Recently, I got an email from Allyson, young, aspiring writer. She had a great question that I thought I’d answer here on the blog today. Her question was this: “I can’t decide whether I want to self-publish or traditional publish . . . I know you’ve done both, and I’ve been curious why you self-publish your YA books?”
To self-publish or go with a traditional publisher, that is the question these days, isn’t it?
I can speak to the traditional side of things since I’ve published over two dozen novels with four different traditional publishers. I can also speak to the indie side of the equation since I’ve now released a dozen indie books. I’m what is known as a hybrid author, one who has her feet firmly planted in both the traditional and indie publishing worlds.
I started off in traditional publication before self-publishing came of age. And being the driven and ambitious personality that I am, I knew almost from the start of the indie explosion that I wanted to give it a try. There were many reasons why, but here are just a few that drew me:
1. More publishing opportunities: I’m a prolific writer, mainly because I love telling stories and always feel at my best when I’m writing the first draft of a book. Thus, my writing output exceeds the needs of traditional publishers. The indie route allows me to put out as many books as I want.
2. More control of the process: While there are many benefits to working with a traditional publisher (that is an entire post of itself!), I’ve also learned that I enjoy having the final say on many aspects of the publication process. With indie publishing, I get to nitpick at my covers until they’re exactly what I like. I get to set the prices that feel right to me. I get to determine the publication schedule that works best for my life.
3. More control of the content: With traditional publication, when contract renewals come around, I have to work within my publisher’s parameters to find new book ideas that will be acceptable to them. However, with indie publishing, I can write about whatever sounds fun to me, including carrying on series.
As I said, those are just a few among many reasons I choose to indie publish. But that doesn’t answer Allyson’s question completely, since she wanted to know why I chose to self-publish my YA books.
The answer is actually a little complicated (so I’ll give you the very abridged version!). My first YA series, the Uncertain Choice Series, was published by Zondervan. After finishing the first contract with them, I had an idea for another series (my Lost Princess Series), but Zondervan wanted something a little different. Rather than give up what I was passionate about writing, I declined their contract and decided to write the next series on my own.
Ever since, I’ve loved being able to have the complete freedom to write the YA books that I enjoy. So I’ve continued to publish them independently. In fact, I’m working on a brand new six-book series, Knights of Brethren. Book one, Enamored, hits shelves in just a few weeks!
What about YOU? What other advice would you give (from either a writer’s or reader’s perspective) about traditional or indie publishing?
Jody Hedlund
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This is a great post, Jody, and you hit on many of the reasons I am now a hybrid author as well. I’ve only published one original indie so far. The other 30+ that have released from Raney Day Press over the last five years are books that were first published traditionally and then, when I got the rights back to those books, we chose to indie publish them.
One thing I will say is that I’m not sure my indie books would have had the success they have if I hadn’t gained a following of readers during the 20 years I was only traditionally published. It has also helped to have multiple books to release at one time, especially series. One of the most successful (and controversial, I admit) promotional tools I’ve used is giving away hundreds of thousands of free books. But the only way an author can make money by giving away books is if they also have lots of other titles to sell. (The idea being that NEW readers risk trying my book because it’s free and then if they like it, they will PAY for my other titles. That only works if there are quite a few other titles to sell.
The truth is, if not for indie publishing that has allowed me to continue to make a nice income on my older titles (ones that were no longer earning royalties with my traditional publishers) my career would probably be over. Advances on royalties have shrunk for many mid-list authors like me, and because I’m not a prolific writer like Jody (I do well to write one novel and one novella each year) I couldn’t make a living wage without the indie piece of the puzzle.
I will ALWAYS be grateful that I started my career with traditional publishers where I had editors that patiently taught me how to write well, taught me the conventions of the publishing industry, and helped promote my books at a time when I knew NOTHING about it. At the same time, I’m beyond grateful that indie publishing has “come of age”—to use Jody’s phrase—because it has allowed my books to have a much longer shelf life and to create ongoing income for my family.
Love your thoughts, Deb!I am also very grateful for all that I’ve learned from the experienced editors through traditional publication. But it’s also really helpful that nowadays there are so many professional editors who are willing to edit for indie authors. In fact, my current editor was once an editor for a traditional publisher, and now she freelances. I have the blessing of getting to use her for both my indie and trad books.
Yes! I had the same experience when Lisa Bergren, who was my editor for two of my WaterBrook Press novels, also edited Bridges, my first true indie. (We actually exchanged edits, which was a joy and honor. Read Lisa’s Once Upon an Irish Summer…or any of her novels!)
I really do love how the traditional and indie worlds get to intertwine for hybrid authors!
Thank you so much for this response, that helped a lot! I can definitely see the pros and cons of both indie and traditional publishing and can see myself being a hybrid author as well one day. All the points in this post helped me see both sides more clearly and helped me understand what I was wanting to know. Again, thank you and I can’t wait for your new series to come!!
I LOVE the fact that your YA books release in rapid succession. I enjoy the books so as a reader not having to wait for a year for the next book is really fun. Of course not every author writes that fast but as a reader I definitely appreciate it!
I’ve learned so much about the control publishers have over their authors during the past eight or so years as I follow several of the writers I enjoy. I was amazed when publishers put the end to several series that seemed to have quite a following. Listening to two authors discuss their writing just the other night, I was really struck by the following comment: “We’re not allowed to do that anymore.” Can certainly understand the desire to self-publish.
Jody, thank you so much for writing this post!! I was so excited to see when it came out yesterday and I wanted to respond to it…
This is an intriguing topic. As far as self-publishing goes, do you have any experience or insight with companies such as IngramSpark? Is there a specific indie publisher you recommend? I’m 29-years-old, and working at completing my first historical novel. For years I’ve been researching the pros and cons of traditional vs. indie publishing, and currently I’m working with a professional freelance fiction editor. It’s of real value to me to hear from a prolific novelist like yourself who has experience in both arenas, and to learn the reasons why you’ve chosen trad vs. indie publishing for certain books.
And thank you Deborah Raney for your input on this subject in the comments as well! All very helpful info from both you ladies.
Thanks again for this informative post. Please write more on this topic!
What a wonderful chain of comments on this post. I certainly enjoyed the advice from several perspectives. I hope this sort of advice and guidance for aspiring, or still new, writers continues. We look up to those who have achieved a way of supporting themselves through their words.