Why Self-Published Authors are Awesome

There’s a lot of snobbery around books. People don’t like e-books, people don’t like audiobooks, people don’t like certain genres. It’s okay to have opinions, but some people wield them like facts, and this really bugs me. The target of much of this snobbery tends to be self-published authors. Why is this? Why are independent musicians or filmmakers lauded and not authors? There are some many terrific self-published authors out there, in my opinion (that dreaded word), so let’s look at some of the misconceptions about them, and then some of the good things:

Most of these also apply to independent publishing, which faces many of the criticisms of self-published authors.

• They‘re all badly edited – due to the fact that almost every statement beginning with “they” is a generalization, this is simply wrong. There are definitely some books out there that need proper editing, but one could say the same for traditional publishing too. As for self-publishing, there is a whole editing industry for authors flourishing out there and new authors are learning from the trailblazers and making sure their manuscripts are put through the wringer before releasing them. This criticism has swiftly become redundant.
• Self-published authors just aren’t good enough to be traditionally published – What about Andy Weir (The Martian), Evan Winter (The Rage of Dragons) or Lisa Genova (Still Alice)? Did they suck and suddenly become good enough? I don’t think so. They chose to go the traditional publishing route, and more power to them. But then there’s author’s like Michael J O’Sullivan (The Riyria Revelations) or Gail Z Martin (Chronicles of the Necromancer) who were trad published, but went back to self-publishing. Why would they do this? The simple answer, based on many of the self-published authors I know, is control (more on this later). They get to decide every step of their publishing journey. This may require a lot of work, but these authors wouldn’t change that for anything.
• Self-published authors aren’t willing to put in the hard work to “make it” as traditionally published authors – I actually read this on social media. I laughed and didn’t bother justifying it with a response. While theoretically, all it takes to self-publish is to hit “Publish” on Amazon, successful SP authors (there are many) don’t just have lengthy bibliographies – they have resumés. They are not just writers, they are agents, editors, outsource specialists (cover design, editors, beta readers) and marketing specialists. While there are many services out there catering to self-publishing, the author has to go out and find which of these services suit their product. To add to all that, while some self-published authors are successful enough to make it their profession, many SP authors also have full-time jobs and family commitments. “Not put in the effort” indeed.

Enough complaining, here are some of the great things about self-publishing:

• The only limit is the imagination – you have an idea for a book. Or a book you’d like to read. A grimdark science-fantasy involving a one-winged duck that travels through time on a robotic triceratops, fighting crime by shooting lasers out of their arse. You can do that, and you’ll probably find an audience. How about a self-help book for people who don’t like lunchtime on Tuesdays? Or a travel guide to some fetid swamp in the middle of some godforsaken moor? All are possibilities. The only thing holding you back is you. Let’s be honest, I read and love a lot of traditionally published books, but when all is said and done, it’s $$$$s (insert nationally appropriate currency here) that rule the day. Niche authors have fewer options.
• There is no line in quality – I almost said the quality line between traditional and many self-published books is imperceptible, but that still suggests there is a line. There are SP authors who have become so accomplished in their writing that if I handed you one of their books and asked you to read it, you would not know without looking at the publisher. Sure, there are some duds, but I could walk into a library right now and fill up a truck with crappy books (in my opinion). It’s not just the writing, the editing and covers are first class too. If you want to test the self-published waters, check out the winners of the Self Published Fantasy Blog Off, hosted by none other than the venerable Mark Lawrence. You will be impressed. This leads me to my final point…
• It is a joy to belong to the self-publishing community – this community is not just a bunch of authors. It’s the editors, the artists, narrators, book reviewers and, most importantly, the readers. I may be a lowly book-blogger, but I feel like I belong to something bigger. It’s not just the authors – it’s all the other parts of the publishing industry. Other bloggers, editors and cover artists – it’s just one big (mostly) happy family. All are welcome, people will know who you are, engage with you on social media and name their kids after you if you leave a review (please leave reviews for every book). This certainly exists in traditional publishing (Chris Grabenstein recently thanked my nine-year-old son for his “review).” Many authors interact with their fans, but how many editors or artists do you know? 

When I signed up for Self-Published Author Appreciation Week, I confessed to new and old friends that I have never tagged a book review as “Self Published” as, in my five or so years of reading SP books, I have never felt a distinction between that and traditional. Some of the other reviewers echoed this sentiment, while others said they did because they wanted people to know that self-published books are awesome. Being an author is a huge commitment. There are sacrifices that must be made to get your work out there. I know this because I am an author, and I remember the lack of free time (I worked and was a part-time stay at home dad), the horrors of editing, and the massive financial commitment to ensuring you always had coffee ready. I’m sure that most people who read this are already on the SP bandwagon, but if not, buy a book you like the sound of and don’t look at the publisher. Just read and enjoy it. I know you won’t regret it. Oh yeah, and leave a freakin’ review!