The stigma of self-
Typically, one of the first questions friends have asked after hearing I wrote a book is whether I’m self-publishing or going down the traditionally published route.
Quite early on, I decided to self-publish Salt Sisters. I came across a podcast, The Creative Penn, which I found after searching for resources for writers. The host, Joanna Penn, is a self-published author, and quite honestly, I was inspired. She’s a big advocate for self-publishing, and there was something about owning every aspect of the work that hugely appealed to me.
The perception I’d had of self-publishing was, I realised, quite off the mark.
Ebooks and print-on-demand services have democratised publishing. But self-publishing, I thought, was the preserve of vanity projects (I recall interviewing a businessman once who brought along a copy of his book to show me; the title was something like ‘How I Single-Handedly Saved the Company and Won the Day’… not kidding) or, frankly, books that simply weren’t good enough for an agent or publishing house to invest in.
There are massive quality control issues, too. My all-time favourite podcast, My Dad Wrote A Porno, was born from a horrifically-written series of erotica (apparently it’s a huge market, even the terrible stuff). My dad (unrelated anecdote, FYI) asked me to order him a book on local history, which he’d seen advertised on Facebook. It was full of typos, and I could hear the disappointment in his voice. He paid good money for that, expecting better.
But, there are also thousands of authors successfully self-publishing high-quality best-sellers. Books that you would never know weren’t ‘traditionally’ published. In fact, the correct term for these authors is ‘independent.’ And you’re not just an independent author but an independent publisher, too. Some, like Joanna Penn, used to have traditional publishing deals and made the switch. The community is proud, and nurturing – many independents take the time to share their expertise and advice.
Thanks to platforms like Reedsy, you can hire professional editors (both of my editors work for publishing houses in combination with their freelance work). The woman who created my cover design has designed the covers of books you’ll find in Waterstones. You can access all the professional services you might need.
The benefit, or perhaps I should say appeal, of a getting a traditional publishing deal is clear; it’s the validation. It’s having someone who knows their stuff tell you that your story and your writing is good enough. And I get that. Who wouldn’t?
At one point, I started to draft a query letter (the letter you send to agents, to try and get someone to take you on and represent you to publishing houses).
But what about having people tell you that it wasn’t good enough? I’ll be brutally honest – I didn’t want to face the rejection, in any amount. It was a dark cloud that overshadowed that shiny appeal of validation. I deleted my draft letter.
Beyond validation, the only other benefit I could see was the marketing and PR support. I figured I should know a thing or two about that, and what I didn’t know, I could learn. My inner nerd has enjoyed that part as much as actual writing. And the distribution – although Amazon solves most of that problem and through Ingram Spark, independents can have their books in libraries and bookshops too. I’m telling you, it’s all possible.
The other major appeal of self-publishing is that you’re on your own timeline. Writers whose books are published by a publishing house don’t see their work in print for 2 – 3 years. I’ve never been able to wait patiently.
And of course, when you’re selling your own book, you keep the proceeds. All of them. I heard stories about authors who I thought were successful who didn’t make money from their books. This way, at least, I’ll know where I stand.
Yet still, here I am explaining myself. An entire blog post dedicated to justifying my choices. I still worry that the stigma of self-publishing will put people off even picking up the book. Only time will tell.
A few friends asked for advice on the self-publishing route: I suggest anyone who is interested visit The Creative Penn and go from there.
What do you think of self-publishing?
