Why do some writers choose self-publishing?
For some, self-publishing offers a short-cut through the often frustrating and almost always lengthy process of finding a traditional publisher. Others realise that their manuscripts will be of interest to a limited market, and so are not likely to interest a mainstream publisher. Still others prefer to keep creative control of the whole process.
Books that lend themselves to self-publishing rather than traditional publishing include family histories, memoirs, personalised stories, books in an unfashionable genre, cross-genre books, how-to books and poetry.
Some authors self-publish some of their titles, while selling others through mainstream channels. I have chosen to do this with my workshop titles, and also with a handful of novels.
Consider the two novels described below.
Translations in Celadon
Rosanna is living in a world of her own creation, although she believes it was made by somebody else. Rosanna is sure she could work it all out, if only she didn't keep turning into a horse. Meanwhile, she must negotiate with a princess, a werewolf, a wise woman and a groom who, like Rosanna, were originally someone else.
Ellie loves Harry more than anyone in the world, and so she should. He is her husband and they've been together for a thousand years. Inwardly, Ellie and Harry feel like the Saxon teenagers they once were, but outwardly, Ellie is a modern teenager and Harry a schnauzer dog.
These stories share themes of self-image, fate and self-determination, although the plots, settings and characters are really quite different. One was accepted and published by a mainstream publisher and became a "Notable" book. The other was turned down by three editors and is now self-published. Which is which? Why?
