And this is why I am going to try publishing most of my work independently, even though the thought terrifies me more than submitting my work traditionally
Of course, the thought of what comes afterwards IF a
traditional publisher contracts me is even more worrisome. I guess it’s a case
of horses for courses. I have one e-pub I publish with, under a pen-name. I
like them and they are good to work with, so I am working on more submissions
for them in that genre only, however, they are the exception.
The behaviour I’m seeing in the established markets for
most of my work has got me wondering how on earth any writer has made a living
of ANY kind in the last twenty years. My hat’s off to those who have had the
luck and skill to succeed under that regime, and for having the courage and
skill to try new options and then share their experiences.
When I see posts like this on the behaviour of established,
leading publishers, I think that the traditional route is not for me:
All writers should at least read this and consider. There is a lot of
good advice here, so please thank Kris Rusch with your
support.
And there’s even interesting news on the traditional publishing front for
romance from a publisher I expected better from, but have heard otherwise. This
one’s about royalties as well.
And this leaves me going over all the good advice from writers who are
self-publishing. You’ve all seen me reference The Newbie’s Guide by Joe Konrath, The Passive Guy,
Bob Mayer at Who Dares Wins, Dean WesleySmith, and the Pen Monkey at Terrible Minds,
but my recent reading and research has led me to these other blogs as well:
On finding and editor and what to watch out for: http://accrispin.blogspot.com.au/2012/05/vetting-independent-editor.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+AtLastWriterBewareBlogsAcCrispinAndVictoriaStraussRevealAll+%28Writer+Beware+Blogs!%29&utm_content=Google+Reader
Encouraging: http://thewritingbomb.blogspot.com.au/2012/05/anything-is-possible-for-indie-author.html
The Shatzkin files: http://www.idealog.com/blog/
Michael Stackpole: http://www.michaelastackpole.com/
David Farland and his ‘daily kick in the pants’: http://www.davidfarland.net/
David Gaughran: http://davidgaughran.wordpress.com/2012/04/26/was-self-publishing-the-right-decision/
So, am I good enough to eventually make a living by independently
publishing? Who knows, but I’ll never find out if I don’t try. And, with all the good examples above, I have no excuse not to try.
Some will like
my work and some will not. I will just follow the example of others, write,
develop craft, have beta readers, get pro-covers when they can be covered by
writing income, finish work, edit work, publish work and keep writing
regardless. Like anything else, some pieces will be better than others, and all
will be done to the best of my ability at the time. And if there are readers
out there who enjoy my stories, I will be content.
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