Is self -publishing smart?

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Anngladys
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Re: Is self -publishing smart?

Post by Anngladys »

cluznar wrote: 22 Jan 2017, 16:27 You need to not only self publish, you need to edit and market. Even if the self publisher does marketing you need to do some marketing also.
So true. Self-publishing is a lot of work, and it needs to be taken seriously. Put in the necessary time, work, dedication and committment and you'll see great results.

Plus, if you do it well enough, people will notice your work and come to you for publishing services, and voila, you end up being a regular publisher as well!
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Post by Anngladys »

Renee24 wrote: 21 Feb 2017, 13:00 I"m writing a novel too, and been reading a lot of books about this topic. They say first time writers can't get into the door, so how do you get in the door, unless you self publish? I think they said something about a platform too, so you need to be out there with a blog and such. What about the new Amazon Kindle publishing, that is free, and might be a good way to at least get your foot in the door, so to speak? Then you can work on your next novel and find ways of getting yourself noticed.
Good luck!
Renee
Yes, this is true. And if you do well enough, you might find regular publishers asking for rights to run with your book.

But the question really is, why are you writing? What's your goal?
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Post by Anngladys »

shootseven wrote: 07 Mar 2017, 11:53 I would strongly recommend finding an agent or traditional publisher, unless your book is geared toward a very niche market, or you have a big following from other books. Don't let ego (ie, I want to control every aspect) get in your way of doing what is best for your book. Publishers can open up many doors (for one thing, with reviewers who might not touch self-published books).

I couldn't be more grateful to all the publishers of my first two books have done for me. Now, in those cases, they were history books, so that might be a little different than your situation, since just having an academic publisher adds credibility in those cases. Just a little of what my publisher did: Peer review before accepting the manuscript, which did help improve both books, advertising and opening doors in both markets and with reviewers, very aggressive library sales (my first book is in 1016 libraries world-wide).

My first novel is with a small publisher, which means I'll have to take on a lot of the marketing. But again, they were great to work with with the cover and editing, and they are opening some doors, but I'm too early in the process to judge the current experience (the book just came out a week ago).

Hope this helps.
I woudn't say that self-pubishing is a matter of ego. No, I'd say that it has more to do with someone's capabilities, especially financial. So if finances are tight, it's easier to go the self-publishing way in the beginning. Some publishers do ask for a lot of money upfront, you know?

I think that it's frustrating to wait for a long time for a traditional pubisher to give a response and work on one's book. And especially so when there are faster options available.

I still think it's about the quality of production, and understanding one's market very well.

But at the end of the day, it goes back to the author's goal. Is it about reaching as many people as possible and being famous, or is it about reaching the people who really need your book? Where are those people? How many of them do you want to reach? Do you therefore really need a traditional publisher?

I'd ask myself these and other related questions.
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Post by aruntr2001 »

I cant debate over weather it smart or not but it totally depends on the case to case basis where some of the famous authors can easily get increased popularity over the self published books while the same is not possible for newbie authors.
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Post by Samuel Windybank »

I’m in the late stages of preparing my novel for publication too. I’ve actually found a neat local publisher that helps put you in touch with cover artists and editors and formatters etc. Then, they help you to self publish. If they like your book then they will offer to publish it for you. They’re a hybrid publishing agent and it’s working well so far for me :)
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Post by shirleym89 »

I would say that if you believe that your book has great potential and you have a strong desire for people to read your work and you have the means to self publish, then you should definitely take that route. Publishing companies receive multitudes of manuscripts on daily basis and most of them take ages to get back to authors. Use that time wisely, you'll be in control of everything that happens with your book. That's great power.
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Post by marksm121 »

Self Publishing is fine when the publisher is not publishing you. Find the right source and the right platform to get published.And do self marketplace
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Post by janealicebooks »

I have several books and want to try 3 different routes.

The first one I tried self publishing via Amazon KDP but the print quality for a kids book is abysmal and the printing fee is ridiculous. The book looks like I printed it at home on 90x color printer on the cheapest paper I could find and even has extra unnessessary empty pages added in the end.

Next way I want to try to self publish by making a quality printed 1000 copies done in China and self-selling on Amazon FBA.
Does anyone has experience self printing books and selling via FBA? Please share pro/cons of this way?

And finally maybe worth contacting real publishers. Any tips on how to do so and where to start looking for them?

Appreciate all the advice! Keep writing! :techie-studyingbrown:
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Post by PeterRabitt20 »

With self-publishing, you'd have to do the marketing yourself. Which I found isn't easy. Publishing houses have more experience and they already know exactly where to go. They often have contracts with major bookstores.
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PeterRabitt20
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Post by PeterRabitt20 »

Mr_Wimbaum wrote: 31 Aug 2020, 16:20 I’m in the late stages of preparing my novel for publication too. I’ve actually found a neat local publisher that helps put you in touch with cover artists and editors and formatters etc. Then, they help you to self publish. If they like your book then they will offer to publish it for you. They’re a hybrid publishing agent and it’s working well so far for me :)
I never heard of a hybrid publisher. You can either self-publish or they'll publish for you? Thanks for giving that tip. I sent my manuscript everywhere, but I haven't gotten any response yet.
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Post by Samuel Windybank »

PeterRabitt20 wrote: 17 Dec 2020, 23:02
Mr_Wimbaum wrote: 31 Aug 2020, 16:20 I’m in the late stages of preparing my novel for publication too. I’ve actually found a neat local publisher that helps put you in touch with cover artists and editors and formatters etc. Then, they help you to self publish. If they like your book then they will offer to publish it for you. They’re a hybrid publishing agent and it’s working well so far for me :)
I never heard of a hybrid publisher. You can either self-publish or they'll publish for you? Thanks for giving that tip. I sent my manuscript everywhere, but I haven't gotten any response yet.
I had never heard of it either. I was at a book fair for indie authors and the publishing agent was there.
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Post by zoefoster »

I believe it is a personal choice. I started with a Cheap publisher and didn't enjoy being told that my narrative needed to be changed to something "they" liked more. That concerned me since it wasn't "their" tale, thus I'm happy being an indie author. I still respect and cherish my editor's opinion, but I now have complete authority over my story.
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Post by POETIC PACIFIC »

That's an important point, I mean traditionally, it can be almost impossible to self-publish, but because of the online books, it makes it even much easier to self-publish online. In that sense, I think self-publishing is smart because it simplifies once ever complex process of publishing with just one click of a button.
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rileybrown
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Post by rileybrown »

yes, had a good quality experience with mermaid publishers, their services were exceptional including cover designing , proofreading and many more.
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rileybrown
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Post by rileybrown »

yes, self publishing is smart I also self published my book and my book ghostwritten by mermaid publishers now my book is one of the best selling. :lol2:
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