As I near the end of my redraft, I’ve been thinking about the different routes to publishing and what might be the best option for me.  Maybe you are in the same place but if you’re not and are still at the early stages of the writing journey, then I still think it’s helpful to know what you are working towards.  The two routes to publishing are of course self-publishing and traditional publishing, both of which come with its unique set of benefits and challenges.

SELF-PUBLISHING

• Creative control - here you are the master of your creative universe. You make all the decisions on content and when you want to release your book. Even down to the cover design, you maintain your artistic vision. But you also have to make all the decisions and that is a big responsibility to take on. Especially when you are so close to it. It’s hard to be objective and commercially minded, when it comes to work that you’ve poured your blood, sweat and tears into.

• Faster publication - quicker lead times from completion to publication. Your decisions, made quickly.

• Higher royalties - long term it may be more commercially rewarding to go it alone, but you will also need to account for the marketing and distribution costs which could be prohibitive, especially as a first-time writer without a ready-made audience. Given how many books are published every year, you will likely need to spend a lot on marketing, to get any sort of cut-through.

• Direct relationship with readers - you can build a direct and special relationship with your audience through platforms like social media, email newsletters, and book signings, but to be fair I think this is something you have to do, whichever route to publishing you take.

• Flexibility - you can experiment with pricing, marketing strategies, and distribution channels to find what works best for your book and target audience, and you can keep going as long as your desire, ambition and wallet allows.

TRADITIONAL PUBLISHING

• Lengthy submission processes - if you are lucky enough to get interest, there is no guarantee of anything until contracts have been signed, with rejection always around the corner.

• Editorial support - accessing the advice, support and knowledge of experts is going to ensure your manuscript is the best it can be. Unless you’ve successfully managed to self-publish before, this is likely the best route for first-time writers.

• Business and marketing expertise - publishing professionals understand how to market books and have the contacts to get it widely distributed. But naturally this route, will involve longer timelines and less control over the process. Other dependencies include, what other books the publishing house may be releasing in any given year and what genres are trending. It is still humans making these decisions and sometimes they also get it wrong. Just ask the publishers who rejected Harry Potter.

• Limited control - both creatively, for example cover designs and the business side of things. You may well have to share royalties and will most certainly have to navigate complex contractual terms.

Ultimately, whatever route to publishing you take, will depend on your goals, resources, and preferences. Me, I personally don’t have the knowledge, time and finances to go down the self-publishing route but I might well consider it for my second book 😊.

Thanks so much for taking the time to read this post, I hope it’s been helpful.

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