Every now and then in this here Od-Blog, things get a little real. Sometimes I think aloud, bandy around some ideas (like the one a couple paragraphs below), and let them fly. This is one such blog.
There are definite times when I wish I’d gone the traditional publication route, even though trad publication isn’t quite what it used to be in terms of marketing and the royalty percentages between self-publishing and trad are oceans apart. Yes, publishing houses help with the upfront costs—editing, cover design, some marketing—but the downside is that they are the gatekeepers of what you can and cannot publish through them.
I’ll be the first to admit I haven’t found the level of success every author dreams of. I’ve sold a good few books, sure, but I’m a far cry from packing in the day job. I’m a far cry even from breaking even on expenses incurred through self-publishing. But what I do have is the freedom to write what I, as a reader, would love to read—not to mention what I find interesting to write. That’s pretty much down to having a family that supports this silly dream by figuring out how to absorb those costs and still put food on the table and a roof over our head.
Even so, I do dabble with the thought of trying the trad route again. I’m not wired for marketing, or really much of the business side of things. I’m a creative cat. That’s all. Most recently, my thought was to try querying agents and publishers with the new Tides of Odyssium series. It would be an uphill battle, certainly, since I’d be pitching Book One of three or four total, and, spoiler alert: publishers don’t typically like that. That said, I think I’ve established a track record of being able to deliver what I feel are solid, entertaining books in a timely (i.e. in a non-R.R. Martin-esque) fashion.
But, with that, there goes the freedom. Maybe they’d let me stick with my existing and ever-expanding annual release plan that goes all the way up to 2035 or so. Maybe they’d tell me to write something else.
For now, the plan is to stick with self-publishing, and of course, that tradition continues this month with the release of THE GIRL WHO STOLE THE SUN. If you’d like to keep that tradition alive, consider supporting your local (or not so local) artist and buy a book or six. They’re all on Amazon in eBook format, or you can message me on social media to arrange a signed paperback if you’d prefer.
And...that’s enough “salesmanship” for today, which comes as naturally to me as surviving a high-dive into a fishbowl full of piranhas.