Wednesday, November 02, 2011

Diving Into The Self-Publishing Pool

Ciao Bloggisti,

The last few months have been very hectic. I'm working on a few film/TV projects (all on spec) with various producers and my novel.

I cannot believe it's November. What the heck?

My manager and I decided after much discussion to self-publish my novel.

There has been a great deal of press lately about the massive changes in the publishing world. Nobody knows how things will shake out.

Hundreds of e-books are uploaded everyday. While many people dream of making some serious money, the reality is most e-books don't sell. The reason we hear about the success stories is because they are rare.

It's a lot of work. The writer is responsible for doing all the things a publishing house would normally do, editing, designing the cover, marketing, etc.

So why do it? I am tired of book agents (before reading a single word of my manuscript) telling my manager that it's impossible to sell Womens' Commercial Fiction to publishers, especially if the protagonist is African-American.

I know the agents are right. It IS very difficult to sell commercial fiction to publishers unless you're a reality star or writing about vampires.

We're going to try to sell directly to readers.

This will be a very interesting process. Who knows what will happen? I hope readers connect with the characters in my novel.

The goal is to have the book up later this year.

Have any of you self-published? How was your experience?

The Washington Post had a very interesting ARTICLE on the subject a few months ago.

16 comments:

Sara, Ms Adventures in Italy said...

Nice - I am actually getting ready to release a little ebook on Kindle myself - I wanted to go through the process so I could see how it is :)

Gina said...

Very exciting! I love your writing and look forward to downloading your e-book once it's published!

gibber said...

This is VERY exciting! And I know a pretty good graphic designer for when you're ready to design your book cover and what not :)

Cathi said...

I have actually purchased alot of e-books directly from the authors this year. Love it! I look forward to your book!

Jannelle said...

I appreciate this post so much. Last Saturday, I went to a writer's conference and I learned many things. I even did an agent pitch that went very well. Unfortunately, the agent didn't represent my genre, she gave a referral, saying that I could use her name. I went to the other agents website. She had represented tons of romance novels, but no interracial romances. I become disheartened immediately. I was going back and forth with the self-publishing thing. I don't know any thing about designing a book cover. Now, I am excited about the prospect. After I figure out the cover issue, I'm going to self-publish my book.

LuLu B said...

This is great! :) I can't wait to read it. I'm sure it will be wonderful!

nyc/caribbean ragazza said...

sara - really? I want to hear all about it. Good luck.

gina - grazie!! I hope you enjoy it.

gibber - thanks. Talk to you later. I'm speaking with my manager tomorrow and will have some updates.

cathi - thank you. I'm so curious about this process.

jannelle - Congrats!! Keep me posted. I do believe there is an audience for an interracial romance novel. Do your thing.

luluB - grazie. That is very kind of you to say! I hope readers think my book is wonderful.

Moi said...

A, a long time ago, I self-published a book [which included designing, editing and promoting- aside from the research and writing]. This book was my baby-- hard work but very satisfying for the amount of control i had. I've been following e-publishing and think it is definitely the way to go. There is a lot of opportunity here-- and in a certain sense, less stress since you get to do everything with a click. Can't wait to hear how it goes. xox e

Kiratiana said...

I'm so proud of you. My experience in self-publishing has been mixed. I recently self-published the book, Kiratiana's Travel Guide to Black Paris. When I began this journey, almost six years ago, the self publishing world looked alot different. There was no createspaces.com from Amazon and you literally had to do everything myself. I got the printer, the designe, the editor...EVERYTHING.

The sad part is by the time I published the book, I got an incredible gig and just did not have enough time to promote the book. One thing that I will do soon is release the book on Kindle...but I'm sooo behind on this!! Good luck!

Em said...

Good on you!

Similar to Cathi I have purchased a lot of e-books also directly from authors as well. In particular, a lot of IR romance with AA woman protagonists (as this is the genre of my upcoming novel).

From scanning Amazon comments and the publishers active in the genre (and there is definitely an audience for it), I actually think the target audience may in fact be just as likely to want an ebook. I think the same is true for commercial fiction in general.

I am hoping to self publish a novel in the next year so while I cant help you out since I am still in the writing process I completely understand your thinking here.

Good luck...I am definitely going to watch this space.

Ely said...

My mom just forwarded me an interesting article (from the UK of course) that is so timely in regards to your situation: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/nov/03/black-urban-fiction-american. I'm glad that you're not giving up because even though it's 2011, traditional routes still aren't willing to take chances! I really liked this quote from the article because it's so apt:

"...it's a question about why we the reading public, editors, agents, are only thinking about them as 'black books' rather than mystery or science fiction. Or any of the other little headers that we have in bookstores that would be perfectly appropriate to shelve a book by a black author. Somehow blackness reigns as the only separation..."

nyc/caribbean ragazza said...

moi - I really liked your book and didn't know until later you had self-published it. I'm learning a lot as I go through the process. It is exciting (and a little scary). x

kiratiana - Thank you. The business is changing so fast, things are different from only a few months ago.

em - good luck with your novel and keep us posted!

ely - thank you the link. I will check it out. I always wondered about that marketing. I get why there is an African-American section, but why can't a romance with a black protagonist be in the Romance AND the African-American sections?

agrahamnola said...

Can't wait to read it! A friend is a big believer in a blog called Between the Margins with helpful hints for authors on the gamut of issues from publishing, agents, promoting your book, fighting writers block, etc. They're also on Twitter -- check that out. Hope all's well my friend!
A

nyc/caribbean ragazza said...

Thanks for the suggestions, A!

Hope all is well with you.

milanese masala said...

I have never read an e-book. I guess I'm old-fashioned that way. But I think it is the future of publishing. I'm very curious to see how things go with you because I've got some ideas, if I ever find the time to see them through! In bocca al lupo!!

nyc/caribbean ragazza said...

milanese - crepi!!

Only 15% of the population in America uses e-books. That number is expected to grow.