Category: self publishing

Getting Lost in the Shuffle

When I first started writing to get published there was still a stigma against self-publishing. Any “vanity press” caused warning signs to flash in my head. Skip ahead just a few short years and now publishing your own work is the new black. I have absolutely nothing against it and know many authors who have been very successful at it. However, I’ve decided it’s not for me at this time. 

So, what does that mean for me as a small press author? I’m not published through the big six but I do have contracts with three different publishers. All three are well known in the Romance industry and have NY Times Best Selling author’s in their lists. I’m very happy being a part of all three but what does that mean for me? Not much lately it seems. Even though I’ve been more successful on having new releases this year than any previous year, my sales are down. Is it because of my writing? I’ve no idea.

To be honest I feel I’m getting lost in the shuffle. There are so many authors and books to choose from. I know I’m just one of millions. I don’t get many reviews so don’t know if my writing just sucks. The few reviews I’ve had and some reader feedback leads me to believe it doesn’t. What I do feel is there is such a push to support “Indie” authors, and so many readers stuck on buying paperbacks from the big six that authors like me are falling through the cracks. The biggest problem is I don’t know how to fix this.

Like most authors I do a lot of online promotion for my books. I’ve got a site and blog (duh) and I’m on Facebook nearly all day every day. I know I’m often preaching to the choir though, as a lot of my interaction is with other authors. I don’t really mind. Authors are readers too, right? I know I am. But there comes a point where I have to draw the line on self-promotion. I have to spend time writing too, plus I don’t want to spam anyone. So, I’m just going to keep doing my thing and hope my writing speaks for itself.

The Evils of Self Publishing: A Writer’s View

*The following post is being written as Missy the writer, rather than the previous rant from Melissa the reader.*


The saying, you can’t teach an old dog new tricks, definitely applies to me. I’m the type of person who once I get something in my head, it’s kinda hard to shake it. When I first decided to try my hand at being published in 2008, self-publishing was still frowned upon by most. The term vanity press was said with a wrinkled nose and furrowed brow. I was warned away from venturing in that direction by more than one knowledgeable person. Then I don’t really know what happened. Slowly but surely things changed and it’s now all the rage to self-pub your work. Some authors do it out of necessity for various reasons, some to try the venture. It’s true there is a lot to be said for self-publishing, but is it really a trend worth trying?


My take on it for my own work has always been, I really need my editors. I’m reminded of this every time I get edits back for my newest book. I don’t think I’m a horrible writer, but there are a lot of mechanical things I miss. I also like certain words and commas too damn much. Plus I tend to have my heroes use pet names a lot. These are traits I’m sure I’ll eventually overcome, but one thing I can’t seem to get over is the self-publishing stigma. In the back of my mind is the little voice saying: if it’s not good enough for a publishing contract, it’s not good enough to publish.


Now, any of my author friends reading this please don’t take offense. That little voice is all about me and my writing. These are my stigmas and hang-ups. However, if you read yesterday’s rant you’ll see the other side of why I’m still shying away from self-publishing. These ideas might change. It was only about four years ago that I didn’t think my writing was good enough to be published at all. I think I’ve come a long way, and so has the industry.


My only other concern is the free and $ .99 trend. As I mentioned yesterday I’m of the you get what you pay for mindset about most things. I don’t want to devalue my own work. A visual artist would never walk into a gallery and slash the prices of his/her paintings or sculptures just to get his/her name out there. The work would speak for itself. As an author I feel my writing is my art. I’d hope it would speak for itself, good or bad, to those who view it.


So to self-pub or not to self-pub, is that the question? For me, personally, the answer is not right now. I’m probably missing out on a good thing, wouldn’t be the first time. But I just don’t think it’s something I can fully get behind for my own work right now. Besides, I really love my publishers.

The Evils of Self Publishing: A Reader’s View

*I’d like to start the following semi-rant with the clarification that it’s from Melissa the reader, not Missy the writer. That one will come later.*


Self-publishing is all the rave right now and for some this is a really good thing. However, as a reader I’m still on the fence. I love that I can download a plethora of books for free, legally from authors who just want to get their name out there. I love that I can buy just as many books for as little as $ .99. That is, I love it until I actually try to read the books.


Now don’t get me wrong. There are plenty of authors out there who actually take the time to edit their books, or have them professionally edited. There are authors who take enough pride in their work to be certain they are putting a quality product on the market. Unfortunately, there are just as many who either don’t or just don’t seem to. To be honest, it’s gotten to the point where when I open a book file and see the publisher as Smashwords I cringe, and consider not even reading it. It’s rare for me to read a Smashwords book with few to no errors in it. Correction, I don’t think I’ve ever read one with no errors in it. And I don’t just mean typos. There are grammatical errors and writing fundamentals mistakes that make me roll my eyes and think, why didn’t this author catch that?


In most products I’m a firm believer of you get what you pay for. It’s a shame that I’m beginning to wonder if that’s not the case with literature as well. I’ve never added a review to Goodreads that says I’m glad I got the book for free, but it’s been very tempting. There are just too many where that applies.


So, self-publishing, is it a good thing? Is it helping the industry? Honestly I just don’t know. Again, as a reader, I have my doubts because of the quality of product that I’m getting when I look. However, I’ve only really looked in the romance genre and it’s sub-genres. If this is going to be the trend with the types of books I love to read, my heart is truly broken.