PUBLISHING ... Deciding On Your Best Option
Different strokes for different folks
WEDNESDAY
I am continuing with my articles about the 5 Secrets to Publishing Success. Today, let’s talk about book PUBLISHING. When I talk about PUBLISHING 95% of the time I am going to be talking about books: children’s, non-fiction or fiction.
There are other kinds of publishing, you can do music publishing, magazine or news publishing (offline or online), printable publishing, specialty publishing (like journals, workbooks or planners), eNewsletters (like this one), and more. Some of which I might write about in future articles and about which I am happy to discuss if you mention it in the comments or chat. But today I want to share some book PUBLISHING strategies.
There are basically three types of book PUBLISHING today.
First, Traditional Publishing still exists and you can submit your manuscript but plan for 2-3 years and understand you might have to give up some creative aspects.
Second, you can engage in Self-Publishing or Indie Publishing if you want to publish in a shorter time period (usually 1 year), have complete creative control and some money to invest.
Third, Partner Publishing might be for you, if you want to collaborate or if you are willing to learn from someone else’s journey.
You can check out my previous paid article and take a Quiz to Find Out Which Publishing Option Is Right For You.
As I have mentioned before, in some ways it so much easier to PUBLISH a book in 2025, but it also comes with confusing new challenges; not only professional obstacles, but also from a technology stand point. With so many platforms and so much information available about
online stores (Amazon, Ingram, Shopify, Etsy, etc.),
email, list building, or contact management systems (Mailchimp, Constant Contact, Hubspot, Campaigner, etc),
when, where and how to market (Facebook, Google, Linkedin, etc.)
which tools to utilize like Grammerly, Canva, AI, Apps or other resources,
it can easily become overwhelming. Sometimes there are even contradictory messages. One person tells you to do one thing and another tells you to do something else. How do you know which advice to take? what is a new writer or even a mature writer to do. I will be covering these different activities in future articles.
First decide what kind of Book PUBLISHING you want to do. Traditional Publishing, Self-Publishing or Partner Publishing.
Do some research. Ask other authors how they PUBLISH. Join an online or offline publishing community or writer’s association or group, and ask the members which option they chose and why. Listen carefully to some podcasts or livestreams where they interview authors or publishers and see who you resonate with, connect with spiritually or just like their personality – then reach out to them and start a conversation related to what touched or spoke to you.
Find out the pros and cons of each PUBLISHING option and then decide based on YOUR OWN dreams (big & bold), goals (short-term and long-term), personality (jump in and start or more of a team player) and style (practical, creative or outrageous).
Cheers to your writing, launching, and publishing success, Liz