I spent much of the weekend submerged in research. I’m learning about the various aspects of self-publication and self promotion. I’ve never seriously considered self-publication for two reasons:
- I didn’t want to bother with the marketing and sales bullshit.
- I didn’t have the cash to make self-publication a viable option.
Well, I’ve learned that most authors end up with the lion’s share of marketing and sales even if they have an agent and a contract with a traditional publisher. That means I’ll have to deal with all that shit anyway; a lot of it won’t be on terms dictated to me by the publisher, and I’ll get a pittance of the proceeds from book sales. The only real upside to it is that I’ll have much better distribution through the publisher. I don’t know if that’s much of a reason to choose traditional publishers over self-publication.
My new job pays enough for me to afford self-publication. I’ve worked hard to live within my means since my divorce and bankruptcy in 2003. I lived comfortably on the money I made at the hospital, and my salary jumped about 20K when I took my new job. I can continue living comfortably and use all of the new income to publish and promote my book. Three obstacles prevent me from self-publishing right now.
- I haven’t exhausted my list of potential agents to query. I haven’t given up on the traditional publishing models yet.
- I don’t know enough about the process yet. I still need to learn about marketing, press releases, etc, and I need to work up a budget.
- I’m on a probationary period at work. They could fire me on a whim any time within the next eleven months, and I still need to clear their background investigation.
I’ve devised a basic action plan to overcome these obstacles and to provide contingencies. In the next eleven months I will:
- Exhaust my agent query list.
- Update this site to include the same features and functionality that I have on shannonthomas.org.
- Launch an article-based marketing initiative to gain following on my websites.
- Get a business license and create a business checking account.
- Generate a feasible budget based on my salary and quotes from vendors.
- Pay down my current bills and set aside funds in case I get fired or in case the banks are still playing chicken-shit games when I’m ready to launch.
- Learn everything I can about self-publication, marketing, and promotion.
- Purchase business cards, stationary and other business materials.
- Hire an illustrator to produce cover art and promotional art.
- Identify a book manufacturer to publish my book.
- Identify the software required for desktop publishing.
- Identify vendors to supply other promotional materials to be purchased based on my available budget.
- Devise methods of local and internet advertising, based on my available budget.
- Continue to network and spread the word about my book.
- Lose sixty pounds. (If I’m going to pimp myself, I should look as good as possible.)
This plan should set me up for success whether I get an agent or not. Who knows, embarking on this mission may be the deciding factor that gets an agent’s attention. Either way, I will move forward. Warlock’s Wake will be on shelves in the foreseeable future.
Ending Tune: Just Another Psycho, by Motley Crue