Let's talk about traditional publishing vs self publishing
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 30 พ.ค. 2021
- Amazon has changed the publishing industry, no doubt about that. And with all the griping I've been doing about traditional publishing not supporting their authors in this series, surely I'm at least considering self publishing for the future, right? Well, yes...but it's not as simple as it seems.
Amazon & traditional publishing 02:54
Amazon & self publishing 07:21
The value of traditional publishing 19:40
Full time author 22:57
Looking for writing workshops? I've got 'em!
Character transformation: skl.sh/33iwgFH
Writing a book description: skl.sh/356PtLg
STUFF I MENTIONED
The Everything Store by Brad Stone amzn.to/3vD2PKZ
Interview with Lacy Williams about Kindle Unlimited www.authormedia.com/kindle-un...
Jeffrey Trachtenberg's Amazon piece in WSJ www.wsj.com/articles/they-own...
Amazon vs Hachette www.forbes.com/sites/jeremygr...
Rapid release:
1 www.authormedia.com/why-rapid...
2 fantasy-hive.co.uk/2019/05/lo...
3 btleditorial.com/2020/06/30/r...
What is Kindle Vella? blog.reedsy.com/kindle-vella/
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Check out my writing course on character transformations! skl.sh/33iwgFH
Stuff I use as a full time writer/author (that you may have spotted in this video!) (affiliate links are afoot):
WRITING/WORK STUFF
Macbook Air. Doesn’t really need my recommendation. amzn.to/3soroc2
iPAPA laptop case: amzn.to/3slflwf
Mind-Reader adjustable/portable laptop desk. I LOVE this thing. Typing with my arms at an angle has drastically reduced elbow/wrist pain. amzn.to/2OYh0tX
Clever Fox planner. I’ve used a few planners and this is my fav. Lots of space for mind-mapping and brainstorming, daily to-do lists, space for goal setting. amzn.to/3vNmk3Z
Best writing pens, hands down. I use them every time I revise a book. amzn.to/311nRoP
Acer monitor. I kind of hate the word gamechanger but this really was that kind of purchase. amzn.to/3vH71Kh
Brother laser printer. I won’t lie, this thing is a behemoth. But I’ve had it since 2017 and I think I’ve had maybe one paper jam? It works great, it’s super consistent, A++ for printing manuscripts. amzn.to/3tzIvZE
Macbook Air. Doesn’t really need my recommendation. amzn.to/3soroc2
iPAPA laptop case: amzn.to/3slflwf
Alphasmart Neo2. Highly highly recommend. amzn.to/3cStKui
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COFFEE STUFF
Ninja coffee maker. amzn.to/31533Nu
Cold brew pitcher. amzn.to/3cSKVM9
Zulay milk frother. amzn.to/3r7DDJu
VIDEO MAKING STUFF
Canon G7X Mark iii camera. I love the flip up screen (ie, you can see yourself as you film) and the fact that there’s a mic port. amzn.to/3r9BfCb
Savage studio lights. I mostly use these for ‘talking head’ videos. amzn.to/3r7G6Un
Ubeesize 10” ring light. That’s the little guy sitting on my desk. I mostly use it for vlogging. amzn.to/31hqpzD
JJC mini tripod. amzn.to/3feXxjJ
Rode clip mic. amzn.to/2OSaLb2
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BLACK LIVES MATTER. To my fellow white authors: we have to show up every day. We have to speak out. We have to make it clear to the Black authors and creators in our community that we are here for them. Silence is not an option. Please check out this Google Doc for hundreds of resources on how you can support, donate, and learn--not just in February, not just when another senseless tragedy due to racism occurs, but every single day from right now moving forward: docs.google.com/document/u/0/...
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So about next week's video on what publishers pay workers...it's gonna take a bit longer. :/ After editing this video, I realized I'm constantly underestimating how long these sort of deep dives are going to take me. But the next installment will be coming sometime in June, I promise!
As a content creator I can only imagine how long it takes to research, script, film, and then edit these deep dives, but I’m so grateful you do it.
I've been self publishing for a couple of years now... hands down, best decision I've ever made.
Hi Michelle, I usually never comment but I had to say thank you for all of the great content you create! Your videos are so entertaining and even when you cover the mounting issues in publishing I still get a laugh from your humor. Your storytelling skills really do shine through. I always get excited when I see one of your videos in my feed. As an aspiring author and college undergrad without experience in the industry I appreciate your insights!
This was a great discussion, thank you for bringing it up. It's very upsetting that things are heading this way and I hope that it gets put right at some point soon.
Self-published author here! I'm about to publish my second book, so I'm not exactly an expert by any means, but from my experience so far, self-publishing isn't a walk in the park either. I'm working more than a traditionally published author might (about 20 hours a week), for a slower-built career which I am paying for, and I have to be extra cautious of "programs" like KU, which exist purely to rip off newer self-published authors. However, this is the only way I'd be able to be an author, as my current series is dystopian, and literally everyone knows how dried up THAT book market is. So there's some gives and takes.
Great video, Michelle! Im really LOVING this series because its tough info to digest but Im glad Im aware so I know how to be proactive.
Thanks for sharing. There were a few take aways that stood out in my mind.
I love the way you use familiar characters. Dwight, Niles and Frazier. I just wanted to toss that out there. Cool technique.
And here I am writing a literary sci-fi...I'm always in between categories dammit.
There are a lot of self-published authors who don't treat it like a business. That would account for a low median income. I say this as a writer who has self-published several books and hit the Amazon bestseller lists: there are people who are happy publishing as a hobby and people who don't know what they're doing as well as those who write and publish full-time.
Great video. Super interesting. Now, these are my thoughts:
My experiences with Kindle Unlimited is that it brings in the majority of my ebook money. Like a 60/40 split from page reads vs. purchases. I don't mind the exclusivity for ebooks on Amazon's platform, because none of the other vendors can really compete with KU in my genre. I've been a full time author since 2014.
Man oh man! You work hard, Michelle! What a lot of research you do. Consequently, your content is always of excellent quality. Thank you!
It's so important for authors of either path to do their research so they can know what they are getting into and what their rights are. I am pursuing trad pub because of several of the reasons you touched on. I write across different categories including middle grade, literary, and fantasy. And the fantasy I do write isn't what does well on Amazon (epic and low to no romance). Also, I'm broke lol. Even if I don't get any marketing, the services that a publishing house provide is far more than I could accomplish on my own.
I have been a self-published author for a year now. I have two books out and have learned a lot about the industry. I went self-published because as a dyslexic author I had zero confidence that I could break into the traditional path with all the gatekeepers. I have tried KU and it killed my sales dead. I far prefer wide. (Kobo, in particular, has been strong for me.) I had to make my first book free to ‘hook’ readers into my series and am only now starting to get traction. My third book is due out in the autumn and then I hope to make some profit with multiple books to offer. I have also spent many hours learning how to market. It takes a lot of commitment and that is time you could be writing. I have seen several authors that published at the same time as myself give up. They feel ignored, let down and disenchanted with the whole process. Everyone dreams of writing for a living, but I don’t think it will ever be possible for me until I have twenty or so books under my belt and that is a huge investment when you pay for everything from editors to cover artists. I love the freedom that self-publishing has given me to express my art, but I have also had to accept my art has little value. I work and have a family so I can’t give up the time to treat my art as a business. Another great vid, thanks for your hard work.
I love all of your deep dive videos about the book industry and love how respectful you talked about self publishing.
CC Humphreys just discussed this with Christie Stratos in part of their discussion last week--a great topic!
This is so important.
Thank you for mentioning the difficulty for disabled authors regarding fast publishing.