Book Publishing: Why Not Do It Yourself?

For years, I’ve considered writing a book and attempting to have it published.  I majored in English Literature, after all, so why should I feel intimidated by the thought?  Year after year, I’d think about it, do a quick, cursory scan of the requirements on various publisher websites, then slink away feeling overwhelmed and give up the notion. 

Then, one day, a friend started telling me how “easy” it now was to self-publish. Well, electronically anyway.  But, I kind of let the information go in one ear and right out of the other.  Until one day, the urge to write became so overwhelming, I couldn’t take it anymore. I had to find out what this new, “easy” way of self-publishing was all about. 

I researched and I read, I scoured and I scanned…all in an effort to ensure that if I took the plunge, I wasn’t doing so foolishly.  I wanted to make sure I had my expectations in check and that I had dotted all ‘I’s’ and crossed all ‘T’s’.  It is, without a doubt, a lot of work. But, in the end, it’s so well worth it.  You get to call your own shots without having an editor, who has no idea what your internal vision is…ahem…telling you that you need to change the direction of the story.  You get to decide your own price, when the book is released and best of all, you get to keep most of the stinking, filthy booty. 

Let’s be honest with ourselves, shall we?  Of course, we do it for the love, but we also do it so that we can feel the pride of knowing that someone was willing to hand over some moolah for our work, our time and our effort!  Am I right or am I wrong?!

So, get out there and do your research!  It’s not as daunting a task as it seems once you roll your sleeves up and get to it!  Just be patient and trust your instincts.  And, work, work work!  --Shana James