Kristin Godsey is the editor of Writer's Digest, the premier magazine for writers around the world. In her interview below, she offers a slightly different, but reasoned, take on self-publishing. If you thought it was going to be easy, think again!
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1. Do you think there is a point where writers should decide to self-publish?
Certain types of books lend themselves to the self-publishing route more than others -- for example, memoirs, family histories, etc., which have a great appeal to a small set of people with a vested interest in the subject. It's very difficult to get a book of poetry published traditionally, so self-publishing is a good way to create an attractive compilation of your work there as well. And it really depends on your own goals for yourself. If you've tried the traditional route and just aren't getting anywhere, and you really want to see your words between two covers, then by all means, self-publish. If you don't want to have to deal with editors "mucking up" your work and you want to maintain complete control, then again, self-publishing will give you that.
2. What is your best advice for self-publishers?
The most important thing to recognize if you self-publish is that the odds are against you if you're hoping to sell tons of copies. If you do want to sell your book widely, you're going to have to work for it. And I do mean work. The marketing is all up to you, and you have to have a certain kind of personality and drive to get the word out. But it can be done. There are also quite a few success stories from self-published authors who've sold tens of thousands of copies of their books and gone on to land traditional publishing deals as a result.
3. Do you predict a future for e-books? Should writers be considering this as a viable alternative?
E-books have been slow to take off, but they certainly shouldn't be ignored as a publishing route. I think it's all going to come down to the technology. As e-book readers get easier to use, more portable and cheaper, people will start to embrace them more. And that will happen.
4. It seems to be more difficult to get a book traditionally published than it has in the past. Has that been your experience?
It does seem that way, and competition is fierce to get a book published. But you know, I still believe that talent wins out in the end. If you've got a good story to tell and you can tell it well, you can get published. The trick is getting past the gatekeepers -- the agents and the editors who read "over the transom" submissions -- and to do that, you have to know the business. You have to know how to write a cover letter and a synopsis; you have to know your genre and other books that are similar to yours in tone and subject; you have to make sure your manuscript is perfect (that means grammar and punctuation, too) before you send it out.
5. Anything else you would like to share?
Just remember that every agent and editor out there would love to discover the next big thing, the next great talent. Keep writing, keep perfecting your craft, keep learning about the business until you can talk the talk, and there's no reason that can't be you.
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Kristin's point seems to be that, whether you are self-publishing or following the traditional route, hard work is involved. A lot of hard work and determination. Certainly not for the faint of heart.
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