Options to Empower Your Publishing Goals

Thousands of stories are published and consumed every year. Human diversity is reader diversity, so one might think that any story can be published and consumed with ease. Yet, any professional will tell you that the publishing world is challenging, cutthroat even. Finding your footing as a new author requires a lot of hard work, dedication, and conscientious consideration of your personal goals and capabilities.

Self-publishing options are opening the door for many new authors to do the heavy lifting themselves and establish a reader base without the oversight of a big publishing house. While self-publishing can be a great option for some authors, others may want or need to hold out for the attention of a publishing house and all that it brings to the deal.

What is Traditional Publishing?

Traditional publishing comprises all the bells and whistles we've come to connect with authors—the literary agent, the publishing house, an editor, contracts, and set deadlines.

An agent will negotiate a contract between the author and the publishing house and act as a intermediary between the two. The author will then continue to revise her manuscript until it passes muster by the publishing house. It is then turned over to the publishing house, where it is formatted, printed, marketed, and distributed. With traditional publishing, the author might be consulted on non-writing aspects such as cover design and publicity campaigns, but largely the author gets to sit back, relax, and go through the draining process of writing the book (and maybe touring in the months following publication).

What is Self-Publishing?

Across the way from traditional publishing is self-publishing. For years it has been regarded as lesser publishing, a way for people who have no business publishing their work to publish their work. But with the rise of freelance and independent professionals who disrupt industries, it is now possible for quality content to be created, edited, and published without the backing of a traditional publishing house.

Without the experts at a publishing house, the author is responsible for copy editing, content editing, formatting, cover design, publicity, and distribution (and a whole host of additional and subset tasks). And unless your goal is to simply have a physical copy of your own book, none of these tasks are things that can be skipped, skimped, or sloppy.

Self-publishing comes with its own host of pros and cons.

“The big con, of course, is reach,” said Jenny Perinovic. Perinovic started her career as a self-published author and is now working with an agent to get her next book published through traditional means. One primary challenge for self-published authors is getting a book on the shelves of a library and physical bookstore. If your book isn't present to the casual browser, it's less likely to gain a wide audience.

While the self-published author has almost unlimited control over her work and how it is presented (a significant pro), she also has to double down on all the non-writing pieces of the process. Where she doesn't have a skill, she may have to hire out-of-pocket to keep her project moving forward.

“I made myself a calendar and scheduled tasks like interviews, arranging library visits, cover reveals, social media campaigns, etc., but by the time release came around, I don't think I had written a word in six months,” Perinovic said of her self-publishing journey.

How do I Choose Between the Two?

Perhaps the biggest question an unpublished author has to ask is, “what is my goal with publication?”

A writer who just wants a physical copy of her book and isn't worried about who else reads it probably isn't going to go through the process of querying an agent and putting a manuscript out on submission.

“If you choose to self-publish your book, you have to be comfortable with that being the end game for your book,” Perinovic said. Most publishers won't touch a book once it's been published. It's harder for a self-published author to get wide distribution and name recognition on her own, but it's not unheard of for a publishing house to approach an indie author who has found viral success and offer her a contract. (Anna Todd and Darcy Coates are two such authors.)

When a writer has a book and message she believes in with all her heart and soul, she might feel a need for the distribution capabilities of a publishing house so that her book is publicized and easily available for the audience she believes needs it. That process requires the slow and steady wearing down of barriers and polishing of your manuscript.

Additionally, the choice between self-publishing and traditional publishing can come down to where you have flexibility within your project goals. Traditional publishing will take longer, but the outlay of money is minimal. A good literary agent takes your manuscript and doesn't get paid until she's sold it. A publishing house buys the manuscript, pays for production, and makes their profits off the sales. You are not the one fronting the money for publication.

On the other hand, when an author chooses to self-publish it can be a nearly-instantaneous process, but the author is financially responsible for all the aspects.

How to Publish Traditionally

“If you want to be published by a traditional publisher, including the Big Four [Penguin Random House, HarperCollins, Hatchett Book Group, and Macmillan], you need to have an incredible manuscript that you've revised multiple times,” Perinovic said. Then you should expect to do more revising once you've queried and signed an agent. When a publishing company offers to buy the book, you should expect them to suggest additional edits.

Though it may seem to have fewer steps, traditional publishing requires an author to have great patience and resilience.

The first step is querying with literary agents—the process of sending sales pitch letters and hoping to prove to an agent that your book can make you both a profit. Agents, much like publishers, are inundated with manuscripts from hopeful writers looking for their big break, so you are likely to receive hundreds of rejection letters before you finally land an agent. But an agent is an irreplaceable part of the team—she will be responsible for selling your work to her network of editors and publishers. Big publishing houses will rarely even read a manuscript that hasn't been submitted by an agent. And while some smaller houses may accept unsolicited manuscripts, your agent will play a key role in making sure your book gets into the hands of the right publishers.

How to Self-Publish

At its most basic, self-publishing requires preparing content and selecting a printing/publishing partner. Some of the most popular self-publishing options include IngramSpark, Kindle Direct Publishing Print, and BookBaby. When considering a self-publishing press or printer, always take a look at the percentage of sales they take compared to the services they provide and the distribution network they claim. It may be worth it to allow them to take a bigger cut if it means you can get your book into brick-and-mortar stores.

Authors should always be wary of any company or service that promises success for a fee, Perinovic said. “They can't promise that, and you're likely to never make that money back.”

When an author starts getting her work out there, she might find herself contacted by various individuals or agencies offering relevant services, but not all of them will be reputable or worth the money, said Cynthia Bujnicki, a self-published author with a Bachelor's degree in writing, literature, and publishing. It's important to verify the validity of a business or organization before agreeing to work with them (and definitely before paying them) and it's also good to get samples of work they have done and who they have worked with.

Cultivating service trades with other authors or professionals can be a great way to save money on some of the polishing and design aspects of your book, Perinovic said. But you should make sure that you are providing and receiving quality trades.

Copy editing and cover design are two components where an author cannot afford to skimp. Nothing turns a reader off quite like a book riddled with easily-fixed errors. And reading is first a visual experience as potential readers skim titles and covers for something that captures the eye. A cover that is too busy, too unprofessional, or too cheap will turn readers off, no matter what the story inside is like.

Finally, funding campaigns on platforms such as Kickstarter can help cover the costs of publishing or printing your book, and the goals don't have to be large. Perinovic said she spent around $1,000 on her book, and was able to earn it back several times over, though the return isn't guaranteed by any means.

“I think it's a big misconception that indie publishing is the easy route,” Perinovic said. “It's really hard to do it right. There is no easy route.”

Project Management Empowers Success

When choosing to self-publish, a first-time author should look for all the help they can get. And while service trades are good for some pieces of the project, others will want or require professional, experienced help.

A project manager can be an invaluable member of your self-publishing team, helping you stay on top of your timeline and goals, and connecting you to professionals and experts who have the skills you need.

Empower Creative Agency, LLC provides project management services for a variety of creative endeavors, including self-publishing. To date, Paris Gramann and her team have helped 5+ authors fund and self-publish their books. You can book a free discovery call online to see how Empower Creative Agency can help you!