Choosing between self-publishing and traditional publishing
This is a much-talked-about topic. So, rather than going the traditional pros-and-cons route, Iām going to give you some advice on which factors to consider when making your decision:
1. First thingās first: whatās the difference?
Self-publishing a book means that you are putting it out there on your own - no publishing house and no literary agent. You will be in charge of every aspect - editing, proofreading, marketing, the book launch, cover design etc.
Traditional publishing means that your book has been purchased by a publishing house and that said house is responsible for getting your book out into the world. This process also usually entails being represented by a literary agent.
2. Factor: Your knowledge base
Few writers are writers only, which means that you might have a particular set of skills or a vast array of knowledge in an area that could assist you in one of these publishing routes.
Knowledge needed for self-publishing: some business knowledge, knowledge of the entire process needed to publish a book, knowledge of self-publishing platforms etc.
Knowledge needed for traditional publishing: knowledge about the publishing industry - about literary agents and publishing houses, about what to look out for in contracts, about querying and going on submission etc.
Keep in mind that this knowledge can be acquired. It doesnāt have to be something you already possess. But the type of studies/research you do will be determined by the route you choose to take.
So, if you majored in an area of business, if you worked for a publisher for years etc., you already have a good foundation for self-publishing.
If youāre like me and youāve been researching the industry since you were 15 (and have a law studentās knowledge of contracts), your skills may assist you better in traditional publishing.
So, think about the type of knowledge you have/would be able to acquire.
Keep in mind: marketing knowledge is applicable and needed for both routes.
3. Factor: Budgetary concerns
Weāre not all in the same financial situation. I know itās not fun to talk about money, but it does play a significant role in publishing.
With traditional publishing, you will have to spend money on marketing. Furthermore, if you hire an editor/critique service in order to polish your manuscript before you query, thatāll cost you a few bucks too.
However, self-publishing requires a lot more money. You need to pay a cover designer, critique service, editor, proofreader, formatter etc.(there are often packages to this effect) And you will have to pay for marketing as well. If you use platforms like CreateSpace or IngramSpark, you donāt have to pay for the printing itself, since itās print-on-demand.
This consideration isnāt about whether you have bags of money just waiting to be used. Itās about whether you have the financial and personal capacity to save the money you need (and whether you can budget well). Calculating how much you need to save each month in order to self-publish and sticking to that calculation will be necessary for the self-publishing route (unless you have quite a few dollars lying around).
So, if you are on a VERY tight budget (like me as a student) or know that you are absolutely horrible at sticking to your saving goals, consider trying the traditional publishing avenue.
HOWEVER, the income you receive from the published product must also be kept in mind. With traditional publishing, authors get a (relatively small) advance and then a small percentage of the sales as royalties (12% is generous where Iām from). Since the publisher paid for everything, they also get most of the profit. With self-publishing, you get the biggest percentage of the sales revenue (some of it will go to the printing and distributing platform).Ā
4: Factor: Your personality/preferences
Are you a very versatile person? Would you like spending your time on various different aspects of the publishing process? Do you need control of every aspect of your book babyās release into the world? Are you good at managing projects? Can you be difficult to work with? Are you excited by the idea of paving your own way and ignoring industry stigmas? Are you great at sticking to self-imposed deadlines? Then youāre probably more suited to the world of self-publishing.
Do you want to focus on writing (and marketing) and not really the other stuff? Are you okay with relinquishing some control? Do you work well with others? Does prestige matter to you? Does the idea of managing a big project alone give you the jitters? Then your personality might work better for traditional publishing.
Please donāt think that this is set in stone. Iām not trying to place anyone in a box. This is just another factor you can take into account when making your decision.
5. A decision doesnāt bind you for life
You can be a hybrid author. If youāve decided to pursue traditional publishing, you can always switch to self-publishing later once youāve made a name for yourself. If youāve already self-published one (or a few) books, nothing prevents you from querying agents for a different project and going the traditional route. (In fact, having self-published books might count in your favour.)
So, it is an important decision, but it isnāt set in stone.
I hope that this is helpful. If you have any questions, head over to my asks. And if you want to request a writing advice post, donāt be shy.
Reblog if you found these tips useful. Comment with the route youāre thinking of taking. Follow me for similar content.
This is interesting!
I would actually (very respectfully) disagree about traditional publishing being the better route if youāre dirt poorā at least when it comes to romance/erotica.
I only say this because I, too, believed in the superiority-of-trad-pub misconception when I was fresh out of college. I sold a series of romance novels to the first house that took them. I cannot emphasize enough how deeply I regret this; I just had no idea what I was doing, and 3k seemed like a hell of a lot of money when I was 23. I havenāt seen a royalty from that in ages but my self-pub residuals continue to roll in from Amazon.
Had I known about KindleUnlimited back then, I could have really made some money to sustain myself. (And yes, I know, Bezos is evil and Amazon is evilā¦ but what does that say about the publishing industry that Amazon self-publishing offers the most profitable 70/30 royalty split that exists?)
Annnnyway, itās very possible to publish an erotic short for a minimal amount of money, if you do a bit of research into the game. Once you make money from self-pub (which admittedly does take ~60 days), you can invest more into a full-length novel or a cover or a professional editing service, etc.
But if youāre legitimately broke, hereās what I suggest.
Get a subscription to KindleUnlimited. I think they have free trials for up to a month. After that itās $10/month and you can cancel whenever. For that month, read everything that interests you. Read the top 10 books in each niche that floats your boat (billionaire romance, new adult, sports romance, gay paranormalā¦ there are so many possibilities!) Read the numerous self-pub how-to guides to offer more perspective than I can provide. During your reading, take note of the POV, the pacing, the themes, the story structureā and yes, each niche/genre will be different and have different expectations. Evaluate your ability to write in a similar way.
Buy a cheap photo package with a website thatās erotica approved. This is to make your cover. I think BigStockPhotos is ok with their content appearing on covers of erotic shorts/romance novels, but always double-check. Sites like these will offer discounts on a certain number of photos per month. Log in each day to download the number of photos you selected (usually 3 per day with the month-long package?).
With norms of your niche in mind, make your own cover in PhotoShop, Canva, or Gimpā or even use Amazonās free cover creator (not great, but better than nothing). Even better, make several covers at once to prepare for a series. Your covers absolutely do not have to be perfect; youāre just getting started.
Pick a penname. Unless you want your real name attached to whatever content youāre writing, make one up that kinda fits your niche. If youāre writing a scifi short, pick Luna Landing (geddit?) or something like that. As an aside, even if you identify as male, I suggest a female-sounding name. For some sociopolitical reason that I donāt have time to analyze, those seem to sell better.
Write a short. It doesnāt have to be deep, it just has to be something that sells. Remember, this is all based on what youāve read/your niche research. I recommend nothing less than 5k words; 7-10k is better, but youāll probably be ok with 5k. Just make sure thereās sufficient material so customers donāt end on a complete cliffhanger to the next book; Zon can and will swing the ban-hammer if customers report feeling dissatisfied.
Edit your shortā and Iām talking about self-editing here. Just correct any typos; donāt worry about flowery language or purple prose. Again, this does not have to be perfect.
Format your book. Honestly you can do this in Word or even OpenOffice for not a whole lot of work. Iām a bit confused as to why this was presented as an expensive option; hereās even a YouTube video explaining how to do this. Refer to those self-publishing guides for reference if you need help. It wonāt be fancy, but it covers the ground and itās free. When you start making money, you can pay for programs like Vellum, or even hire someone to format for you.
Price it at $2.99. This is basically the agreed-upon price point. I donāt know why, but this is also the expected price for full-length digital novels. I will always, always suggest enrolling in KindleUnlimited. You canāt go ābroadā (meaning you canāt publish on multiple sites), but now that Iām publishing full-length novels, I basically make $2 every time someone finishes a novel because we get paid a fraction of a cent per page swipe.
Throw it up on Amazon! Research the best keywords and blurbs for your niche (and again, basically all of this information is available to read for free online). Hit publish. Wait a day or so to check your sales. Lather, rinse, repeat.
Get fancy, if you want. Once your first book is out, you can look into ARC programs to get ahead of the review game for the next book. Several of these ARC programs have free options. You can also bundle a few books into a series and price it at $7.99/10 books. I will always, always suggest enrolling in KindleUnlimited.
Get paid, and invest in a longer book if thatās your jam. Self-explanatory. Once you make money, you have more to spend on this if itās really your passion. You can even work your way up to using your real nameā and yes, I have like 5 pennames floating around. Itās definitely possible to have more than one.
Soā¦ for anyone out there who doesnāt mind writing a bit of strange content to make some quick cash, this is a valid option!
