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| Independently Impoverished After a couple of years with no success marketing my novels to agents and publishers, I self published, learning the ins and outs of marketing, the technocracy of electronic publishing and the frustrations of always trying to do things on a shoe-string budget - alone. As proud as I am of my self published novels, finally....I am now under contract to a publisher who does a much better job of editing, cover design, and many other details I missed. I realize much of the promotion is still in my lap, but the biggest burden - production and distribution, is someone else's responsibility. - whew! I leaned a great many lessons, which I have recorded for others who might want to trod the same path. Remember: "The great American novel has not only already been written; it has already been rejected." - Frank Dane In answer to those who question the quality of independently published books: "Literature is an occupation in which you have to keep proving your talent to people who have none." Jules Renard, quoted by Marilynn Byerly in her article "Why don't you write a real book?" copyright 1995. So - Independent Publishing - not "vanity publishing" where someone pays an arm and a leg to have an otherwise unmarketable book printed. And there are good reasons for this niche to exist - personal memoirs of interest only to family is one good example. But vanity publishing by inept authors is all too often used to label anyone who independently publishes. A quote from John Kremer's web site on Self Publishing - or - following Gerianne B. Van Vugt's lead, a better term - Independent Publishing: "Other famous self-publishers include Edgar Rice Burroughs, Stephen Crane, William E.B. DuBois, Alexandre Dumas, Mary Baker Eddy, Zane Grey, James Joyce, Rudyard Kipling, D.H. Lawrence, Edgar Allen Poe, Ezra Pound, Carl Sandburg, George Bernard Shaw, and Upton Sinclair. You could stock a very good library just from the books written by the above authors as well as those listed below..." Kremer then follows with a long list of successful independently published authors. The point of both these quotes is that the traditional publishing industry has, from its inception, not been responsive to many talented authors. Supermarket-like marketing is not for everyone, at least not the way big business approaches it. Note, however, that many of the self published authors have made significant sales, a reminder that many aspects affect sales - the author's reputation, his or her stand on issues, perhaps the controversial material in the book. It may even be an entertaining book (shades of Bridges of Madison County) in the eyes of readers - critics, reviewers and other literary intellectuals be damned. Kremer offers an excellent newsletter that you can sign up for on his book marketing web site. Writing the book was easy. The catches - Promotion, Production, and then FULFILLMENT - are the real bears lurking in the woods. Click here for some specific book production and promotional sources and tips, to include the technical and legal points such as ISBN's and copyright. Wonder if you have enough computer hardware and software? Check the computer page for tips on a cost effective system. Subscribe to Publisher's Weekly on-line ezine for loads of interesting information about the publishing industry, bookselling in general and the new books that the publishing houses are putting their money on. Lots of good tips for us little guys who want to be one of the big guys. Reading the hype may give you an idea for your own press releases. Of course, to be going through all of this agony, I must presume your work is really good - but whatever - remember - you will be the one doing the work. So if you don't have the desire to get your book out in front of the purchasing public, don't waste your time or money. Write your good book and hide it away in the back of the closet. No, please - not really! A little more advice (free - so probably worth about that much....) - as soon as you have a good, edited, proofed and ready to publish manuscript - start - the promotional process - now - even if you do it slowly. Build a marketing strategy that includes promotion, production and distribution. Spend a few bucks on selective marketing (again - look at John Kramer's "1001 Ways to Market Your Books" for good advice on how to begin - and follow through). Tom and Marilyn Ross were innovators in the world of self-publishing, and have recently put out a revised edition of The Complete Guide to Self-Publishing, a must-read for the independent publisher. Try Amazon.com or your favorite bookstore. But beware! There are many good and not-so-good companies offering ebook and print on demand services, and promotional support. As with the old vanity press and fee-charging editors/agents, the good operations are clouded with pure scams. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America have an excellent web site with warnings and alerts on scams, plus an informative page on the pros and cons of Print-on-demand and self-publishing. That innocuous phrase up there, "good, edited, proofed," is often the bane of us all, especially if you are doing it all yourself. Printed errors are embarrassing - I've done it too often myself. Before you go to print, paper or digital, be sure to have someone else carefully read your manuscript. If you don't have access to a good dictionary or thesaurus, click HERE to download the free Merriam-Webster Dictionary Lookup Button shown below for your computer. Merriam-Webster also offers a downloadable dictionary for the Palm.
Write a good book and independently publish if you have the gumption to attack the market. A few sales will come, and possibly the notice of other media, maybe even a major publisher with a bag full of money for your soul. My final word - The problem with independently published books is very simple: THE LACK OF QUALITY EDITING! DO NOT BE FOOLED - IT SHOWS - and is the cause of most independently books being rejected for reviews or placed on many book store shelves. Independent publishing usually means on a tight budget, and even $1000-2000 for an editor does not necessarily get you a good editing job. But self-editing just does not work. You can fool yourself, but you cannot fool the reading public. Or the many middle men and women in the business. |
© 2000-2010 John M. Taylor |
