Writing Saturday: S is for Self-Published

When people find I self-published my books, they often have a lot of questions. Many an aspiring author is also wondering whether that is a route they want to take.  So today, I am going to tell you about some of the pros and cons of being self-publish.
1. Being self-published is a lot of work. If you take your book seriously, this is not the easy route. You have to design a cover, edit your book, market it, promote it, and what not. If you want to go the easier route, wait for a publisher to discover you awesomeness.
2. You will not be rolling it money. It takes a long time to build up a following most of the time. Even though you get more of the profits, if you are writing books to make money wait for a publisher to pick you up.
3. There are people out there that don’t think self-published books are any good. I had some comments on my blog and other places that self-publishing wasn’t a legitimate way to go. Let’s all be honest. If you read self-published books long enough, you will read one or two that will make you say “this should never have been published”. You have to be prepared for the naysayers.
4. You are in control. It is the best part of self-publishing. You can to have the cover you want, the story the way you want it, and have movie rights. You lose a lot of control if you go the traditional route.
5. You don’t have to wait for a publisher. You can share your story with the world as soon as its ready! No waiting on a publisher to discover you.
For me, what it really came down to is what God was calling me to do.  I felt very strongly that he wanted me to self-publish my first book. Sometimes God wants us to do one or the other, sometimes we just chose which we think is best and let God take care of the rest.