You have spent many agonizing months of bleeding your heart and soul onto paper to achieve that flawless story that you want to tell.  You have edited, re-written and edited again, several time over and, finally, your words are ready to be published.  You might think the hardest part is over but now, you are tasked with figuring out which publishing option is best for you, so I have compiled a list of pros and cons for each method.

Traditional Publishing

PROS

1.  You don’t have to educate yourself on elements like formatting and cover design.  This method often comes with a publisher who is already an expert on these things and will do most of the work for you, which can be a great help with newer publishing methods, like e-books and audibles.

2.  Marketing your book becomes much easier because the publisher or literary agent will deem it beneficial in getting your book noticed and copies sold.

3.  Getting your book more exposure can be a direct reward of traditional publishing.  Not only is it marketed from an already recognized and reputable publisher but, in general, traditionally published books tend to be more appealing to booksellers because they know that proper editing and formatting has been completed. 

CONS

1.  Traditional publishing isn’t always an option. Publishers are extremely selective, which is why literary agents seem to reject so many manuscripts. If a publisher is out of reach for you, then you may be left to self-publish or select a vanity publisher who you will pay to publish your book, and that can be costly. Hybrid publishing is also an option to split those costs with the publisher.

2. The assistance one gets with traditional publishing comes with a cost.  The publisher takes part of your book’s proceeds for the work that they have put in.  It costs them money for editing, formatting, book design and marketing, just as it would cost you, so this is a reimbursement for their services.

3.  The publisher may not share your vision.  You may have planned out the way that your book will read and look, how it will be priced and advertised, but perhaps the publisher has a way they feel would be more successful.  Maybe they even fall short of your expectations.  With traditional publishing, you don’t always have control over your book and it’s sales.  The publisher is almost always going to use the methods they feel offer the most success, which might be very different from yours.

4.  Traditional publishing doesn’t always mean a lucrative book deal.  Many authors don’t realize this.  Even as much as a publisher can help elevate your book sales, they can never promise popularity and wealth.  That falls largely on the book itself and how it attracts (or doesn’t attract) readers.  A publisher may offer you a contract because your book is a good fit with their agency and they feel like it will market well.  They will likely do their best to make it a success but sometimes, book sales fall short and it just simply doesn’t happen for an author.

Self-Publishing

PROS

1.  Perhaps the most obvious is that all of your book proceeds are yours.  You have put in all the work of designing and marketing your product, and now every dollar earned from sales is yours.  There are no payouts to publishers.

2.  You maintain full control of your book.  You choose the cover’s design, how the story is written and the best way to market it.  There is no publisher changing your work and no contract that may require you to do appearances, blogs and book signings to help with sales.  You are the publisher and you hold a full copyright.

CONS

1.  Book preparation and publishing is your responsibility. Self-publishing means that everything from formatting your book, editing, designing the cover, publishing and marketing it is up to you, which can be confusing and time-consuming. Many authors who do finally write their books find that they have no idea how to properly format it for publishing, let alone finding innovative and successful ways to advertise it.

2. The costs are yours alone.  Without a publisher’s help to absorb the costs of publishing and marketing your book, they all fall on you, and they can get very expensive very quickly.  Even just paying for editing or book cover design can really add up. 

3.  You are responsible for marketing.  The success of your book depends solely on you and your ability to market it properly, which can be challenging and time-consuming.  Some booksellers will not accept a book that wasn’t traditionally published or from an already established author.

Carefully consider all of these pros and cons when choosing to publish. After all the hard work of writing and preparing your book, making strategic choices will aid heavily in its success. Happy publishing!