Reasons to Self-Publish
"Take pride in being a self-published author"
by Leigh K. Cunningham
Author and Executive Director of the Association of Independent Authors (AiA)
Leigh K Cunningham is a lawyer with a career as a senior executive for a number of public companies in her home country of Australia. She has three master’s degrees in law, commerce, and an MBA. She is currently the Executive Director of the Association of Independent Authors (AiA).
Leigh has won six awards for her four books, one of which was #1 on the Amazon bestseller list for Women’s Fiction. All were self-published.
"Gone are the days when self-publishing was
virtually synonymous with self-defeating. It is
now possible to self-publish with respect."
--Paul Nathan, Publishers Weekly
A lot has changed in the publishing landscape in a very short period of time. Just five years ago, we would not have expected to hear about big-name authors and celebrities - who are in a position to choose a publishing house - deciding to self-publish. Jim Carey announced his intention to self-publish his “metaphysical” children’s book about a wave saying, “I’m going to self-publish because that’s just the world right now and I think it’s cool.” Others choosing this path include Jackie Collins, JK Rowling (Pottermore), Ian Fleming’s Estate (the James Bond 007 series), Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright/author David Mamet, and Eric Van Lustbader (author of the Jason Bourne series).
And a novel originally self-published by a Manhattan public defender recently won the Robert W. Bingham Prize at the PEN Literary Awards, a prestigious award program not known for recognizing titles that came to life as a self-published title. This is a perfect example of how publishing has turned 180-degrees so that self-publishing now is the platform for authors to showcase their work, rather than the traditional query process and slush pile. Possibly the most famous and most successful example however is EL James whose trilogy, Fifty Shades of Grey was originally published by the author as Twilight fan fiction.
Some diehard authors persist with the time-consuming and mostly futile path of finding an agent in order to find a publisher. A lot of that persistence is based on an outdated notion that securing a publishing contract means instant success, fame and fortune, and credibility. It does not, and for 8 out of 10 authors who do secure a traditional publishing contract, their joy will be short-lived as their book, which may take up to two years to make it onto physical bookshelves (not including years in the query process), is relegated to the back lists to gather dust.
In the golden days of publishing, it was a worthy pursuit – authors would receive often sizeable advances, and publishers provided marketing support for debut and mid-list authors. That is no longer the case. The advance is almost non-existent unless you are a celebrity. Authors are expected to undertake most, if not all, of the marketing themselves, and before a publisher will even consider offering a contract, they want to see the platform and social network you’ve established. Does it make sense to invest so much time and money to earn 10% of net sales less the 15-20% you need to pay your agent? On that criteria alone, probably not, especially since eBooks are now the dominant format in adult fiction accounting for 40% of sales. You don’t need a publisher to pay you a 25% royalty on eBook sales when you can upload to the Kindle Store and Smashwords for free to access an expansive global distribution network while earning 70% in royalties.