Self-Publishing vs. Traditional Publishing: A Personal Choice

March 13, 2024

Hey, folks!

Some of you may have looked at the lists I made last week about traditional publishing vs. self-publishing pros and cons and gone “it’s clear which route is better!” while others may have thought “well, that doesn’t help me decide!”

Both are valid reactions.

For the second group – and those in the first who may want to know the mentality on either side – I’ll tell you about my own decision-making process. Maybe it will give you new things to consider!

Story Time

I wrote a stand-alone urban fantasy novel, which I started working on in university. By the time it was as polished as possible, I was open to the idea of indie publishing, but I had my heart set on traditional publishing. So I hired an editor to help with my query letter and synopsis, and then I submitted to agents.

The most positive reaction I got was “I really love your writing, but I just don’t see how I can sell this right now.”

I was surprisingly comfortable getting rejections (maybe because of all the mental prep I’d done first), but after almost a year of querying, I had to stop and acknowledge that this book wasn’t going anywhere. Maybe one day I’ll revisit it, but right now, it’s on a metaphorical shelf.

Partway through querying, I started on my current book (another tactic to help get through rejections), which is the first in a high-fantasy trilogy. I was thinking trad for it too.

But then I started thinking about it more.

I was content to try trad for my urban fantasy – I don’t regret trying that route, nor would I have necessarily done anything differently. But I realized that while I was comfortable trying my hand at trad with a standalone, I had different feelings about my series.

It broke my heart thinking that I may not get the chance to tell the whole story. Not just to others, but to myself – because why write a whole series when the first one isn’t even going to be published? (My mentality – doesn’t have to be yours!)

See, with my urban fantasy, I had told the whole story. I was content. I’d had beta readers, so it was in the minds of others. I had fun writing it, and they had fun reading it. I was genuinely alright (if a little sad) that that was as far as it was going.

I wouldn’t feel alright if my current book got the same fate.

So I toyed with the idea of self-publishing. I was never 100% sold, but I kept inching closer. I was already working with clients who were self-publishing, and I loved that for them, but I still wasn’t sure for my book. And my clients weren’t publishing novels, so I didn’t see the behind-the-scenes for that specific world.

Then I became friends with people who were in the process of self-publishing fiction. And I liked what I saw. They had control, but more importantly for me, they were actually going to put their book into the world. And for me, having readers fall in love with my stories and characters is one of the most exciting things about writing.

So I jumped on the indie train completely.

Right now, my book is with an editor, and I’ll be reaching out to a cover designer hopefully in the next few weeks.

Those pros and cons lists in my previous post are what I weighed for myself with my high-fantasy. While the pros on the trad list were lovely, the cons – and the pros on the indie list – far outweighed them for me. The cons are hard on the indie list – paying for everything in particular – but I feel like they’re worth it. Will I feel the same way by book 3? We’ll see. But I’m willing and excited to give it a go.

Am I opposed to trying traditional publishing again in the future? Not at all! Will it be with another standalone? Probably. It feels better knowing I can at least put a finished product in someone’s hands rather than Part 1 of X.

All of this is my personal preferences and opinions. You may have different perceptions for yourself, and that’s ok! Welcomed, even. No author journey is going to be identical to another. As I said last week, what matters is doing what makes sense for you and your book. This makes sense for me. I hope you can figure out what makes sense for you ❤️

If you’re looking for an editor to help you with your poetry or picture book – whether you’re pursuing traditional publishing or self-publishing – I’d love to work with you! Fill out my contact form and let’s get talking 🙂