Which Way Do I Go: Indie
or Traditional?
Congratulations! You've
finished your first book. It's your baby. You've slaved over it for months,
years, even decades. You have a solid draft. Maybe you've even shared it with a
few friends/readers, who wax enthusiastic. Now what?
While the budding author,
Emily Starr, from Lucy Maud Montgomery's classic series tossed her first
novel in the fire after realizing it wasn't up to par, most of us aren't as
willing or as able to let go like that.
The truth is, most first
novels are flawed. If you ask writers today about their first published books,
they'll often cringe. Sometimes DECADES later, they even release a re-write,
that never manages to elevate the book to the same caliber as their later
novels. Writers, like any professional, have to gain experience. Sure, there
are exceptions — like the one-hit wonder, Catcher in the Rye — but for
the most part, authors have to train like athletes. You can't expect the same
level of skill from a rookie pitcher in the minors that you do from a seasoned
veteran in the majors!
So, what to do with your
admittedly imperfect first novel? Do you shop it with traditional publishers,
hoping to catch an editor's eye and be raised out of the slush pile where 99.9%
of submissions dissolve into illegible goo? Do you let it die in your desk
drawer while you wait for a yes? Do you burn it? Or do you publish it yourself?
Because unlike Emily Starr, modern aspiring authors CAN publish on their own.
The question is … should you?
I've compiled a list of ten
questions to ask yourself in making this decision for you and your novel.
Because at the end of the day, it comes down to the kind of book you wrote,
your goals, personality, and worldview.
1.
Is my book
“commercial?”
Before you put pen to
paper, did you thoroughly research the kinds of books in your sub-genre that
are on the best-seller list today? Does your story fit within the word count
and tropes of that market, while having a slightly unique spin on the
plot/characters/story that will set it apart? If you didn't do this research before
you wrote it, do it now. If you didn't “stay in your lane” and parallel the
books that are on the bestseller list RIGHT NOW, your odds of being picked up
by an agent or publisher are very low.
2.
Is my book
“unique?”
Maybe you didn't fit
within the relevant tropes because you've written something utterly different.
Maybe you started with a mystery, but instead wrote a genre-busting, satiric
allegory. It fits a unique and timely niche that a select group of specialty publishers
might be interested in. Maybe it's worth a shot! Delay your indie publication
and investigate the smaller publishing houses. Work on your submission letters,
work on your agent outreach. Set a realistic deadline to re-evaluate the
traditional path if you haven't gotten traction.
3.
Do I know
anyone in the “industry?”
Like everything else,
the publishing world revolves around “who you know.” Is your best friend's
uncle an editor at Ballentine Books? Get an intro, get on his calendar, and get
his thoughts on your book. Personalized advice is ALWAYS better than following
a generic blogger's suggestions ;)
4.
How
optimistic am I?
The odds of being
traditionally-published are slightly higher than your odds of winning more than
$25 on a scratch-off lottery ticket. If you pursue this path, you may indeed
get your book published, but it's far more likely that your first novel will
languish in your desk drawer, while you write book #2, and book #3. Maybe,
you'll interest an agent in book #4! All of the other books you will have
written up to that point will die unread. Perhaps you'll pull one of them out
years from now & re-write it. But more likely, you'll have moved on to
other characters and stories.
5.
How do I
want to spend my time?
Would you rather put
your non-writing time into (a) finding a traditional publisher, writing query
letters, researching agents, investigating the industry, etc. OR (b) hiring an
editor, cover designer, print layout firm/software, marketing, distribution
channels. YOU WILL SPEND HOURS/DAYS/MONTHS working on the non-creative aspects
of writing to get published — whether traditionally OR independently. You will
learn a lot about the business aspects of publishing either way. Would you
rather learn about how to make a succinct/catchy pitch, or how to write ad
copy? Would you rather learn what commercial publishers think will sell, or
would you rather work with a cover artist?
6.
How much
$$ am I willing to spend?
The cost of
independently publishing will be substantially more than traditionally publishing.
Traditional publishers will pay you for your book. They will take the risk of
selling it and you will make an immediate profit. If you are independently
publishing any kind of book other than erotica, please be aware: first, second,
and even third novels will be loss-leaders. You will not recoup your costs. You
will spend more than you make. You will not turn a profit. If you publish
traditionally, you will only be out the cost of postage and any editorial
advice you seek before finding an agent/publisher, even if you don't wind up
publishing at all.
7.
What kind
of rejection/criticism do I want?
Reviews are sometimes
unduly kind, sometimes quite valid, sometimes unfair. They are always public.
You can learn a lot from what readers who bothered to leave a review
liked/didn't like about it. But there's nothing you can do about reviews after
they're written, and a book with an average 3-star rating will not be purchased
or read. Rejection letters will mostly be form-letters, giving you no insight
into how to improve or what caused the editor/agent to reject you. But they are
private. Would you rather get knocked around in public, but find out what you
need to do to become a better writer, or would you rather get bland rejections
privately?
8.
Do I like
reading indie books?
Do you have a Kindle
Unlimited subscription? Do you read books on an eReader? Do you subscribe to a
newsletter where you download free books onto your eReader? If you don't answer
yes to any of these questions, you probably haven't read an indie book. Before
going in this direction, read some of the “bestseller” indie books in your genre
— preferably ones with more than 100 reviews. That will give you a sense of
what you might aspire to if you publish independently. THEN read a book with
under 25 reviews, preferably an author's first book. While the quality of the
writing might be as good as a traditionally-published book, you are more
likely to notice flaws. BUT a good indie novel often breaks with
conventions/commercial trends and can be fun to read.
9.
How do I
rate indie books?
If a book costs $9.99,
do you have the same expectations for it that you do if it costs $2.99?
Traditional publishers charge more for ebooks than indie publishers. If you
expect the same quality of writing in a $2.99 book that you do in a $9.99 book,
and don't “grade on curve,” then indie publishing probably isn't for you.
10. Do I need to publish?
Indie authors range
from hobbyists to people who long to be traditionally published. If you're
still reading, you probably fall on the latter end of the spectrum. Is it
important to you that people read your work — even if it's not many people?
What kind of motivation do you need to keep writing? If you need the
satisfaction of seeing your books in print, of knowing there are at least a few
people out there who enjoy your work, then maybe indie publication is something
to consider. But if you've got the internal drive to keep working, the
perfectionist streak that would allow you to burn your book-baby if it's not
good enough, then the traditional path is the one for you.
Excerpt
The first djinn emerged in the night sky: a whirlwind topped with a simulacrum of Khalid himself. Knife-sharp grains of sand spun upward, pulled by the centrifugal force of the air that formed the construct’s lower half. Khalid swallowed down bile as he looked at his creation. The djinn’s outstretched arms were frozen in a gesture of welcome, but its unblinking eyes were indifferent to the suffering it was about to cause.
If only he could create a living construct, he wouldn’t be forced to watch oversized statues of himself wreaking destruction. Before Sabha, he used to revel in the fact that his enemy would know he had been the mage who had killed them. Now, the sight of his giant face in the sky made him sick.
Two more djinni coalesced, dragging roiling storms of colored lightning behind them like fringed capes. Malik shut the spellbook, words of congratulations on his lips. But his face fell, his compliments silenced before they could be uttered. Khalid’s heart rate sped up as he followed his vizier’s gaze.
The three djinni should have been flying north over the dunes to the enemy encampment, spinning tornados of wind and lightning beneath them. Instead, the constructs hung suspended in midair, their lower whirlwinds frozen into a stillness as eerie as their unmoving humanoid tops.
A rush of air rippled Khalid’s headscarf and robe, but the desert was suddenly silent. He could no longer hear the rasp of wind over sand.
Eurus, Khalid realized, his grim fear sinking into actual dread.
The glimmering white-gold outline of a woman’s face emerged in front of the djinni.
Khalid swallowed as she pressed her lips against one statue-like face before dissipating back into air.
Khalid waved Malik back to the assembled guard. “Go,” he said. “Back to camp.”
But Malik pressed shoulder-to-shoulder with him. “No one can contend against the air itself, Amir. It won’t matter if we stay or go.”
That’s an unfortunate truth, Khalid thought. For all they knew, Eurus existed within the very air they drew into their lungs. She was everywhere but only rarely took physical form.
Humans, even other faeries, were typically beneath her notice.
“Your djinni still don’t live.”
The East Wind’s soft voice was impossible to locate, though they all spun around to look for her. Eurus was air, an elemental faerie born billions of years ago when the Earth’s atmosphere formed.
“Why are you here?” Khalid called, his voice overly loud in the stillness.
Eurus, as the East Wind liked to be called, manifested into a shadowed figure floating cross-legged as if atop a flying carpet. But of course, Eurus didn’t need any support to defeat gravity.Khalid’s face covering blew off, and he caught the red headcloth before responding.
“You told me war didn’t interest you anymore.”
“Your djinni interest me.” The elemental faerie’s voice hovered in the air around him, pressing against him like the atmospheric warning of an approaching sandstorm.
“I’m no via-enchanter to cast spells on living things, Lady Eurus,” Khalid reminded her.
The fae demanded honesty, and he’d told her this many times already. “I don’t know how to make a djinn draw breath.”
“You were working hard to modify your spells,” Eurus said. “At least until your sisters convinced you to claim the Sahara for your al-Saaqib tribe.”
“I have a duty to protect the desert’s people. I can’t play with spell designs while we remain under threat,” Khalid said — then cursed himself when he realized he’d given her an opening.
She pounced. “I am more dangerous than five thousand battlemages. Bargain with me. I can steal your enemies’ breath. Blow their ships back from your shores. I can keep your lands safe from the predators while you perfect your djinn spells.”
“I’m no via-enchanter, Lady Eurus,” Khalid repeated. “I spent decades and only managed to integrate biomarkers into the design.”
His gaze flickered up. Six vacant eyes that matched his own stared down at him in impotent stillness. Eurus’s magick held his unreleased djinni captive. He needed her to let them fly. Let Khalid kill his enemy.
“You see how well I can keep you safe,” Eurus said, glancing upward as well. “Even from your own spells.”
Khalid hated how tempting her offer was now. Everyone else had perished at Sabha. It had been a Pyrrhic victory, but a victory nonetheless. If she didn’t release his djinni, this battle would end in an actual defeat.
There was nothing worse than defeat.
“Do not surrender, Al-Amir,” Malik whispered. “With or without the djinni, we will prevail!”
“Surrender? Who said anything about surrender? I’ll be your hired hand, Amir Khalid ibn Hawwa al-Saaqib!” Eurus’s voice hung slyly in the air as she fluttered down into a full bow, her thin frame splayed across the sand before him.
Khalid stared down at the elemental faerie. No sane person made a bargain with a faerie, but then, no sane faerie stalked a human.
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thank you for sharing about the book, the cover looks great
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