Forget Self-Publishing Stigma, Make the Choice That’s Right for You

Four often overlooked aspects of the publishing-route decision

Photo by Lennert Naessens on Unsplash.

A recent Write City Blog had an excellent post by B. A. Durham debunking myths of independently-published books.

Durham countered the top pervasive myths of self-publishing and noted my top pain point on this topic: how many in the author and publishing community still look down on those who go this route.

I am not one of them.

Looking down on self-publishing, IMO, only shows a lack of understanding of the current publishing landscape and the costs and benefits of different options.

I am often advising new and established authors on best publishing routes and, beyond debunking myths, I think there are four additional things that should come into one’s decision to self-publish or not.

1) You can begin the self-publishing process today and get your book out in a matter of weeks or months; the publishing journey thru agent or publisher can take 18–24+ months, then you typically wait another 8–14 months for your first royalties check. There are opportunity and income costs to all this lost time.

2) The learning curve for self-publishing is steeper than many imagine. If you choose…