Many authors come to me confused about book publishing. They may have done some research, participated in a few Facebook groups, talked with other authors and yet they don’t know exactly what steps to take to publish their book. They suffer from TMI (too much information).
Authors invariably state “I’m looking for an agent…” revealing grand dreams of a big-5 publishing company contract and launching their book to New York Times bestseller status. I admire their moxie but first-timers rarely see these dreams come true. If not traditional publishing then what?
Jane Friedman’s blog has countless articles about self-publishing. Her article, Start Here: How to Self-Publish Your Book is a great place to get the information authors need to get started. She answers a multitude of self-publishing questions and defines, traditional, self-publishing and hybrid publishing among many other relevant topics.
Personally, I’m a huge fan of self-publishing. Authors maintain control over every aspect of the book production process. The one thing I tell authors on a budget (and who isn’t these days?) is they control their cashflow. They can vet vendors and decide how much they want to pay and when they want to pay it. Unlike a hybrid publishing company that expects money upfront.
Read Jane’s blog. You won’t regret it.