In light of the recent events regarding my book being published, I’ve had a lot of people asking questions about the difference between self publishing and traditional publishing.

Before technology took off the only way to get your book published was what those in the publishing industry now refer to as “traditional publishing.” Thankfully, times and technology have changed, and as a result so has publishing. Now you can avoid having to find an agent (they take 15% anyways), the wait times after submitting your manuscript and the dreaded rejection letters. Not to mention losing complete control over your novel after the countless edits and modifications. While the dreams of receiving a large advance cheque makes most authors want to take the traditional route, they tend not to realize that if your book doesn’t sell well you need to pay back that advance-sad but true.

Enter self publishing. While self publishing is by no means any easier, it does make the experience more pleasant. You do not require an agent to self publish, you have the freedom to create your own cover designs. While you do not get an advance, but you do make a profit off of every book that you sell. Most do not charge a fee, and have the option for you to select packages that include everything from cover design and editing. All with just the click of your mouse.

The difficult part about self publishing is getting your book into actual book stores. Most self publishing companies will provide you with an ISBN number which gets you put into Books in Print. Most online bookstores for example Amazon will have your book posted for sale once you have an ISBN number.          

The one common ground that both methods of publishing have is marketing. In most cases you are required to self market, but with so many social networks these days it’s not a difficult task.

So the ultimate choice is yours, you can either wait 2  years for a publisher to read your manuscript of course after having to find an agent etc. Or you can skip all of that and have your book in print and out for sale before you can say New York Times Best Seller. I think the choice is clear.

 Below I’ve included some of the trustworthy self publishing sites:

Xlibris www.xlibris.com/

iUniverse www.iuniverse.com

Cold Tree Press www.coldtreepress.com

Lulu www.lulu.com

Blurb  www.blurb.com/

Hope this was helpful, as always if you have any questions feel free to msg!

Xoxo

Elle

p.s. you can now ask me any questions by visiting: http://www.formspring.me/elleoquent

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