It seems that these “old-school publishers” — dinosaurs from a bygone era — manage to survive financially only thanks to the few JK Rumblings and Paolo Cornelios they’ve captured and exploit to the fullest, in a closed commercial system. Meanwhile, many outstanding works by lesser-known writers pile up on their cluttered shelves without receiving the required promotional attention: they are, in fact, mere decorative elements in their ecosystem, needed to perpetuate the now outdated myth of the Flamboyant Author — the one who signs his books with great fanfare in front of the press and television, then vanishes with the roar of his Porsche!

Such is the sad state of affairs today.

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That’s why, in this new context, self-publishing is a breath of fresh air: no more chasing after greedy publishers! If authors must put in marketing efforts on top of writing, they might as well reap the rewards directly. After all, managing one’s own marketing takes hard work, time, and money (Amazon ads and Google ads, for example).

Of course, choosing self-publishing means accepting that marketing becomes part of the author’s job; naturally, we must dedicate a portion of our time to promoting our books. On the other hand, if our book has any merit, it will surely find its way, and royalties will trickle into the piggy bank; and if it’s worthless, it evidently won’t sell — but at least we’ll have spared ourselves the humiliation and exhausting effort of begging one publisher after another, sometimes for years…

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Moreover, in self-publishing, our royalties stand at 60% of the listed price (minus printing costs), compared to the typical 8% of the sale price in traditional publishing. For e-books, it’s 70% versus 25%.

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(cont.)