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Am I A Desperate Whore?
Please be honest with me.
I'm an unpublished children's novelist, working with a web designer who strongly advises putting my first novel on the website he's designing for me (the ms is complete; I'm finalizing the edits and was planning to shop it around to agents). His (kind and thoughtful) argument is that traditional publishing is dying and it's better to go directly to readers. I'm intrigued and suspicious.
Am I a literary whore for considering doing this? Does this count as "self publishing" if I simply put it out on the web? Does it diminish my credibility as an upstanding and professional author? Might it show the big publishing houses what kind of interest is out there (prompting them to offer me a contract)?
My published friend (who's also a musician) just emailed me these comments, which seem very valid (I've underlined my favorite line):
christine.
i ...saw that you were a little sideswiped by the self-selling e-writer who was selling ebooks directly without a publisher. i have to chime in given i have a little experience with this. i think this is a real way to go and something that publishers will have to deal with. publishers are agents. they are trying to make a buck. we buy books from publishers because we trust that it is "good" enough to be published. in exchange, most authors get taken. you promote yourself, you do the book talks, you, you, you and the publisher, in exchange for paying for printing and some minimal p.r., get a large cut. now, if that can be eliminated, good for us writers. it leaves the consumer with more of the challenge to find and determine what is good, but that's happening anyway. people don't go to bookstores. people don't buy cds. it's all about distribution and not about the cost to publish. you should really investigate this. you are going to have to do your own P.R. anyway. i think a lot of first time authors feel the need for validation from a publisher who says yes, but that's not why you are writing the book. it's not about that, especially if you are going to have to do all the p.r. anyway. a publisher who really believes they can use their P.R. power to get you on shows and other things to sell your book is great, but you've got to be good and very lucky to be one of the chosen authors that gets that kind of backing. think about it. as for children's books with illustrations, i'm sure kindle and others will soon have not only text but color images to view as well. there are some interesting questions to ask about this process, the "publisher" world, and why you are writing. publishers are going to have to really offer authors value or they will be disappearing too.
a little background. after a few rejections for my book, i quickly decided to publish myself and use my time and expertise to promote my book. no publisher would have done it, and no publisher could have promoted my book better than i could. i'm happy to help set up a p.r. plan for you. i've got lots of ideas, a few contacts, but mostly, you've got a lot of chutzpah and faith in your work and that's worth more than anything.
What do you all think?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Myne Whitman on -
In my opinion, there is no good and bad way, you just have to do what works for you. I am self published via POD, first Authorhouse and now Createspace for my second book. As a Nigerian romance novelist, I write for a niche audience and so it made sense. I also had lots of free time and buckets of motivation. I am successful today cos it worked out for me.
So while I'll mention it, it won't be the first option I'll give anyone. Traditional publishing is still easier if not as commercially lucrative in the long run(let me qualify that by saying, well you might get a great deal right out the door even if it's not very common). The decision is up to you.
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Permalink Reply by Christine Wolf on -
Thanks, Myne. I think your response makes a whole lot of sense. How did you spread the word about your book?
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Permalink Reply by Myne Whitman on
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I think building a social media network first, through my blog,, twitter and FB, really helped.
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Permalink Reply by Rev. LaWaughn Rouse on -
I feel the way you are going is the way. I have no real experience because I'm just starting out. But by starting out I'm in a learning stage so I have been doing my research on this matter. I want to make sure my hard work gets out and in the proper way. The only way I've ever done anything is by doing it myself. Yes you do have to have faith and a lot of heart (black girl term for chutzpah...smile)...but I think it may be worth it in the end. Validation from a publisher is nice but getting your work out to the public and making money in the process is the reason that I'm doing it...oh yea forgot about just the pure love of writing. RevLa (Rev. LaWaughn Rouse)
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Permalink Reply by Christine Wolf on
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RevLa,
Thanks for your reply. I like your heart/chutzpah.
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Permalink Reply by Rev. LaWaughn Rouse on
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And I like yours too chutzpah/heart
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