8 Questions That Help You Decide to Self-Publish or Traditional Publish Your Novel This Year

Do you agonize over the choice of self-publishing or traditional publishing your novel? You’re not alone. This is the number one decision every new novel writer must make when they start on their publishing journey.

One thing to remember is that writing is a business, and you must treat it as such. No matter which avenue you choose, self-publish or traditional publish, here are eight questions you can ask yourself to make the path clearer.

1. Do you have numerous novel ideas?

Traditional publishing houses want to see a clear career trajectory. They are not looking for the one-hit wonder. They expect you to write a manuscript every two years to stay relevant in today’s marketplace. This means making writing a habit and learning the craft. Even today’s literary agents want you to have a career writing goal. They make money by banking on you, and they want you in it for the long haul.

Self-publishing, while it had the stigma of being called a vanity piece back in the 1990s, still satisfies your ego, and if you have only one novel in you, this may be the route to take.

2. Are you willing to give up certain rights?

In traditional publishing, you (or your agent) sell your manuscript to a publisher. You sign a contract for a set number of years (normally seven years before you gain your rights back). How much control you have over that book and its final outlook is mostly gone. You may have no say in the title or the cover. You collaborate with an editor who may change your words so much you hardly recognize them. (Remember, they are the experts, and their job is to sell your novel to the masses, so they know what sells.)

Therefore, you need to make sure you go over your author contract with a fine-tooth comb and make sure you have a publishing lawyer review it as well. You can negotiate many things but not all.

In self-publishing, you retain all control over the finished product but also all the costs in designing the cover and interior pages, typesetting, printing, marketing, and distribution—unless you hire a book producer to manage some things for a price. You invent and register a publishing “imprint” and must buy an ISBN (International Standard Book Number), a number that protects your copyright and allows your book to be sold online and in bookstores. If you print your book, where will you house it?

3. Do you know your market?

Traditional publishers are still considered gatekeepers, providing validation and curation, which is what makes them hard to crack into in the first place. Literary novels are one such market: hard to gain acceptance when your work has not been editorially selected. Plus, the literary market still prefers print. Textbooks are another market that are traditionally published. Colleges, librarians, and educators tend to trust books that are peer-reviewed or released by a university press.

Other markets—those more genre-focused like romance, erotica, mysteries, and so on—are easily consumed digitally, which make them ideal for self-publishing. YA (Young Adult) is an expanding market that goes both ways, but when you want to get your book into the classroom, the traditional market still has the seal of approval you need to gain acceptance.

4. How much work do you want to do?

Your manuscript is finished and now you want to publish it. For the do-it-yourselfer, self-publishing may be the way to go. For the one who needs guidance, traditional publishing may be for you. Both avenues, however, take loads work—writing your manuscript was the easy part.

For the traditional publisher, do you have a submission package? This means creating a synopsis, a query letter, an author biography, and, if nonfiction, a market breakdown that analyzes the existing competition and how your book fills the gap.

Self-publishing has a steep learning curve. Don’t think you can just give your manuscript to a book producer or printer and expect a high-quality book in return. Plus, the initial investment will cost you thousands of dollars.

5. How much of an enterprising spirit do you have?

You need an entrepreneurial (can-do) mindset and willingness to learn the self-publishing business because you are fully responsible for your book’s success. You must be comfortable working online and know how to grow an audience. You’ll need a professional author website, remain active on social media, and market yourself and your book.

If you’re a first-time author, you may have little or no knowledge of the work that goes into a professionally published book. You may not understand the editing or design process, or how sales and distribution work, and so much more.

Of course, you can learn these things, as well as outsource the necessary work to others—numerous companies offer self-publishing services—but that costs money, and how do you wade through the myriad choices out there?

If you would rather collaborate with a team of people, or feel like you have a business partner, you may be better suited to traditional publishing. This is where I highly recommend getting a literary agent. They work for you and have your best interest at heart. Find one who will answer your questions and concerns, and not charge you a fee to read your manuscript.

6. Do you have a large audience that you consistently cater to?

When you have a readership that you consistently reach on your own (through your website, blog, or speaking engagements), self-publishing may seem a better route. You may not sell as many books as you would through a bookstore, but that shortfall is made up through an increase in profits from each sale.

However, having a ready-made audience also makes you more marketable to traditional publishers. Start growing your followers and email list now.

7. How much money do you want to make?

Yes, it’s true you keep more of the proceeds per book when you self-publish than when you traditional publish. If you have a literary agent, you make even less because you pay them a percentage (normally 15% of your royalties) to sell your book—though they will get you a better deal and a higher advance payment. But, as in most things, it’s a numbers game.

How many copies will you sell as a self-published author? You may find marketing and promoting your book tougher (and costlier) than you imagined. It may take four, five, or six novels to gain traction in the marketplace to make meaningful earnings.

In traditional publishing, you are given an advance against future royalties, which may be $1,000 to $10,000 upfront before your book ever hits the bookstores. (This amount is subjective, dependent on many determining factors and, yes, big names get more. Think of it like this: The bigger the advance, the more secure the publishing house feels in earning back their investment and the more effort they shall put into promoting your work.) Once this initial advance is earned through the sales of your book, you receive royalties from the publisher on a bi-yearly basis. You may earn just enough to support your Starbuck’s habit.

8. How much patience do you have?

Traditional publishing takes time. Even when your manuscript is sold to a publisher, it can take two years to see it in the bookstore. You must also manage rejection. The querying process is tough, and you will receive many, many nos. Just remember, all it takes is one “yes” to make your spirit soar. I know writers who have taken ten years to get their manuscript sold to a traditional publisher.

With self-publishing, you can have a finished product in your hands within a few months or less. But instant gratification is often the worst reason to self-publish. A book worth reading is worth the time it takes to do it right and this means hiring an editor to fine-tune your manuscript, getting some beta readers to read your manuscript and offer feedback, finding the people or service to turn your manuscript into book form, hiring the proofreader for the final review of that book form (ebook or print) before, finally, putting it out in the world.

I always advise writers to take a minimum of two years to catch a traditional publisher. Exhaust all options and get thoroughly rejected—at minimum, a hundred times—before going the self-published route.

A Cautious Note: Don’t self-publish to become traditionally published

This is often the path to failure. I know self-published authors who hate being self-published. Their number one reason is because they weren’t prepared for all the work that goes into self-publishing a book. Regardless of the success of E. L. James’s Fifty Shades of Grey (originally self-published as an ebook and print-on-demand in June 2011) or Andy Weir’s The Martian (self-published in serial format on his blog), once you self-publish a book, it’s difficult to gain the interest of an agent or traditional publisher—you would have to show mass appeal and sales to do so.

Don’t lose heart, though, just because they’re not interested in your self-published novel doesn’t mean they won’t be interested in your work in progress.

Only you can choose the path that’s right for you, and I hope these questions gave you clarity in self-publishing or traditional publishing. Know that your answers can change from year to year, and that’s okay.

Do you have additional questions? Be sure to comment below and I’ll answer.