Dynamics, Advantages, and Triumphs of Modern Publishing
Any author looking to publish their book has three options to choose from, all offering different benefits and downsides. Traditional publishing remains one of the staple options for authors to choose from when publishing their books. However, major publishers are still feeling the effects of the pandemic, with readers vastly preferring to purchase their books from websites like Amazon as opposed to shopping in brick-and-mortar bookstores. Considering that one of the last major advantages of traditional publishing was direct access to those bookstores, traditional publishing continues to lose any dominance of the market it still had. Hybrid publishing serves as the second option for authors to choose. Hybrid publishers operate like traditional publishers but offer authors no advance royalties and make authors pay for most or all the costs of publishing. The third option, self-publishing, has become the fastest-growing of the three, and the benefits of self-publishing continue to grow.
Self-publishing has gone from being another way of publishing a book to becoming a major industry in the publishing world. Experiencing a nearly 20% annual increase in books being self-published and with awards like the Pulitzer Prize being open to self-published authors, the field of self-publishing has become a field that is both recognized and respected in the world of publishing. Furthermore, self-published books take up about 30% of all ebook sales, with authors making up to 70% of sales revenue from royalties. With Amazon Kindel Direct Publishing (KDP) continuing to experience massive growth with nearly 35 million books for sale today, these benefits of self-publishing are increasingly more appealing, considering the lack of advantage a traditional publisher might offer when considering the costs of traditional publishing and the control a traditional publisher has over their books.
Of course, self-publishing is a process that still requires time, effort, and dedication from authors to ensure their books are published, marketed, and sold successfully. Since an author is publishing their book independently, they will need to hire freelance editors, proofreaders, and designers to ensure their manuscript is ready for publication. An author self-publishing their book will also need to ensure they budget properly for marketing their book. Amazon ads are one of the most popular and effective methods of advertising a new book.
"Writing a book is like driving a car at night. You only see as far as your headlights go,
but you can make the whole trip that way."
- E.L. Doctorow
When self-publishing their book, authors also have the option of working with publishing consulting firms that work with them and provide access to the people they need to get their book into the hands of readers while helping them build their brand and grow their audience. Firms like PRESStinely are able to provide authors the support they need while not taking any royalties from their book sales or their business, ensuring authors get what is rightfully theirs while finding the success they hope to achieve from their books.
Whether you are looking to self-publish your first book, are writing a new one, or hope to build a brand to successfully relaunch a previous book, PRESStinely is here to help. Visit PRESStinely.com and schedule a complimentary discovery.
Kristen & Maira