The Difficulties of Self-Publishing

reply to post by Scaleru

Have you missed an opportunity? I read all of your interesting post, but but but I did not see a plug for your book, it's an opportunity as there are lot's of people on ATS that love to read, and is your book also available in audio, thats become quite a good outlet too. many people including myself like to do their tasks while listening to books being read to them.... even in the car driving, sometimes it makes a plesant change from guitars and drums and boring radio conversations, to play an audio book whilst driving... anyway, thanks for posting this, I found it informative as I have managed to piece a book together and would love to try and self publish... I just have to kick start myself sometimes... oh and I wont use your post to plug my book that would not be very courteous...

reply to post by flipflop


We are all being careful of T&Cs. A valid approach. The problem is that most of us are not after millions of dollars and only a tiny few actually make any more that pocket money. It is more of a hobby.

Perhaps the mods need to consider that writing can be a non paying hobby and as such we should be able to swap stories and generally discuss the huge changes in the publishing industry.

A word to the wise, understand what is changing and why. The old big publishers are dying slowly. Someone once told me too follow what's trending! I prefer to write what I want to and make a new trend. Following trends in Sci Fi and fantasy is a mugs game. Diversity rules!

P

Originally posted by Scaleru
LoneCloudHopper2
However, when I see other authors, such as Stephanie Meyer, and the impact that they have had on the industry, I silently weep. I recently saw a meme on this very topic. Three reviews on the original Dracula, all giving it 2 or 1 stars, each saying that it was not up to par with todays language, that the story dragged on due to the use of "old English". Two of them went further to say that if the author had read Twilight (as we all know, an impossibility/travesty), the novel may have been much better. Truly saddening.

Wow...I actually read "Dracula" by Bram Stoker recently and I really enjoyed it. I honestly don't remember another vampire story (in written form) that I ever liked. I enjoyed a few of the movie adaptions of the book, but that's about it. The whole vampire craze is pretty much just the same ideas and style over and over. "Dracula" was a classic in my opinion (and in many people's, I think.) It was written in a bit of that Victorian style that readers today might not have the patience to appreciate, but indeed it is sad to hear Stephenie Meyer being talked about as a better writer than Bram Stoker. It would be like saying that Brittany Spears is a better musical artist than Sinead O'Conner. This is where critics are supposed to step up and articulate why one thing is "creative and well-crafted" (art) and another is "derivative" (hack art.)

However, this should not affect our determination to continue our own writing and self expression. If you are planning on submitting to a traditional publishing house, they will take on your work if they think it is good, not based on a word count. Self publishing? There are pretty much no limitations except your ability to sell yourself. You could sell a book of 300 blank pages IF your marketing strategy was right, just in the same way that you could sell a book with 2 pages with the right plans.

In any case, good luck! Don't give up!

Thanks for the advise and encouragement. Right back at you!

I'll never give up, I love what I do too much.

Finally back! Just a general reply to everyone today.

I've been thinking recently, and this may not occur to everyone, but the polish on your final product does not have to shine like a diamond. I've had people read my work and several of them have returned to me saying they loved it, ignoring the occasional spelling or grammatical error that I may have missed.

This, however, shouldn't be confused with writing style!!! For this, I think everyone that hasn't seen (or read, for as far as I know, it is a novel) "Dead Poet's Society", do yourself a favor. There is a part that discusses the use of words such as "very" and "really"; don't use them!

You are not "very tired", your are "exhausted".
You are not "very happy", your are "ecstatic".
Something is not "very shiny", it is "lustrous".

The list could go on forever! Thesaurus is your friend in a tight pinch, but use your gut.

Something I have been meaning to ask: What is your take on the word "said"? I try to avoid it myself, attempting to use something more descriptive wherever possible.

As a final note: Don't be discouraged by bad reviews. They will come, and they will probably come in droves. As has already been stated, not all who read your work are going to enjoy it. They may like parts of it, they may despise the whole concept, but there will be others that will become totally enthralled by your story. These are the people you need to focus on!

Look forward to see if anyone is still watching!

S. J. Vellenga

Ya I get the impression now a days that the title and the book cover seem to be as important as what's in the book. and even if you're book sucks the big one as long as the title and cover are good it will still help to sell it.

Originally posted by Scaleru
Finally back! Just a general reply to everyone today.

I've been thinking recently, and this may not occur to everyone, but the polish on your final product does not have to shine like a diamond. I've had people read my work and several of them have returned to me saying they loved it, ignoring the occasional spelling or grammatical error that I may have missed.

This, however, shouldn't be confused with writing style!!! For this, I think everyone that hasn't seen (or read, for as far as I know, it is a novel) "Dead Poet's Society", do yourself a favor. There is a part that discusses the use of words such as "very" and "really"; don't use them!

You are not "very tired", your are "exhausted".
You are not "very happy", your are "ecstatic".
Something is not "very shiny", it is "lustrous".

The list could go on forever! Thesaurus is your friend in a tight pinch, but use your gut.

Something I have been meaning to ask: What is your take on the word "said"? I try to avoid it myself, attempting to use something more descriptive wherever possible.

As a final note: Don't be discouraged by bad reviews. They will come, and they will probably come in droves. As has already been stated, not all who read your work are going to enjoy it. They may like parts of it, they may despise the whole concept, but there will be others that will become totally enthralled by your story. These are the people you need to focus on!

Look forward to see if anyone is still watching!

S. J. Vellenga

Something for you to try. Next time you are reading a good book, one that sucks all your attention, stop at some point and count the number of times a word like 'said' was used. You will be surprised! Our minds just tend to flow over those words without registering them as words.

As for replacing words like 'very' I agree with what you have said but : Know your audience. With many sections of target audiences, big words can be off putting.

There are no rules, just suggestions to be weighed and either used or discarded.

P

reply to post by Bajema


Wow, thats a cool story. Do you have a link or website with your artwork, id love to see it? (I promise I wont steal it for my album cover, honestly just a giddy admirer of creative talent, but will completely understand your tentativeness)

spartacus699
Ya I get the impression now a days that the title and the book cover seem to be as important as what's in the book. and even if you're book sucks the big one as long as the title and cover are good it will still help to sell it.

The cover art and the description (or the back cover if you're talking about traditional publishing) are easily the most important factors in attracting buyers).

I've never solicited reviews with any of my books, but the cover art has managed to get reviewers to purchase my books and review them, and that is where the content comes into play.

Fantastic thread! Thank you tremendously for putting all of this together!

Wow this thread has been so helpful thank you!

I am currently writing a short novel its been about a 6 month progress and hope to finish the story in a few weeks. Then start editing and getting friends to read it and help edit. I must say the mental work authors put in is amazing so much brain power going to your finger tips to imagine a world. Truly amazing and I praise all of you for your efforts.

I hope to get published its been a long ride and would love to share my little story with the world.
Again thank you for this thread lots of great tips I will be using in the future!

We should start an ATS Support group, for aspiring writers- regardless of if your a hobbyist or feel as though it really is your true calling in life. I have been working on several little projects for 5 years now, but never could stay focused long enough to take the "leap" to just finish any one thing.

Over the last two months I have turned over a new leaf and am going to see a project through-- even if it is pure crap in the end.... lol. You can't grow unless you actually get on with it and put yourself out there.

I want to thank everyone in this thread for sharing their experiences. I did quite a bit of research regarding self publishing and there is quite a bit in this thread that I didn't even consider.

Promotion clearly is as big of a challenge as actually finishing a work.

Agent008
Good luck with it! Remember; edit edit edit! And if you can't stomach editing it it again, get someone else with a fresh view to do it! BUT, don't over edit! I know, contradictory, but you'll know when enough is enough!

slip2break

Yes, promotion is INCREDIBLY difficult, though it's an issue whether you are traditionally published OR self published, as many traditional publishing houses will only do so much work as well. I'm over a year into publishing 2 works now, and I've had dismal sales, hence my work to improve my cover art as well as the promotional blurb on both the cover and online stores. Heres to hoping it makes some improvement!

Ameilia
reply to post by Scaleru

 

I've got over a dozen books published through Amazon's KDP and most of them have also been formatted for paperback using Createspace. I am in their Select program, meaning I must publish ebooks exclusively through Amazon. I do not do this for the free days, which I have never used, but do it for the Borrows. In Select, your book is eligible to be borrowed by any member of Prime and each Prime member can borrow one book per month. In June (July data is not available yet) the borrow royalty was $2.24. My books were borrowed 51 times so I made over $100 just in borrows.

A tip about Createspace. After about a year, Amazon will mark down your paperback price. Say you were selling for $9.99 and your royalty was $3.00. They mark you down to $8.99. This does not cut your royalty. You would still make the same $3.00 you were making before, the discount comes from Amazon's royalty.

When my first book got marked down, I tried an experiment. I raised my price to $10.99 and waited, a week later it was marked down again to $8.99. But my royalty went UP due to MY price point of $10.99. So if they discount you, take advantage. Lots of writers get angry they were discounted, I am making more money so...

I would encourage any writer who wants to publish to use Amazon. Stay inside their rules and you'll do just fine.

I'm curious about the KDP program, I thought that was only for 3 months before the exclusivity to Amazon elapsed??

slip2break
We should start an ATS Support group, for aspiring writers- regardless of if your a hobbyist or feel as though it really is your true calling in life. I have been working on several little projects for 5 years now, but never could stay focused long enough to take the "leap" to just finish any one thing.

Over the last two months I have turned over a new leaf and am going to see a project through-- even if it is pure crap in the end.... lol. You can't grow unless you actually get on with it and put yourself out there.

I want to thank everyone in this thread for sharing their experiences. I did quite a bit of research regarding self publishing and there is quite a bit in this thread that I didn't even consider.

Promotion clearly is as big of a challenge as actually finishing a work.

I would love to see a support group here. That is kinda how I found this thread. I am in the process of trying to get my first book out and I really have felt a need of a group of people that I could relate to who have been through this. I am struggling with some aspects of setting a deadline which is to be very soon. I have only myself to rely on for almost everything at this point, and I have had struggles with having to do things for little to no cost. I considered getting some help from people at fiver.com with editing or cover art, though I am probably going to do it myself. I am just way too obsessive and broke!

Another huge drawback is I have ADHD and all these things to do make it intimidating. Trying to make a list of things to do and in what order is just not happening, so I cripple along working on cover art one day and writing/editing the next and so on. I am really hoping to get this done by next month. I have spent a year writing and working on things at my leisure but I need the extra cash and have plenty of material.

Another thing not mentioned here is selecting a pen name! Not everyone needs or wants to do this but that can be quite a decision. I am still debating mine. I often get lost on sites with random name generators and make endless lists of names for characters as well as this pen name.

I am happy to see others around this site who write as I do.