GoFuckYourself.com - Adult Webmaster Forum - View Single Post - Writing eBooks, getting published, or self publish?

kane · 07-27-2009, 01:11 PM

I know some about the publishing world. I have a publishing deal with a major publishing house for a novel I have written so maybe I can lend a little insight for you.

First off which way you decide to go depends on what the book will be about. If you are writing mass market fiction there is probably more money to be made in the long run by working to get an agent and get a deal with a bigger publisher. If you are writing something that is fiction but with a very specific audience or non-fiction that has a very specific audience you may end up making more money going the self publish route if you have a marketing plan in place.

For example if you are writing a murder mystery the best bet would be to try to get an agent and a publisher that knows that genre and knows how to market it. That is a genre with a very wide audience and they know how to reach that audience. On the other hand if you are writing a non-fiction book about using alternative energy to power your house you probably know enough about that topic that you understand the audience and can market your book to it pretty well so self publishing and e-books might be the way to go.

One thing I have been told is that if you have a desire to reach a broad audience and get a bigger publishing deal self publishing should be something you do only as a last resort. If you self publish your book, most major publishing houses will not want to touch it then because they want to introduce it and you to the market. Of course there are exceptions to the rule, but for the most part it holds true.

So I would advise that you identify your audience then you determine what your goals for the book are. If you are happy just selling a handful or a few hundred copies of your book or e-book then self publishing could work out well for you. If you have higher goals and think your work has a larger audience I would work hard to get an agent and have them guide you.

07-27-2009, 01:11 PM
kane Too lazy to set a custom title Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: portland, OR Posts: 20,684	I know some about the publishing world. I have a publishing deal with a major publishing house for a novel I have written so maybe I can lend a little insight for you. First off which way you decide to go depends on what the book will be about. If you are writing mass market fiction there is probably more money to be made in the long run by working to get an agent and get a deal with a bigger publisher. If you are writing something that is fiction but with a very specific audience or non-fiction that has a very specific audience you may end up making more money going the self publish route if you have a marketing plan in place. For example if you are writing a murder mystery the best bet would be to try to get an agent and a publisher that knows that genre and knows how to market it. That is a genre with a very wide audience and they know how to reach that audience. On the other hand if you are writing a non-fiction book about using alternative energy to power your house you probably know enough about that topic that you understand the audience and can market your book to it pretty well so self publishing and e-books might be the way to go. One thing I have been told is that if you have a desire to reach a broad audience and get a bigger publishing deal self publishing should be something you do only as a last resort. If you self publish your book, most major publishing houses will not want to touch it then because they want to introduce it and you to the market. Of course there are exceptions to the rule, but for the most part it holds true. So I would advise that you identify your audience then you determine what your goals for the book are. If you are happy just selling a handful or a few hundred copies of your book or e-book then self publishing could work out well for you. If you have higher goals and think your work has a larger audience I would work hard to get an agent and have them guide you.