Writing is an honor to those who partake in this sacred profession. As authors, our books are brought into lives around the world. Our ideas, fears, and hopes are held in the hands of people whom we may never meet.
There are also pitfalls to becoming a writer. One of our greatest fear is *whispering* that our writing may never get picked up.
In this new world of publishing, we have been given the freedom that for years has been lacking in the publication world—we have access to low-cost/no-cost e-publishing to get our writing into the hands of readers.
If said fear comes true, is this avenue a suitable solution for your work? My advice: Approach with Caution.
Self-publishing is a simple thing to do only in theory. Yes, it is simple to upload your document onto the many sites that offer publishing. However, if you chose this option remember that you are the sole person responsible for editing, layout, marketing and sales.
Assuming that your book is free of flaws and well-written (which many, but not all of self-published books are), you are still strapped with the job of selling your book.
Marketing is a daunting process.
If you have a thousand friends on a social networking site, how many do you honestly believe will buy your book? How many people do you know that own or want to own an e-reading device? The truth: not many; and unless you have a significant following, or a backlog of previously published books, traditional publishing may be a better answer.
Writers need to write, but we feel better if our readers can access our stories.
Admittedly, there are many positives to self-publishing. In certain circumstances, it is the best option for the author. There are amazing stories where authors sold millions of e-books through self-publishing, but ask any one of those writers how hard they worked and I am sure you will get an earful of ideas and strategies that have worked for them. If you are self-motivated, ambitious, well-informed, have a great book, and are willing to work hard then go for it!
Before making a choice, just make sure you’ve done your research and do not head into the deep waters of self-publishing without knowing the possible sharks that swim in those same waters.
If you’re a reader, what do you think about self-published e-books? We’d like to know!
Written by Danica Winters and Edited by Casey Dawes
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