There are advantages and disadvantages to both self publishing and traditional publishing – the key to choosing which
route you will take is to weigh up your options and see which method is right for you.
In an ideal world, you’d write your novel and within days someone would offer you a six figure deal. In reality, that’s extremely unlikely to happen – you have to make it happen.
There’s a lot to consider before making your choice on how to get your book out there – time and money being two of the main considerations for many people.
Below are some pros and cons for both ways that may help you to make the right choice for you:
Traditional Publishing – Pros and Cons
Traditional publishing is where you have a literary agent to do all the negotiations for you. Your agent will send your manuscript to publishing houses on your behalf and negotiate the best deal for you (of which they take a percentage as their fee).
The publishing house designs your book cover, professionally edits it and takes care of all the distribution and marketing costs. Literally all you do in the beginning is write the book and send it to your agent. You will be expected to put some leg work in with the marketing of your book.
You will usually be offered an advance payment and then the rest of your income will be made up of royalties from your books sales.
Sounds good doesn’t it?
It’s not all plain sailing though. It is often hard to get a literary agent to take you on as an unknown author.
Pros
- All the designing and editing is done for you
- You don’t have to worry about marketing your book – although you’re expected to do some of the work, you will get a lot of guidance as to what you should be doing
- Your book will be available across all the major retailers
- There’s a fair chance you’ll make a decent amount of money
Cons
- Getting an agent is hard and time consuming. It takes six months for them to decide, and most won’t even bother contacting you if they reject your work
- Rejections can hit you hard – try to remember that an agent is only person, and their rejection is only their opinion. They can only represent so many people so they have to love your work to take you on
- You won’t have complete creative control. If your publisher doesn’t like something, you will be expected to change it
- There’s still no guarantee you will make it – you only have to go into anywhere that sells books and look in the bargain bin to see that’s true
Self Publishing – Pros and Cons
Self publishing is, as the name suggest, where you publish your book yourself. You can do it completely alone, or you can pay a firm to do it for you. Either way, once your book is available, you’re on your own. It’s up to you to market your book and generate sales.
Pros
- You are in control – you have full artistic licence, and you own all the rights
- You can time the release to suit you and your market – you don’t have to wait around to find out if you will even be considered
- It’s pretty easy to do
- There’s a chance that an agent/publisher will see your work and pick you up this way without the need for the waiting time
Cons
- You will have to do everything yourself – design, editing, marketing – or pay someone to do it for you. Don’t be put off by that – I have read a lot of books from major publishing houses with spelling errors, typos and grammatical errors, so there’s no guarantees it will be right, even if you go down the traditional route
- You will be in competition with every other person who’s ever self published a book – it can be hard to get your book noticed, but not impossible
- There’s no safety net. If something goes wrong, its up to you to fix it
- You will still find there’s people who don’t take you seriously as an author if you self publish – its not the end of the world, haters will always hate, and you’re still the one living the dream
Now you’ve weighed up some of the major pros and cons of both methods, you probably have a clearer idea of which way you are leaning.
Once you choose a method, unless your heart is set on it and its the only way you would consider, remember you’re not committing to it for life – you can always change your mind.
Self Publishing or Traditional Publishing – My Story
I always thought I would self publish, but I didn’t want to rule out traditional publishing. Once I had the first three chapters of my novel completed (which is what most agents request in the initial query) I sent them to two agencies.
I researched agencies, and I settled for two I liked the look of. Of course, there’s hundreds out there, you don’t have to limit yourself, you can send your manuscript to as many or as few as you like.
I decided that while I finished the book, it wouldn’t hurt for them to look at it, and if I hadn’t heard by the time it was done, I would self publish it.
I got a nicely worded rejection from one of the agencies and the other one just didn’t bother to respond (guess which one I think of as professional and would consider in the future if I decided to go down the traditional route).
I’m sure I would have had a much better chance of success if I’d sent the manuscript to more agencies, but it was really a token gesture by that point. It was something I felt like I had to try just to say I had if that makes sense.
Like I said earlier, its really hard for an unknown writer to get an agent, and I didn’t want to waste any more time, so I 
self published.
I’m happy with my choice to self publish – my books are available now instead of having to wait up to a year, and there’s nothing to stop me going down the traditional route later if I choose to.
Am I going to be a millionaire through self publishing? It’s extremely unlikely, but that’s something I can live with.
Coming up:
If you have now decided on your route, stay tuned throughout the rest of the month for my guide to self publishing, my guide to traditional publishing and the dangers of the vanity press and how to avoid them – everything you need to know to get started whichever path you choose.
Also, if you’re thinking of starting a novel, I’ve got some tips on how to get started and how to write in any genre.
And finally, I’ve got a post about getting paid to write.
Shameless Plug:
Like I mentioned above, you have to do your own marketing if you self publish, so of course I have to take this opportunity for a shameless plug. My books are available now on Amazon:
My debut novel, The Joker, and my short stories book, Twisted Tales.
You can find me here: Twitter Facebook Bloglovin Pinterest and Instagram Please do stop by and say hi!
I looked into Trad vs Self back in 2011 and decided on self publishing. The only request I sent to agents was when I was approached by a Turkish publisher about foreign rights and I wasn’t sure I should go that on my own. I got a rejection that made me think they didn’t even read my email because they talked about my book being a paranormal romance (it’s paranormal YA with little romance.) In the end I did the deal myself. It may not have been the best, but if not for self publishing the book probably wouldn’t have been translated into another language.
Its really frustrating if they didn’t even bother to read the book, but hey, it’s their loss! Its a great achievement having the book translated, well done 🙂
I read a lot of what I call “writers’ blogs” and this is the most detailed and instructive post I’ve ever seen on this subject… and that’s saying a lot. Thanks for this!
Thank you so much 🙂
This is very helpful , I have stalled at about 40 per cent of my book written and would not have considered doing anything with it until nearly finished but interesting that you can submit the early bits. Like you say though the lack of control is frightening and self publishing sounds better on so many levels.
Thank you 🙂 It is scary, especially the first time but it gets easier. The good thing about agents is they want you to get the best deal because they work on a percentage of your earnings, so if you’re earning more, they are too. I think both methods have their advantages, its just about deciding which one is right for you 🙂
This post has come at an interesting time for me. I wrote a novel about 5 years ago, sent it off to a few agents who unfortunately rejected it which knocked my confidence so I haven’t done anything else with it. Since writing my blog, it’s made me realise how much I miss writing, and how much I’d love to have my novel published. I briefly thought about self-publishing, but didn’t know enough about it to have the confidence to do it. This has definitely given me food for thought. I’ll be reading your other posts to see if I can make a decision about what to do #BloggerClubUK
I know its easy to say, but agents get so many manuscripts, they can’t represent them all, don’t let it get you down. I would honestly say go for it. You’ve done the hard work by writing the book – you’ve got nothing to lose 🙂 Feel free to email me if you want any advise about it
Thanks Debbie. This post has really inspired me to look back at my novel again and I actually started reading it again for the first time in about 2 years! I had loads of ideas come flooding back to me, so once it is in better shape, I am going to send it off again. I don’t think self publishing is right for me at the moment, but I may take you up on the offer of advice when it’s ready to go again 🙂
I’m so pleased to hear this has got you fired up to write again 🙂 It’s such an exciting time when all those ideas hit. Wishing you the best of luck with it 🙂
Really interesting post – thank you. I am struggling with the editing bit for now but starting to weigh up the right route to go when- and if – I ever finish the book! #bloggerclubuk
Thank you 🙂 Editing is the worst! I hope this post helps you make the decision when the time comes. Good luck with the book!
A really comprehensive post. I am sure that any would be writer will find this invaluable #BloggerClubUK
Thank you 🙂
This is a really informative post and really useful for anyone thinking on what route they want to publish their book. I’m loving The Joker and so glad you didn’t wait to go down the traditional publishing route xx #BloggerClubUK
Thank you 🙂 I’m glad to hear you’re enjoying the book x
This is such an interesting post. If I ever get round to writing a book, it’s good to know that hope is not all lost if you don’t manage to find an agent. Props to you for going self published, it’s such a huge achievement! #BloggerClubUK
Thank you 🙂 I think more people go down the self publishing route these days because it is so hard to get an agent as an unknown author.
This was really interesting to read! I don’t think I could ever write a book! Good for you for self-publishing – I know a few people who have done it and all said the same – it’s hard but it’s worth it! I admire you! #BloggerClubUK
Thank you 🙂 It really is totally worth it!
This is such a great post! Awesome input on both Self-publishing ve Traditional.. and yes, you gotta love Amazon 🙂 #bloggerclubuk
Thank you 🙂 I have a definite love/hate relationship with Amazon lol!
So rude not to respond at all. I think it’s great that people can self-publish they way they can now, so many great books that would never have been published otherwise. Well done! #bloggerclubUK
I think so too but it does seem to be pretty standard. For the two seconds it takes to say thanks but no thanks, the agency that did that left a much better impression with me. Self publishing is fab, as you say, it means the average person can get their book out there and there are some great self published books available. Thank you 🙂
I though lt I knew the difference but this has really explained it and it’s useful and interesting to hear someone’s experience first hand. Good luck with the book, look forward to hear more about your journey xx #Bloggerclubuk
Thank you 🙂 There’s a lot to consider! x
I was so glad to read this, I am editing my novel at the moment and am considering what to do after that. Both options seem scary to me, maybe because I fear it will never be good enough, that’s self confidence issue I need to overcome. #BloggerclubUK
The best advice I can give you is just go for it! You’ve done the hard work writing it and you’ve got nothing to lose. I’ve written some posts on the processes for each method of publishing if you want any further details on either, or feel free to email me 🙂
Great advice. I think there used to be a kind of snobbishness about whether a book was self-published, but thankfully that has all changed with the huge rise in ebooks and improvements in how authors can get their work edited and formatted etc. It seems to be the best route now and definitely the one I would consider.
#BloggerClubUK
I agree – when self publishing first became a thing, I think it was viewed as something you did if you “weren’t good enough” for traditional publishing. Now a lot of people choose self publishing for it’s ease and creative control.
I found this SO interesting! We were torn between self publishing and traditional publishing and actually couldn’t find a decent explanation of the pros and cons of either. This is such an interesting post, thank you for sharing! #BloggerClubUK
Thank you so much, I hope it’s helped you 🙂
Excellent breakdown of the pros and cons. Good luck with your books! #BloggerClubUK
Thank you 🙂
I am actually about to self-publish an ebook very soon (final draft!), so this was really interesting!
Thanks for the info!
#BloggerClubUK
I’m glad it helped, great timing 🙂 Good luck with the book!
Really interesting as I don’t think I realised you could self-publish like this! I think I always thought you had to have someone to do things for you!
I’m reading Twisted Tales at the moment 🙂
#bloggerclubuk
I always thought it was a complicated process, or you had to pay someone to do it, but it’s actually pretty easy.
I hope you’re enjoying it 🙂
A really good informative post. As with any art form it is a case of getting rejected many, many times. I guess for those who want to go the traditional route – it’s grown a thick skin and keep on going!
Great you have chosen your route and you can get your work out there!
Thank you 🙂 I agree – you need a really thick skin if you want to go down the traditional route!
Such a comprehensive read – my aunty self published and did pretty well – an awful lot of work – id be employing someone to take the task
It is a lot of work for sure!