I was first published with an ebook publisher that closed and I now am indie published. for me being published with a publisher really taught me a lot and helped bring my writing to another level. The chose to self-pub is a personal one but learn all you can and it is best to have material up.

Hi Kim! I've never tried going the traditional publishing route, so I can only speak to my experience as an indie author. For me it was about retaining control over every aspect of my book. I did hire a professional editor, though, because English isn't my first language and I've never written anything of that length before. I don't know how active you are on social media, but starting out without a solid following is really hard and one of the things I wish I'd thought about before I got started. There are so many great books out there so the first thing that happened after I clicked the 'publish' button was absolutely nothing. I've been promoting my book for about two months now (although I don't have much time for it because I have a little one at home, too) and things are SLOWLY moving in the right direction. It's a process of trial and error, often frustrating, but I'm learning a lot. I think going the traditional route still comes with inbuilt prestige and validation so it might let you approach the whole thing with a little more confidence. I hope a traditionally published author will comment on that. I just published the first draft of my next novel on wattpad.com/alexbenkast and started my first round of editing this week. I could definitely use a proofreader/beta tester. I always welcome constructive criticism.