INDEPENDENT VS TRADITIONAL PUBLISHING

There are a few main differences between self-publishing and going through a traditional publisher. Let’s talk about them.

In self-publishing, the author owns the rights and royalties to their book. In traditional publishing, you hand those rights over. Now, that does come with a lot more responsibility. In traditional publishing, you have a team of people who are going to handle editing, formatting, cover design, and marketing your book. If you choose to self-publish, you’re on your own with all of that. But you get to have control over every detail of your novel. In traditional publishing, you will also get a smaller percentage of your royalties. In turn, you are guaranteed a professional looking and sounding book with less individual effort put in yourself.

Self-Publishing

• You are guaranteed to be published, no rejection by publishing companies

• You have total creative freedom and are in charge of the timeline

• You get about 50-70% of the royalties for your book

• You can control the amount of money spent on your novel (although sometimes more expensive)

Traditional Publishing

• You can get reviews and literary awards more easily

• You have more guidance from professionals

• You can get your book sold in physical bookstores rather than solely online

• 5-15% of royalties

Which is better? Short answer, that completely depends on you and what you are comfortable with.

I've decided to publish independently through Amazon Direct Kindle Publishing. This gave me more creative freedom, but it also meant I was on my own figuring a lot of stuff out since it was a very hands-on process. I enjoyed that, but it did take more time and effort to find independent content and grammar editors, cover design artists, and beta readers. I also had to teach myself how to actually go through with the publishing process and market my book.

While that was a lot, I went with self-publishing because I wasn't interested in strict deadlines, people picking through my story and changing things I didn't necessarily want to be changed, and having to surrender the rights to my book and the way it would be advertised. That's just my style. I write because I love writing and staying authentically myself is my top priority.

You may be different though. That's totally okay! If you want to really go professional, make a name for yourself, and reach lots of people, maybe traditional publishing is for you! At the end of the day, these are an established companies for a reason. They know what they are doing and how to gain the attention of readers. If career writing is what you want, and you are prepared to jump into that world, go for it! They are always looking for the next big thing, and who knows. It might just be you.

Interested in pursuing self-publishing and need a hand? Don't worry, I've got articles on everything. Just keep scrolling.