We specifically talked about the way in which the author who opts for traditional publication is looked at. It is curious, at least it seems to me, the way in which this whole issue has evolved.

A few years ago, when I wanted to self-publish a compendium of stories, all the comments that came to me were negative: don't do it, self-publishing gives you a bad name, only those who can't write self-publish, if you self-publish you will never get to one editorial. Now the tables have been turned, it turns out that now we are the writers who prefer the traditional publishers who are frowned upon as if we were literary divas.

I don't know what I'm doing wrong but it always seems like I'm on the wrong side... Anyway.

There is a kind of war between authors who self-publish and those who prefer traditional publishing. In all this time I have heard everything, some do not want to know anything about the publishers; Others, having gone through them, prefer the freedom of being their own editors; some have grown tired of being rejected; there are those who have never considered it. On the other side, we find the same thing.

Also read A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

Guillermo says something with a lot of sense on his blog and that I also share, the work of an editorial ensures you a well-made product; well-edited, well corrected, well-formatted, accompanied by a marketing campaign and with the assurance of being backed by professionals. As long as you work with serious publishers, of course, there is a lot of parasite in the publishing world, but you have to know how to see it in time ( I didn't do it and they screwed me up, be very careful ).

At this point in the game, everyone has their own idea made about it and we all know what we want to do with our books. However, it never hurts to review the pros and cons of each of these possibilities and if you are taking the first steps in this world then this article may help you make a decision.

Powerful gentlemen: Mr. Money

The one who writes the most or the least to earn money. Yes, yes, we will never say it out loud, because we love the bohemian role and we are all very beaten, we write for the love of writing and ghost writing, to make the ladies fall in love and stuff. But hey, in the end, they pay us and we exchange that money for goods and services ... Because writers have a bad habit of having needs.

When you sell the rights of a book to a publisher, they pay you a percentage for each book sold, in addition, they usually pay you an advance for the purchase of the rights. The amount of the advance is tied to the number of copies that the publisher thinks it will sell and your popularity (oddly enough, yes). If it is your first book, the publisher is small and you are not well known, your advance may be zero (which will be the most normal).

Either way, it is money in your pocket (no matter how little), and since you work with professionals you don't have to spend a single euro on anything, they take care of everything and bear the costs, which means that if your book doesn't sell, nothing happens, they will not claim anything ( I repeat: I'm talking about serious editorials).

Paint And Color: Editing And Design

Working with a traditional publisher means working with a group of professionals in the sector: editors, proofreaders, and designers. In most cases, the work of these professionals will significantly improve the content of your book, leaving a well-finished final product without errors.

If you decide to self-publish, you can also count on the services of these professionals, but you will have to pay for them yourself. Many self-published writers make the mistake of doing all this work themselves, which is why many self-published books are left full of spelling, grammar, style, and design errors, leaving the reader with the feeling of having wasted money. . The worst possible publicity.

Listen! Promotion

No matter which path you have chosen, the goal is usually to sell as many books as possible. Well, to sell many books you need to do a good advertising campaign so that your potential readers know that your book exists.

If you opt for self-publishing, you will soon see what I am talking about, because you will have to take care of that promotion. Unfortunately, even if you decide on a publisher, you may also have to personally handle the promotion. We are in a difficult time, there are many writers and publishers only invest their money in authors who know that they will sell many books. Unless your book has raised a lot of hype, the publisher will not invest too much in its publicity and you will have to find your life.

That being said, you should be aware that there are certain closed doors to self-publishing that only an editor can open. Many of the great literary prizes only accept books published by publishers (some prizes are endogamous), some of the great critics do not even come close to self-published books. Even the membership of certain writers' societies is closed to writers who self-publish (although I am happening less and less).

From Here To There, Distribution

Ana González Duque said in this blog that she preferred to take care of the entire sales and distribution process, if you want to self-publish, maybe you should consider that option.

A good editor can put your book on the shelves of all the bookstores in the country, even outside your country. It is much easier for them to take that book to bookstores. The larger the publisher, the better the distribution. Distribution is an elementary part, you need your readers to be able to buy the book; Those who are looking for it and those who are not, have to be able to find you.

There are writers who have huge distribution systems of their own; If you do lectures or face-to-face workshops with hundreds (or thousands) of attendees, if you have a large company, or if you are the editor of a blog that is read by thousands of people every day, you could consider publishing on your own and selling your book through your own platform. A blog is an excellent sales platform and your benefits would be much higher than those of a traditional writer.

On the other hand, working with a publisher can broaden your sales horizon, reaching readers you would not reach on your own, so your income may be higher with a publisher. It really depends on your distribution capacity and your sales capacity.

Ironically, if you have a solid distribution platform, it's easier for a publisher to want to publish your book and also offer you a consistent preview.

Pedro And The Wolf, Credibility

Another important point of publishing through an editorial is credibility as a writer. And I do not mean that a self-published writer does not have it, anything further. The simple fact that an editor has chosen your book among the thousands of books that arrive at his table each day, already says something about your skill with letters. It tells the world that you can write a good book.

In addition, a publisher is able to risk their money to publish your book, assures a part of the audience that it is worth buying and reading that book.

Unfortunately, lately, this is changing and some publishers simply publish what is fashionable, regardless of its quality. In addition, although self-publishing was long seen as the escape route for those that no publisher wanted, over time this has changed and there are already many good writers who decide on this path.

With all that said, self-publishing also has a lot of good points.