They say that everyone has got a book in
them, which apart from sounding quite painful (sorry – bad joke), it
probably goes a long way to explaining why so many people are turning to
self-publishing.
The numbers speak for themselves,
with some self-publishing companies in the UK boasting of 40,000 authors
on their books (pardon the pun) with over 60,000 titles.
But
there is of course the argument of quality over quantity when it comes
to self-publishing, and it certainly adds up when you consider that just
one best-selling novel will easily outsell 60,000 bad ones.
In
the current climate, the majority of literary agents and the major book
publishers will now take on just one new writer a year; so for an
aspiring new author like me, self-publishing makes sense. It also offers
the author more control over their work.
After much research, I eventually decided to self-publish with a company called
Pen Press.
Unlike their rivals who churn out authors and books by the dozen, Pen
Press only published 137 commercially available books last year.
Whereas
this may not seem as much when compared to companies who are publishing
titles in their thousands, Pen Press pride themselves on offering a
tailor made experience for their authors.
“We work
hard to ensure that the author feels like they have a working
relationship with every member of staff they deal with at Pen Press and
are very comfortable contacting us for assistance throughout the process
of bringing their book to life and beyond,” Danny Bowman, the Marketing
Manager at Pen Press, told me.
I have to say I am
already reaping the benefits from this approach. Four weeks ago I
received a Reader’s Report from Pen Press after submitting my
manuscript. It was so refreshing to receive professional feedback after
dedicating over two years of hard work to make my novel,
The Drought, a reality.
Of
course I had previously received positive feedback from friends and
family, but what else were they going to say? You only have to tune into
Britain’s Got Talent every Saturday to bear witness to a whole host of
sorry souls who have been encouraged by their loved ones to share their
talent with the world.
The Readers Report offered an
unbiased opinion of my work and pulled no punches. Unlike my family and
friends, it didn’t care if it hurt my feelings. It told it to me
straight – what was good about the novel and what wasn’t. It allowed me
to go back to the drawing board and change the parts that needed
changing.
My book is now in the process of going
through the proof-reading and copy-editing stage, another service
offered as part of the Pen Press package. After working in the publishing industry for over five years, I am well aware of the pitfalls of a print job done
badly or littered with errors. When this happens, print can certainly
be one of the most unforgiving forms of media, so these services are
essential before I even consider getting around to the actual printing.
With
any piece of printed material, you only have one shot at the reader –
they don’t care if you can correct your mistakes and supply a new book
via print on demand at a later date. And as the author, you really don’t
have any excuses for this to happen,
but some people find out the hard way!
While
self-publishing may not be the traditional form of book printing, it
still needs to be professional, and so far I can’t have any complaints
in that department. Onwards and upwards!
