Why I’m Self Publishing

I decided to self-publish my novel back in 2017 when I started on its second draft.

I’d run out a partial draft of a very early version – more of a grab-bag of ideas really – to a bunch of agents in 2010. That gathered mostly flat rejections, but two agents were kind enough to respond substantively.

One responded in great detail. “I like it, but I don’t love it. And with what’s happened to publishing, I can’t afford to take on anything I don’t love. We need something which is going to fly off the shelves in WHSmith, but this is too dark and too weird. I think you need to consider self-publishing.”

Back then, having been a publisher in a former life – after my journalistic career – self-publishing did not hold the terror it did for many. I’d had to deal with printers, supervise layout and cover design, commission artwork and had the contacts to enable me to get it done. I didn’t do it back then because it just wasn’t ready.

In the intervening period Amazon has revolutionised self-publishing. Now it is not only not difficult, it’s pretty straightforward, and Amazon gives you immediate access to millions of potential readers as well as funky algorithms which act as superb sales multipliers.

I’m doing it because self-publishing gives me a soft-start, a chance to experiment with my novel writing career, to find out what works, what sells and what I may be doing wrong.

Of course, I’d love my novel to become an immediate bestseller, but for now, simply being able to point to my creation out there in the ether will be far by enough.