Let's be honest here - the rise of inexpensive self-publishing options is going to mean one thing above all… we are going to be deluged in a tidal wave of fifth rate, poorly-written, rubbish. The high barrier to entry that kept out all those who weren't truly committed to the craft has dissolved and, as we've seen with music, every dog and their master are going to take a swing at it. This means that a very few brilliant works that might have been mistakenly passed over by the traditional publishing world will get their day in the sun. But it means that we will also see a general dumbing down of the overall quality of books, and a simultaneous massive increase in the number of titles tossed into the world. Brace yourself.
So why didn't I pursue a traditional publisher more thoroughly? There were many reasons why I wanted to put it into the hands of a publisher. I've touched on a number of them already - their established distribution and promotional channels, the amount of my time and effort required to promote a self-published book effectively, the credibility that comes from an established publisher. One thing that I didn't mention was editing. I know my writing is not as good as it could be. Even authors famous for their style and quality have editors. Robertson Davies had an editor. Having someone make suggestions for ways to improve my book would have been greatly accepted - indeed I would have made it a condition of anyone publishing the book.
A few uncommon factors pushed me to self-publishing. One of the key issues was topicality. Much of my book describes universals - people's behaviour in unusual circumstances, being young and full of piss and vinegar, popular music - but it's also quite rooted in a specific band. At some point The Dreadnoughts will cease to be a working band, and from that day forward my book will have a different tone and relevance. There is an eager audience in their current fan base, and I would be foolish to ignore that. Waiting to publish ran the risk of turning the book from topical to historical.
Much of non-fiction will be affected by this to some degree. Fiction is not tied so directly to the real world. A novel won't necessarily date itself so much by waiting for a year or two. Indeed, it may benefit greatly from the extra time to consider and revisit the writing.
It's also important to note that I have been around independently produced and promoted music for most of my life. I feel at home in that world. I'm more comfortable approaching an independent record shop about having them stock my book than I am in approaching a literary agent. For that matter, I know where the record shops and how they work are but I don't have the faintest clue where or how to find an agent.
Every time I read This Place Is Awesome again, I find little pieces I might have phrased differently or things I might have expanded on. I wouldn't go so far as to say it was a mistake to push the book out so "quickly" (let's be fair, it did take two years), but I do think I will take a bit more time with the next project. I can see now in hindsight, how and when to go back to my writing and read it with a more critical eye. But even extra time spent pouring over my next manuscript won't be as good as a professional editor. Chances are, I will look into hiring someone. And that's just another cost to factor into a self-published effort.
I am not a self-publishing fanatic, and the point of this blog is not to talk you into it. There are times when putting time and effort into traditional channels is going to be the more logical and productive choice. Underdown's article does a nice job of putting that argument forward and is worth the read.
One thing that Underdown doesn't touch on is the idea that you could conceivably start with one and move to the other. If you self-publish first you will learn in a hurry how difficult much of a publisher's task really is. That may persuade you to chase down a traditional publisher the next time around. Hell, you might even get six months into your own project and say "to hell with this", put your dreams of a book tour on hold, pull in all your consignment copies, and go back to looking for a traditional publisher.
This is a new era in publishing that we're heading into, and while the chaos and uncertainty of it all can be unpredictable and difficult to navigate, it does mean that the rules of play are in flux at the moment. I don't imagine there's any reason why you couldn't be independently promoting and selling your book on a small, local scale, while pitching it to an established publisher for a larger deal. If it's a good book then your ability to sell 100 copies locally ought not cannibalise another publishers sales in any meaningful way.
Of course much of this is speculation on my part. I welcome comments from anyone with real world experience in these matters.
Will my next book be self-published or will I pitch to traditional publishers? I won't hazard a guess at this point. As far as I'm concerned, the answer to this question is going to be "it depends" for a quite a while.
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