Self-publishing, it’s all the rage! Do your own thing! Get your book out there! Defy the masters of traditional publishing who say what books can and cannot be published! Right?
Well, not exactly.
I think there are some major pitfalls to hopping on the self-publishing train, which have very little to do with the steep learning curve of doing things you never thought you’d have to do or hiring others to do it for you, and which also have nothing to do with the start-up costs which rest solely on your shoulders.
The main pitfall is that you are not forced to let your story rest, like dough, and rise. Or, if you like your dough of the sour variety, you didn’t let it ferment long enough. It might have some life growing, but it’s nowhere near the excellence of granny’s forty-year-old starter, and nowhere near as reliable.
My book has had to take lots of rests. Years, at times. And those years were good for the story. Such flavors developed, such true sustenance, such rises and richness. Several of the revisions I did would never have happened if I had decided to self-publish at the very beginning, or even in the middle. I am so, so glad I did not. I am happier than I could possibly tell you about all the failures and weepings and disappointments that preceded this decision.
I revised with a friend in preparation for the querying process, and also had to learn to write a query which was a challenge in itself. I had to learn to define and delineate my story, to explain it to others in a meaningful way, which helped me understand my story better, to be honest.
I had to revise several rounds for my agent, and wait long periods before we went on submission. Made it to acquisitions once, but was not acquired. Devastation. Try something new. The story rested for a while, about a year.
I revised AGAIN (honestly, the best revision yet, and it was so desperately needed) and my agent said, heck yeah, let’s go on submission again. But then she left agenting permanently. No hard feelings! She did great by me. But now I’m back to square 1.
Story rests again. I start revising book 2 just to get back into the habit. It inspires me and helps me better understand my own themes and intentions.
All this to say: the publishing industry is rough and tough and it isn’t the King of the world, and it’s okay if that’s not the way you want to go. But it sure is a rigorous school, full of roadblocks that teach perseverance, and criticisms which strengthen craft and teach resilience. Depending on the sales reliability of your genre, it won’t let you get away with much.
I had a teacher once who said “Write something. Then set it down for several years. Come back. If you still like it, it was good to begin with. If you don’t, it never was.”
Exasperating advice. But boy was she ever right.
J. L. Odom 