Why go indie?

The ugly truth about traditional publishing is that for new authors, you don’t get a lot.

Getting a book deal is like winning the lottery. You pitch to agents, dozens or even hundreds, most of whom won’t even read your book. If you’re lucky enough to sign with an agent, then comes pitching to the publishers. The process can take years, and the vast majority will fail.

Once you get a book deal, it could be years more before your book hits the shelves. Even then, most publishers won’t invest a lot in your book until you’ve proven to be a good bet. Most of the marketing is up to you.

Yes, they have connections an indie author will never have. They invest the up-front costs of printing and distributing your books. They’ll get you into bookstores, they lend credibility and status. But they will only invest in what they think will sell, and it’s rare for them to take risks on something new. A lot of creativity and innovation gets hidden away, never to be seen because the gatekeepers don’t want to take the chance.

Once upon a time, that was the only way to get your book published. Times have changed. With the invention of print-on-demand publishing and ebooks, the gates are open to anyone with a story to tell.

I’m not going to lie - selling a book is hard. Every book is a gamble, but that’s true no matter which way you go. Nobody knows what books will sell - not even the big publishers.

So you can take that chance after years of pitching and editing and signing away your rights, or you can take that chance here and now, keeping full control of your hard work the entire way. It’s your book. 

You hold the keys.