Why is there still a stigma attached to self-publishing?
@lostinwonderland (35)
United States
February 21, 2007 9:20pm CST
Why is there still a stigma attached to self-publishing? This is a question I have been asking myself a lot lately. Today, independent movies and music are valued and respected for the hard work that the individuals put into them. But authors who decide to self-publish are usually snubbed in the world of writing and often disrespected for their choice. I used to think this was because authors invest thousands of dollars to see their work in print, and maybe others didn't agree with that. But nowadays there are many self-publishing opportunities that don't require an upfront investment. And many self-published authors have to do their own editing, formatting, cover design, and promotion/marketing. Why is this something that should be ridiculed? Shouldn't authors be judged by their writing, rather than who their publisher is?
3 responses
@TDonald (1421)
• United States
22 Feb 07
I don't really think there is a stigma. The target audience for many self-published books is just too small for a major publishing house to assume the risk and expense of publication. Then again many self-published books are crap.
An author with a decent book can make a good living marketing his book directly to the people who may be interested. He just has to take the time to learn how to do it.
@lostinwonderland (35)
• United States
22 Feb 07
You may have proved my point a bit with the "many self-published books are crap" line. This is part of the stigma I'm referring to. Except that instead of saying "many", people generalize even more and assume that 99% of self-published books are "crap". In my opinion that's a bit of an unfair statement, because it's all relative since everyone's tastes are different. There are very few reviewers for example who will review self-published books, because of the "stigma". The rest refuse, ignore you, or are downright rude about it. Reviews are part of marketing, and therefore make the whole thing more of a vicious cycle. This is just one example mind you. My point is just that self-published authors are not treated the same as traditionally published authors. I figured this was common knowledge.
@lovesfreedom (1245)
• United States
22 Feb 07
I am choosing self-publishing myself. I have not heard anything negative about it. Many well known authors got their start this way.
I do hope you experiences improve and I hope mine are good when all is said and done.
@lostinwonderland (35)
• United States
22 Feb 07
I should clarify that I haven't technically done self-publishing before. I signed on with a publisher who many in the "business" considered to be self-publishing (too complicated to go into right now), to the point that I probably spent more time trying to defend myself than sell my books. In my experience, people were quick to disregard me for not being with a "big publisher". My next step was to actually move away from this publisher, and try out actual self-publishing (I'm a bit of a control freak), and I'm nervous I'll get the same negativity. Anyway, sorry to drone on and on. I really wish you the best of luck with your writing, and I hope you have a good experience! :)
@arseniajoaquin (1732)
• Philippines
17 Mar 07
This is my first time to hear about what you refer to as stigma. I hope I will not suffer from this. Well, I hope you would be interested in these. I have been publishing at lulu.com I am a translator of the Word of God from Greek to English. I have already published GENESIS, EXODUS, LEVITICUS (Greek-English), THE WILL New Testament (Greek to English), ELEMENTS of SALVATION, The Right Way, GOD, ORIGIN, TRANSFER into PERFECTION, GREEK-ENGLISH (Grammar & Vocabulary), WORDS in THE WILL New Testament, and others shown at
http://www.lulu.com/arseniajoaquin
GENESIS, EXODUS, LEVITICUS (Greek-English) is not only about history. It is the source of wisdom and knowledge. Our basic knowledge in everything comes from these first three books of the Holy Bible. I hope you would include at least this one in your reading.
Forget about that stigma. It depends upon the readers and the people in general. If they are biased for the authors are just self-published, let them. Remember that that are billions of people in the world. We do not expect all those billions of people to read our works. May God bless you.
