You Can't Do It Wrong: Publishing

YOU CAN'T DO IT WRONG: PUBLISHING

I've been doing pieces about how there is literally no part of the writing and publishing process that you can do wrong. I talked about editing last week (found here) and I'm going to focus on publishing this week. I will just say that I'm more talking about the publishing process, as in whether to go indie or trad, as there's a whole lot involved in publishing that would be way too extensive for me to cover in one of these pieces, so I'm honing in on that part.

For background, I have never been trad published. Early in my writing career I started off with the only option being trad, and I went for it, but it never worked out for me. I was first published in 2005 and then when the advent of indie came in 2011 time, I started being an indie author properly. That said, I do have some idea what it takes to get a trad contract, and I also know that while people look down on indie, there are some indies looking down on trad like only one option is valid.

That is completely false. There are so many reasons for making whichever choice you make. I've found success with indie, and I don't know if I would have with trad. I don't know if books I've published would have died on sub because the story and genre at the time did not meet the marketability, and so I'm happy with indie and feel like I've made the right choice for my works but that's a me thing. It's not an everyone thing.

I've always felt, and believed, that there is an audience for every story. It might not be a huge mainstream audience, but there are always people out there for whom your story will speak to them, and be the thing they crave. Yes it can take time finding them, but that's a problem that happens to both sides of the spectrum. After all, not all trad books receive the same amount of marketing and not all indie authors are able to splash out when it comes to marketing either. It's all about doing what works for you.

While both options are valid, both come with a different kind of list of pros and cons. Like I like having the control of when a book is released. I like being the one who chooses my editor, my cover designer, and while some of that is true with trad as well, at least that you have some input, it's not only your choice. Doesn't make it wrong though, there are authors who find it more stressful to have those kinds of decisions in their hands alone. They flourish when it comes to trad because people are making the hard decisions themselves. And that's valid.

Too much of the time, it gets turned into an us vs them situation and to be honest, I don't like it. I don't like the idea that one is supposed to be for the 'real' authors and the other is not. I don't like that indies sometimes talk about how they're decision to go indie should work for absolutely everyone and it just does not. I know trad authors who much prefer being trad and would never go indie, I know others who have thought about indie but have no idea where to start, because it's a lot of work.

So when it comes to publishing, just remember that YOU CAN'T DO IT WRONG. You find what works for you, and your books and go from there. All forms of publishing are valid and I wish you the best of luck no matter what path you choose to use.

Any questions? Lemme know in the comments!

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