Little Annoyances

I do enjoy scrolling Reddit, up to a point. Every creative artist gravitates toward like-minded people, especially writers. Let's face it; how many people in real life can we talk about writing with?

I like browsing the self-publishing sub, but it's becoming repetitive. I didn't realize it at first, because the OP's' questions are well-formed ~ complete sentences and proper grammar ~ but someone pointed out that most of these guys/gals are basically kids (late teens, early twenties). That probably explains why so many of their questions begin, "I'm trying to decide between self-publishing and 'traditional'." (it's trade, people!)  

Do they realize they don't get to decide? Have they never queried agents? Authors, this choice is not in your hands! I'm this close to popping off in one of these threads, but I've held back because I don't want to come across as a curmudgeon. At the time I was querying, I would have jumped at the chance to be trade published. (I've since done a one-eighty on that.) I queried not only my first novel, but the second, and then the third. As you know, I'm not a quitter. I may still have my querying spreadsheets; I'm too lazy right now to look for them, but suffice it to say I sent over a hundred queries for each of those novels. I even reached the desperation point at which I tried my luck with small publishers. Out of three or four hundred queries all together, one person asked for the full manuscript, and then shot me down. That's a two thousandth of a per cent "success" rate. 

I've even read posts from people who did dip their toe in querying, but were ready to give up after five submissions. Hilarious. 

So, I'm fairly certain these OP's will "decide" to self-publish.

Why did I grow to loathe trade publishing? Well, the agents, first of all. I've blogged about them ad nauseum, so I'll spare you, but bottom line, I have zero respect for their abilities ~ and that's not personal animus over being rejected. I don't think those novels were publishing-ready, either. Rather, it's because of their group-think, their fondness for the latest buzz words, their narrow-mindedness. And frankly, they're all just too young and unrelatable.  

Also, trade publishing isn't the golden ticket one may believe it is. Even if an agent by some miracle decides to rep you, they still have to sell your book to a publisher. Many, many authors have struck out at that step. And if your book does get accepted by a publishing house, you very well may only move about as many copies as a successful indie writer does. See all those books languishing on tables at your local bookstore? 

What self-publishing does is grant the author control. Yes, advertising dollars come out of your own pocket, but advertising, too, is a choice. Personally, I haven't found much payoff from it; others (including David Gaughram) do. Indie authors can promote their books as much or as little as they choose. They can use social media, which is free. Or they can eschew it. 

Then there's content. No once tells me what I can write or can't write. My books are the furthest thing from political, but I'm still free to advance my own world view, which tends toward semi-traditional; or what I call "the normal life that everyone lives when they're not spouting off about politics". I can choose my characters, and they don't have to be of the alphabet variety. I have no "message". I don't have to kowtow to any agent or editor.

Trade-published authors who are wildly successful tend to have begun their careers at a time when non-conformity was a good thing, and it's no wonder that the majority of them are rather condescending toward indie writers. Their experiences in the publishing field were wholly different from ours. I doubt they'd even consider self-publishing an acceptable option; in fact, their minds don't even go there. To them I say, imagine starting your writing journey today. Then welcome to our side.