I was going to put the bat down and step away from the dead horse, but now that we've been quoted in the Guardian talking about the AI dingbats, I want to just say a couple of things about self-publishing and the value of $5,000.
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The first thing to say is that there are plenty of perfectly good reasons to self-publish.
You can be a writer and self-publish. You can be a writer and never publish. These things can be true and you can still be as wonderful a writer as any acclaimed, bestselling, traditionally published writer.
One reason you might want to publish traditionally is because it makes it easier for your book to get into bookshops. Publishers have sales teams, we have relationships with bookshops and booksellers.
That might not matter to you! But if it does, traditional publishing, might be the way to go (in which case a good first step is typically to find an agent).
Publishers like us WON'T ASK YOU FOR MONEY. That's not how it works. We pay our authors, not the other way around.
We take the financial risk of producing the book (another good reason for the existence of publishers) and pay an advance for the right to publish it. The author also earns royalties on their book.
first an author’s royalties go towards paying off the advance – that's why it's called an 'advance' – then once it's been paid off, additional royalties go to the author. They don't have to pay back an advance, even if it is never earned out.)
This is to say:
if you are a writer and are being offered the opportunity to publish your book, know whether you are involved in a relationship with a traditional publisher or a vanity publisher. One will be offering to pay you for your work, the other will be asking you to pay them for theirs.
Small publishers can rarely afford advances. Royalties if the book sells well enough - but that depends not only on its quality/saleability but in the publisher's marketing energy and reach.
Yeah, there's a real grey area, I think, because small publishers do have money, or how are they paying the printer? By not paying the author, they shift risk to the author.
Always ask for a business plan. Business plans have numbers and projected revenue, not just hope. If they get offended, walk
After Sandstone Press went bust I took the rights back to #PhosphateRocks and self published it. I’m still learning, but the print on demand economics are unattractive. I’ve worked in many supply chains and I have to say that publishing is one of the more opaque!
This is true of larger and more established publishers; small independent publishers tend not to have the same 'in' to big selling chains like Waterstones, Toppings, WH Smith, supermarkets, airports
Comments
You can be a writer and self-publish. You can be a writer and never publish. These things can be true and you can still be as wonderful a writer as any acclaimed, bestselling, traditionally published writer.
Publishers like us WON'T ASK YOU FOR MONEY. That's not how it works. We pay our authors, not the other way around.
first an author’s royalties go towards paying off the advance – that's why it's called an 'advance' – then once it's been paid off, additional royalties go to the author. They don't have to pay back an advance, even if it is never earned out.)
if you are a writer and are being offered the opportunity to publish your book, know whether you are involved in a relationship with a traditional publisher or a vanity publisher. One will be offering to pay you for your work, the other will be asking you to pay them for theirs.
Always ask for a business plan. Business plans have numbers and projected revenue, not just hope. If they get offended, walk
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