Self-publishing offers instant rewards and accessibility, but can be expensive and requires self-promotion. Niche experts benefit most, but lack of editing and competition with traditionally published books are drawbacks.
If you’ve got a book in your hands and are considering getting it “out there,” you’ll quickly find that your options are overwhelming. The main thing to consider, however, is whether or not you will be publishing your book. Self-publishing means that you take full care of your manuscript, from production to marketing. This has its pros and cons, which you should keep in mind when considering self-publishing.
PROS
The main benefit of self-publishing is the instant reward. Traditional publishing requires submitting your manuscript over and over again until it finds a home, dealing with rejections and perhaps rewriting it to fit a publisher’s or agent’s demands. This is all part of the normal publishing process, but again, it takes time.
In the past, self-publishing meant you had to order thousands of books and then stack them somewhere in your garage, but the advent of Print-on-Demand Publishing (POD) means you can now order one copy at a time, making the self-publishing accessible to all.
Self-publishing is a great option for speakers, professors, and experts who have a following and can tap into a niche market eager for information. Those who target a specific niche are more likely to sell a reasonable number of copies.
CONS
Self-publishing can get expensive. Even with POD publishers, you’re still using your own money to buy an ISBN, pay for copies upfront, and market and distribute your book.
Self-publishing means that you are solely responsible for promoting it. If you are shy or have trouble handling numbers, this may not be the best option for you. When promoting your book, you have to be relentless and willing to go the distance; if not, the book is likely doomed before it even hits the streets.
In self-publishing, you don’t have an editor to walk you through the process, helping you weed out bad grammar, flowery writing, and unnecessary words. Traditionally published books are always assigned a publisher, making them market-ready and better able to compete with the millions of other titles out there.
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