to the “Ebook Revolution.” Indie publishing was sparked by the advent of the Kindle.
When Amazon launched the Kindle in the late ‘oughties, customers needed ebooks to read on it. And Amazon opened up a marketplace for self-publishing to flourish. Indie authors who sold their ebooks for under $5 became bestsellers when they competed against trad-pubbed ebooks priced at $10 and up.
And wise indie authors still price their books below the Big 5 prices. They can afford to, because there are no agents and publishers to skim off the bulk of the profits.
The fact self-publishing isn’t big news now is exactly because it’s so successful. It’s zooming along with no roadblocks, so there’s no news. Authors who take their indie careers seriously are making a lot of money self-publishing. They’re doing their own marketing and turning out books quickly for their growing fan bases.
They also write in genres that sell to voracious readers who generally buy ebooks, like Romance, mystery, thrillers, and sci-fi/fantasy.
These genres do well in subscription services like Amazon’s Kindle Unlimited, Kobo Plus, Scribd, etc. Subscription services are growing fast, according to The New Publishing Standard. Kindle Unlimited paid out $575 million to self-publishers last year.
However, children’s, literary, upmarket fiction and “book-club” women’s fiction still tends to sell better in hard copy.
Self-Publishing Success is All About those EBooks
I see that a lot of new writers who are planning to self-publish will immediately start talking about book signings and getting books into physical bookshops.
But that’s not where an indie should be putting their energy. Book signings can be fun, and a physical book launch party can be an important celebration for the author. Swag like bookmarks, mugs and T-shirts can be a blast to design and prepare.
But these things are about fun, not making big sales.
That’s because in-person events are not the way most indies sell their books. (With the exception of nonfiction self-help books. If you’re a motivational speaker, you can sell a lot of hard copy books at your speaking engagements.)
I’m not saying hometown marketing is a waste of time. Interviews on local radio shows, newspapers and magazines can always help. But other in-person events tend to be expensive, and the bottom line isn’t usually that great unless you can get a local paper or TV station to cover your book event.
The Washington Post published an article this week on American reading habits, and it showed that the most voracious readers read ebooks.
Giving Up Fantasies
Self-publishing does mean giving up some fantasies. Self-published authors rarely, if ever, are interviewed on NPR or reviewed in The New Yorker. Chances of being invited to participate in a TV talk show are minimal. You probably won’t see your book in the window of your local Barnes and Noble, and you won’t be chosen for Reese’s or Oprah’s book clubs.
If these things are essential to your image of being a published author, either let them go, or keep slogging on that query-go-round and get yourself an agent and traditional publishing deal. Not a lot of traditionally published authors get national radio interviews or reviews in prestigious magazines either, but you’ll have a fighting chance.
Indies can get into bookstores, but not usually the big name chain stores. They can get interviews, but they are more likely to be on an obscure podcast than a national news program.
If you self-publish and cling to these fantasies, you’ll be setting yourself up to be scammed by the publishing scammers who lie in wait for indie authors with outsized dreams. One that’s still going strong is the TV interview scam usually featuring an interview with an obscure character actor who once won an Emmy. For a mere $999 this actor will interview you for a freebie streaming TV network. You can read all about it on Deborah Jay’s blog. Believe me, this is not a good investment of your advertising dollars.
Click here for more info on the latest publishing scams targeting indie authors.
Successful Indies Are Great Online Marketers
Colleen Hoover made it to the top of the bestseller lists directly because of her great marketing on Tiktok. (For info on how to use the controversial Tiktok, see Sue Coletta’s post from last October.) Sue has moved from a traditional publisher to self-publishing, and it’s working great for her. Here’s her post about her decision to self-publish.
If you’re self-publishing, you’re going to be selling mostly ebooks, you are going to need to do most of your marketing online. Online marketing means establishing a major social media presence, as well as having an enticing website (and preferably, a blog. ) You’ll also want a strong email list of subscribers.
If you’re not interested in online marketing, self-publishing probably isn’t for you. The slow death of X-Twitter has made online marketing more difficult. If your demographic is over 40, Facebook can still help, but for most genres, you need to be on Instagram, and if you write Romance or YA, you definitely need Tiktok.
Some Self-Publishers are Scammed into Thinking They’re “Traditionally Published.”
Unfortunately, lots of scammy vanity publishers are posing as traditional publishers these days. I hear from their victims weekly. Mostly these authors want to know how to promote their books, which are languishing on Amazon, with no reviews and no promotion, even though they bought a “marketing package” from the scam publishers. I’m amazed at how many of these authors, after forking over many thousands of dollars, tell me it was worth it to be “traditionally published.”
I hate to burst bubbles, but these authors are not traditionally published. They are paying a lot of money for a lie.
Here’s something that should be written on the moon: If you pay a publisher up front, you are not publishing traditionally. You are self-publishing. At inflated prices.
I’m not saying there is anything wrong with self-publishing, obviously. But it’s wrong to tell newbie authors they are being traditionally published when they aren’t.
Beware Overpriced “Self-Publishing Assistance”
A huge number of publishing scammers target self-publishers these days, and they’re always lurking on Google, ready to pounce. Make sure you don’t spend so much on publishing expenses that you can’t make it back in book sales. And don’t fall for expensive “junk marketing” packages that don’t work. (Tweets, press releases, book fair placement, etc.)
Many vanity publishers pose as self-publishing assistants or “hybrid” publishers. Don’t fall for them. The safest places to get self-publishing help are BookBaby or Lulu, which don’t pretend to be anything they’re not. And I highly recommend Reedsy for finding and hiring vetted formatters, book designers and editors separately.
And always check Writer Beware and Alli to find out if the company you’re paying is legit.
No Marketing Experience? Don’t Want to be on Social Media? Self-Publishing can be a Bad Idea
I hear so many new writers who are discouraged with rejections of their first novel say “I’ll just self-publish.” This is not a good idea. In fact, querying agents wasn’t a good idea either. Unless you have another novel in the hopper, it’s not time to publish. Actual first novels are almost never published. Professional authors call them their “practice novels.”
I know, I know. You spent years on it. The characters have become your family. It was such hard work, you fear you may never write another novel. You feel as if you don’t have another novel in you.
But if you want to be taken seriously as a professional author, you will. If you’re self-publishing, you can take those characters and make them into a series. But do write the second book before you publish. Make sure it’s going to work as a series. Once you’re publishing, readers will want more. Fast. When you’re marketing, there’s less time for writing. So do your writing first.
Enjoy your pre-publishing freedom. You’ll never be as free to write whatever you want again. I know you feel pressured by friends and family to take the publishing plunge, but take your time and enjoy the process.
by Anne R. Allen (@annerallen) January 14, 2024
What about you, scriveners? Are you self-published? Do you plan to self-publish? What advice would you give to a new self-publisher?
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***
featured image via Wikicommons: Michel Roux signing books
A really good article , Anne. You are right about why indie publishing is no longer in the news. The majority of successful (depending on your definition of success) indie authors have always been midlist authors, rather than big names. Most of us don’t get rich, but we can make a very comfortable living free from the corporate cage. It has never been as easy as some people said and it has always taken work, but a lot of us keep plugging along still paying the bills and loving having people reading our work.
It is particularly good advice to write that second novel. I didn’t but if I had it to do over again…
My only caveat is your comment “They also write in genres that sell to voracious readers who generally buy ebooks, like Romance, mystery, thrillers, and sci-fi/fantasy.” Those may well be the hardest to break into because they are so competitive with thousands (hundreds of thousands?) of new entries every day. There is something to be said (because it is what I did 😜) for picking out an underserved niche market. Mine happens to be medieval historical fiction where my new releases and sometimes my backlist easily make the top 100 and there are voracious readers who have trouble finding a new novel to buy. So if you love writing Romance, mystery, thrillers, and sci-fi/fantasy sure those can make a *lot* of money, but if you don’t, you might look into the smaller niche genres you do love.
Which ever way we go, indie publishing and indie authors are here to stay.
JR–Thanks for that tip from the trenches! Satisfying a niche is definitely a good idea. I know indies who make a nice living with Jane Austen “variations”–using Austen characters in new and different situations. As long as you love the niche, as you say, that can be the sweet spot for indie authors.
I’m on Twitter and I blog and have a good presence online, but I still know self-publishing would be more than I can handle.
Alex–I’m in your camp. I’d rather be with a small press than take it all on by myself. I don’t have the marketing chops. But it sure works for people who do.
I’m not published and I know I’m not ready to publish, but I am torn over the path when the time comes. I have mixed feelings over indie publishing and am sad trad publishing is so difficult. For a long time I’ve been interested in trad and once established (I.e. familiar with editors and the process) the try indie and do some of both.
Indie makes publishing so accessible that there are a lot of poorly written books out there. I’ve read a lot of KU books since last summer and it’s made me tired of reading. Many were multi-published, popular indie authors who’s books fell really flat.A lot of indies have good ideas, but would benefit for more practice and editing. It leaves me with so many questions and wondering if it’s me or the quality is decreasing in general. I tell myself it shouldn’t bother me, I should only focus on my work and improving its quality.
I have a lot of doubts on if I could do everything self-publishing requires. I want to write the books, not be responsible for every aspect. It’s a lot of pressure to decide everything without experience.
Tonya–You’re absolutely right that self-published books can be awful. It’s always a crapshoot to choose to read an indie author. That’s why I always read the “look inside” before buying. But even though reading a sample can tell you about the author’s basic skills, it can’t tell you if there’s a disappointing plot or dangling plotlines. I have to admit I usually buy trad-pubbed books, but indies can be fresh and innovative.
It sounds to me as if you’re going to be happier as a trad-pubbed author. It’s not impossible. Learn to write a great query and hook and target the right agents or small presses and you can do it.
I think I’d be happier going trad, but am often afraid to say it because indie is pushed so much as the better way. It’s part of why I get confused over a path.
Good Sunday morning, Anne and Ruth. This is a great look at where the indie author/publisher world is today. You wrap up mentioning pre-publishing freedom, but from my experience (10+ years and 20+ publications) I find freedom extends well beyond hitting the first publication button. As an indie, I have total freedom to do my own thing or hire out what I can’t do… like making covers and proofreading. Call me a control freak, but I love it. My advice for someone starting out? Like you said, don’t rush it because to be “successful” you have to put out the most professional product possible.
Garry–It’s great to hear from a happily self-published author. Yes, as an indie you have much more freedom than a trad-pubbed author. But you do need to pay attention to what your fans want. If you suddenly decided to write Western Romance, or High Fantasy, they might complain. A pre-published author can do any kind of experimenting with nobody judging them. So as you say, don’t rush it. Savor that experimenting time.
Thanks for all this Anne. I can remember the old days you refer to, I came in about a year after the e-book land rush started. We thought covers were unimportant, right? Because they’ll never be bigger than a postage stamp on the screen, hah.
I don’t have detailed stats to offer, but I would say that audiobooks (which involve just about the same array of choices and are also a digital product) run about 10-15% of the e-book-plus-paper market in sales: small but growing. And that’s a new audience which I think indies should consider. People who listen rarely also want to read, so you’re not cannibalizing.
Will–Those were heady days. People were making some big money. And you’re right–we were told covers would only be seen in thumbnail size. 🙂
Audiobooks continue to rise in sales. They make commutes and tedious work more enjoyable for a lot of people. My housecleaner listens to audiobooks when she works. Indies do well when they choose a good narrator and provide audio versions of their books.
I’m a long way from publishing anything (if ever), but I find it interesting to follow the trad vs. indie publishing debate.
One good thing about growing up among non-readers is that nobody tried to tell me what is good/bad literature and I’ve always read whatever books I could get my hands on. A good book is one I like, not one that makes some paper’s list. Ebooks opened up a whole world to me – literally, since I now mostly read in English. I’m reading more and more indies these days, for various reasons. One is simply: that’s where I find what I like.
I follow some indie/hybrid authors “behind the curtain” and am amazed at what they do. They seem to have way more creative freedom and shorter production cycles. Looks like very hard work but also profitable (at the very least creative-wise). Would I be able to stay that course? I don’t know but I would probably try it over trad pub.
Tina–Since you read a lot of indies, your chances of succeeding as an indie are better. You ARE the audience you’d be trying to reach. It sounds as if you’re a good candidate for self-publishing.
I already have a strong social media presence because I am the host of several online reading communities. I’m planning to self-publish my first novel (I write horror AND I have a horror blog) so I’m hoping I already have my foot in the door. I have no problem with an online presence and marketing as such. Thank you for this excellent article!
Michelle–It sounds as if you’ve built the perfect platform for an indie author. Best of luck! I think you’ll do fine self-publishing.
One thing I don’t think you’ve hit on correctly is social media. A lot of self publishers don’t spend much time on social media at all. They advertise on Facebook and Amazon. Advertising on FB is not the same as being present, having a group, posting there. Some of the biggest names in self publishing marketing don’t think social media is necessary at all, so do it if you want to. It can work really well, but it’s a lot of work to do it right.
Rick–That’s interesting info–Facebook ads bring in more sales than a FB presence? If an author can make it self-publishing without having to mess with social media, that’s great news! Lots of people can’t bear venturing into what can be a cesspool these days. Most marketing experts I know still push the social media aspect, but if you’re good at ads and have the $$, ads alone are probably a great way to go. Thanks!
I have published all of my titles via self publishing platforms. I did pay for 2 companies to publish 2 of my books. Whilst I have no complaints about either company, I now self publish without paying a self publishing company. My only expense is paying a proof reader (which I’d encourage all authors/poets to do as a good proof reader will spot errors the author may not spot). I do have a blog which I update regularly. In addition, I post my poetry on Tiktok and whilst this produces quite a bit of engagement (and possibly) sells a few books, likes on blogs, TikTok, Youtube Etc do not necessarily mean big sales of your self published work. Having said that, poetry is not as big a seller as is fiction. Thanks for the post. Kevin
One of the best things about being an independently published author is never having to worry that my publisher will drop me, go out of business, slap on a crappy cover, or decide that they aren’t going to publish my genre any more but won’t release the rights to my characters. I own 100% of the intellectual property rights and have sold secondary rights including film and audiobook rights.
That being said, yes, publishing under my own imprint takes more of a business attitude than traditional publishing. But all authors have to be marketers today. Yes, we want to sell books, but we also need to show readers that AI didn’t write your book but that real person did!
Carmen–Great to hear from another successful indie author. Your books do very well because of your hard work. And you’re so right about the horrors that can be inflicted on trad-pubbed authors, especially if they’re with the Big 5, where there’s high turnover and nobody gets any guarantees. As an indie, you have total control over your creative property and your only bosses are your readers.
Great information, Anne. My first book was traditionally published by a small publisher, and it was a very good experience. The contract was better than most trad publishers, but when they offered me a contract for my second book, they had made the new contract “industry standard,” and I wasn’t comfortable staying with them, so I decided to self-pub. I’m happy with my decision. I enjoy the work and the control that goes along with it.
However, like you say, self-published authors need to be aware that there are a lot of scammers out there. I was contacted by someone from the group that Deborah Jay blogged about. I was skeptical, but the caller had a very good pitch about an Emmy-winning actor/broadcaster who wanted to interview me about my book. Unlike Deborah’s experience, this man was well-prepared, talked at length about my book, and even described the themes he had gleaned from it. It was clear that he had read more than the back cover. I finally stopped him and said, “If this is going to cost me anything, I won’t be able to do it.” That’s when he told me it would only be $999 for the airtime. I thanked him for his interest and said goodbye.
Kay–It’s amazing how many bad contracts are called “industry standard” by publishers. 🙂
Thanks much for the info about the TV star interview! It’s sounding as if this isn’t a case of scamming exactly, just overpricing. I don’t think you’d make back the $1000 it costs to get him to interview you. But if he actually reads and remembers your book, it could be enticing. I don’t think most of those other people in the thread had talked with the star himself.
Just to be clear, I didn’t talk to the TV personality. It was someone from the group that tries to get authors to sign up for the interview. There are a lot of people out there willing to separate an author from his/her money. I’m glad you’re making people aware.
Kay–Thanks for the clarification. Yes, the people who contact authors seem to have a good pitch.
Yes, I remember the ebook millionaires who were going to put all the traditional publishers out of business. Talk about delusional individuals.
Blogger and bestselling fiction author Nathan Brandon recently did a blog post related to author incomes and estimated that there are only 1,000 authors in the world who make a comfortable living. I say that’s a conservative estimate. My guess it’s closer to 5,000 to 10,000 in the world who make a comfortable living. Even so, that means that it’s 10 to 1,0000 times as hard to make a comfortable living being a writer as it is to make a comfortable living being a doctor, dentist, or lawyer given that there are millions of doctors, dentists, and lawyers in this world. Sure, it’s 100 to 1,000 times easier to become a writer than to become a doctor, dentist, or lawyer given that anyone can afford to preach in the desert today by writing and self-publishing.
Having said that, I am mainly a self-published writer who has made a comfortable living for many years. I first self-published in 1989 and have made a living writing ever since. My books have sold over 1,100,000 copies and have been published in 22 languages in 29 countries.I have earned over $3 million in pretax profits from my books.
This I can say. It’s ten times as difficult to make it as a writer/self-publisher today as when I first started in this business. Nevertheless, I just completed three books:
1. “THE BOOK OF SWAGGER: People, Places, and Things That Have Swagger — And Some That Don’t!”
2. “THE LITTLE BLACK BOOK OF SWAGGER: 637 Swagger Tips for Super Achievers”
3. “THE BOOK WITHOUT EGO” by Anonymous
These three books were self-published in print editioons at a cost of $20,000. I published these books for something to do at 74 years of age. I am not concerned if I don’t make any money. Due to my prosperity, I have now given away around 13,000 copies of my books and intend to give away more.
Here are a few of my favorite quotations that highlight the writing life.
“Nobody ever committed suicide while reading a good book, but many have while trying to write one.”
— Robert Byrne
“Writers may be disreputable, incorrigible, early to decay or late to bloom, but they dare to go it alone.”
— John Updike
“There is probably no hell for authors in the next world — they suffer so much from critics and publishers in this.”
— C. N. Bovee
“Writing is a profession in which you have to keep proving your talent to people who have none.”
— Jules Renard
“Only amateurs say that they write for their own amusement. Writing is not an amusing occupation. It is a combination of ditch-digging, mountain-climbing, treadmill and childbirth. Writing may be interesting, absorbing, exhilarating, racking, relieving. But amusing? Never!”
— Edna Ferber
“Writing is the hardest way to earn a living, with the possible exception of wrestling alligators.”
— Olin Miller
“When I had got my notes all written out I thought I’d polish it off in two summers, but it took me twenty-seven years.”
— Arnold Toynbee
“The profession of book writing makes horseracing seem like a solid, stable business.”
— John Steinbeck
Ernie–Thanks for the great quotes! They’re hilarious.
Really good post, Anne. A few things that may be of interest…
* Ebooks for sure (I’m running about 10:1 Ebk:Pbk sales), but there’s nothing like holding a well-designed paperback of your own in your hands. Which is why I still do both. In fact, I do the paperback first and use that as a final draft for reading, correcting, etc. I find it very helpful to read my own draft words in book form before committing the story to stone. And with print-on-demand, it’s a snap to do.
* I have zero interest in bookstore sales or in-person events. (I write genre fiction.) It took a while for my ego to realize this.
* I like marketing. I know that most indie self-pubbers hate it, but I find it just as creative as coming up with stories. If you do it right, you ARE coming up with stories, but on a different (marketing) playing field. And once you understand how CPC (cost-per-click) advertising works, you should never—or rarely—lose money on advertising (I don’t).
* As some of your other commenters have mentioned, self-publishing is about CONTROL. And I control and own it all (with help from other professionals that I hire) . . . from the cover to the TV/movie rights. I love it.
Harald–I do think it’s important to have paper books as well as ebooks, even if you’re an indie author. It’s not just for ourselves–that wonderful experience of holding your own book–but there are die-hard readers who only read paper. Some of my most loyal fans won’t have anything to do with ebooks. And many reviewers prefer paper. But the important thing is to realize your ebook sales will be a bigger chunk of your income, so putting money into ads for kindle books in newsletters like Kindle Nation Daily, Fussy Librarian, Bookbub, etc, may be the best use of advertising dollars. Much better than expensive book signing events.
Warm greetings Anne and Ruth. I like to believe I was smart enough to know my level of ignorance when it came to the publishing game. And yes, it feels like roulette sometimes. The odds seldom seem to be in our favor.
I published my 5 books through small Indie presses and glad I did. It was a learning experience I cherish. I learned how to work with an editor. Luckily mine were good. I learned how to plan a book cover, when to put on preorder, release schedules, when to start posting teasers on social media. All this without spending one penny except for a couple of ads I ran. One downside to Indie presses is not much funding for marketing.
I got my feet wet, so to speak, and now who knows? Maybe I’ll give the self publishing gig a shot, try for an agent, or stick with my comfort zone.
One thing I know is to keep expectations in check. Maybe I’ll make it big. Probably not, but I have stories to tell. That’s why I started writing in the first place.
Brenda–A small press is my comfort zone too. I need a good editor I can trust, and a cover designer who knows the market. Also it’s good to be on their website and have a chance at joint promos with other authors with the imprint. And yes, in the end, it’s all about the stories.
Wise advice, Anne. I wrote five novels before I got published, because I got sick and tired of rewriting the same one. Turned out to be a good move. It taught me character development, pacing, dialogue, storytelling, etc. When you’re not “stuck” to the same first novel, you become more open to learning from your mistakes. That’s my experience, anyway.
Buying back my rights was the best thing I ever did, but — there’s always a but — I never would’ve attempted indie publishing if I hadn’t learned the ropes from traditional publishers. I wasn’t confident enough. It took me 11+ years to take the plunge. Now, I love the freedom. It’s a lot of work, but it’s worth the effort. My plans for 2024 include publishing in audio and hardcover. Exciting!
May I add a tip? If you want to indie publish, you must assemble a team (editor, proofreader, cover designer, narrator for audio, etc. etc. etc.). Very few “self” publish anymore. And you must produce without sacrificing quality. Today’s readers won’t wait a year for the next book in the series.
Thank you for the shout-out, Anne!
Sue–Your tip is important. Self-publishers need a team. I suggest using Reedsy to find those people. You can also ask for recommendations from other indie authors. I also think you make an important point that it may be wiser to publish traditionally first to learn the ropes–and also to establish a readership–before you self publish.
Thanks for sharing, Anne. There are pros and cons to both sides of publishing and I have found I like the control and freedom of self-publishing. To me, the ideal situation is a hybrid publisher who gives the author complete control while doing all the heavy lifting.
Jan–I do think hybrid publishing can be great for some authors. But there are so many vanity publishers masquerading as self-publishing assistants, the author needs to be very wary choosing the right hybrid partner.
Hi Anne,
Another excellent & well-informed post. Every point you made really resonated.
Keep up the good work.
CS–Many thanks!
Great post, Anne!
I decided to go the ‘self-publishing’ route about a year ago after doing some research on ‘industry standard’ contracts and realizing how much I’d be giving away if I ever signed one of them. (World rights in all formats that currently exist and those that may be invented in the future, for the life of copyright? Yeah…no.)
I also heard plenty of horror stories about debut writers getting dropped if their book didn’t make certain sales targets in the first few weeks after release…and that trad publishers give very little marketing support to new-or even more established midlist writers-anymore. They’re too busy chasing the next Colleen Hoover, Brandon Sanderson, J.K. Rowling [INSERT NAME OF FAMOUS 1%ER WRITER HERE].
Of course, I’m sure there are some trad publishers out there who DON’T do these things, but I was so shocked and disgusted by what I had learned, that I headed straight to ALLi: The Alliance of Independent Authors to find out more.
Now, I’m planning to launch my debut novel on Wattpad before publishing it this spring.
I actually like running an author business. Finances are my strength and marketing is my weakness, but I’m willing to learn and like some of your other commenters have said, marketing is a creative endeavour in and of itself. I totally believe that the best form of marketing is to hire the best editors and designers you can afford. No amount of advertizing in the world will make up for a substandard product, especially not in the age of AI-generated books.
The only advice I have to give fellow debut authors is: know your options. You’ve got more power than you think.
Linda–It sounds as if you’ve got all your ducks in a row for a successful launch. I’ve never used Wattpad, but I know some authors get a big push there. Best of luck! You’re right that authors have a lot more power if they self-publish.
Very grateful for posts like this. I’ve debated trad versus indie publishing for years. I’m currently leaning towards traditional now, even though the industry is kinda scary, because I think that’s the better option for me financially, at least right now. Plus seeing what you (or somebody) said about learning the industry through trad publishing before going indie sounds good to me.
Rich–You can learn a lot about the industry while you’re in the query process, so I think that’s excellent advice. If you do land an agent or publisher, make sure the contract will allow you to self-publish other books in the future. Then, once you have a fan base, you can self publish and have a ready-made audience. But “in perpetuity” contracts can screw up your career for life, so make sure a professional takes a look at that contract.
Great overview of where we are this year regarding self publishing.
Over the past 18 months I’ve noticed a drastic reduction in the effectiveness of my direct advertising campaigns, so I guess I’m going to have to look at something new. Alongside writing the next book or three.
But I would still rather be self published. I have just spent 18 months on a commissioned book for a trad publishing house, and although I did get an advance (which not all of them offer these days), it was the same amount as I was getting for books 15 years ago, and the hassle of working with a string of changing editors made it a highly frustrating experience. Fortunately, in the end, the book has been a success, selling so well on release that Amazon couldn’t keep up with supplying copies. However, I’m very dubious that I would ever take another commission. I prefer being in charge of my own work, and my own career.
Deborah–I think we’ve all seen a drop in sales and the effectiveness of advertising campaigns. I’m with a small press, and I have friends with big name publishers who all say the same thing. The trouble is there’s so much more competition, no matter how you publish. Now that bestsellers from years ago are available forever gives us even more competition. It’s interesting to hear of your experience writing a book on commission. Having editors change all the time would be a nightmare.
Hi, Anne. Thanks for this encouraging article — and best wishes with your ongoing series.
I see this post struck a chord with many. Hugs.
Thanks for the enlightening read, Anne. I agree with you, while self-publishing may not lead to NPR interviews or features in The New Yorker, it opens doors to a world of creative autonomy and direct connection with readers. Sure, you might not land on TV talk shows or in big-name bookstores, but the digital age offers endless avenues for visibility and engagement. So, I believe that embracing self-publishing means charting your own path to success, leveraging online platforms and community support. It’s more about embracing the journey, knowing that fulfillment as an author can come in many forms beyond traditional accolades.
Nick–There’s a whole lot to be said for autonomy. When you have control of your own business, you can’t suddenly be dropped because you didn’t earn out your advance on account of poor promotion. Or when your editor leaves for another company. I guess the ideal situation would be to get your debut novel published by a Big 5 company where you have the good luck to get excellent promotion. Then, once you’ve been on NPR and had that glowing review in the New Yorker, go indie. So don’t sign any three-book contracts!
Almost a year since this post, but I am so glad I stumbled upon this. I sincerely thank you for taking the time to write this blog/post. You paint a picture that is not too rosy, yet it gives me hope. Anything that does not come with work is a waste of time, but it is also soul-destroying to think that a lot of hard work will come to nothing. Seeing self-publishing as an entrepreneurial undertaking puts it all in perspective. While writing is the backbone of the whole process, it is not the only part to it. Thanks again!
Cobus–What a great name for an author! Totally memorable. Yes, self publishing is a great option for dedicated business people. But people who self publish only to bypass the gatekeepers can find their work disappearing into obscurity, no matter how great the writing.
🙂 Thanks Anne.
Hmm. Your comment about bypassing gatekeepers has got me thinking. Ultimately, if we don’t write for the love of it, we’ll drive ourselves mad if our only goal is to become famous. It seems like I might need to reorder my priorities, haha! However, what is the point of spending time writing a novel if no one is going to read it?