another self-publishing story
I enjoy reading the experiences of writers who decide to self-publish ebooks. Such account have almost become a genre at this point, with narrative conventions of their own. Typically, they go like this:
1.) Author laments the dismal state of the publishing industry.
2.) Author discovers the concept of ebooks, usually with some suspicion.
3.) After much deliberation, the author decides to experiment in self-publishing.
5.) The author goes all-in with self-publishing, finds it much more enjoyable than traditional publishing.
(Looking back at those old posts, it’s fun to see how my thinking has changed over the last four years.)
Anyway, in that vein, this post by Elisabeth Noughton, describing how she actually lost money as a successful traditionally published writer, caught my eye. Key quote:
Of course, this all seems fabulous and it sounds like I’m making tons of money, doesn’t it? But you have to remember that I wrote for ten years without making a penny. Three plus of which as a published author. If you add up what I’ve made self publishing and divide it by ten years, trust me, it’s not much in the long run. But the growth potential is there, and that’s what keeps me going. There was a time not long ago when I was pretty sure I was going to have to go back to teaching because I wasn’t making any money writing. I was even looking at job postings online, trying to find a science position in my area. Now that’s all changed. I get to keep doing what I love. I get to keep writing the books readers love because of self publishing.
I can relate. I’m about 1/3 of the way through the final volume in the DEMONSOULED series, and that never would have happened without ebooks.
What’s especially interesting is that Ms. Noughton was a successful traditionally published writer, and still made no money. I was an unsuccessful traditionally published writer, and, naturally, made no money. Either way, ebooks are a better deal for both writers and readers – writers, for the reasons mentioned in the post, and for readers, due to both a.) the availability of vast quantities of material, and b.) the ability to read all that material without filling up one’s house with books.
The gates have cracked, and the gatekeepers are standing atop them in bewilderment, wondering what just happened.
-JM