
Self-Publish, don't write for a Publisher - geerlingguy
http://www.jeffgeerling.com/blog/2016/self-publish-dont-write-publisher
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ivraatiems
This post ignores the fact that it is very difficult to get any exposure even
as a traditionally-published, agent-having author. Getting traction in self-
publishing is doubly or triply more difficult. In technical writing, it's
probably easier than in, say, fiction or literary nonfiction, but that doesn't
make it easy.

If your goal is to have a physical book to represent your efforts and offer to
others as a side effect, then by all means, self-publish.

If your goal is a) to have a somewhat objective perspective on whether your
work is good, b) to get a large audience to pay attention to your work, c) to
have any kind of career as a writer, or d) have the best possible (edited and
designed) version of your work out there, self-publishing is rarely the way to
go. I'm not saying it never happens - there are success stories out there,
usually authors who self-publish first and are then picked up by a traditional
house to go the extra distance - but it isn't the most likely outcome.

------
hooloovoo_zoo
"I'm a software developer who communicates well." This is a bad way to start
this blog because it challenges the reader to find ways in which you are a
poor communicator rather than pay attention to what you are saying. It's like
starting with "I have unimpeachable spelling."

------
exolymph
There are pros and cons to both self-publishing and traditional publishing.
Neither approach is wrong or right – they fit different purposes. It all
depends on what you're optimizing for.

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erroneousfunk
Like others have said, there are pros and cons to both. From my experience,
working with a publisher was _exactly_ what I needed, and it's worked out very
well. I published a moderately successful technical book (my second book, the
first one was awful and sold poorly, the publisher was terrible, but the
experience was good to have) a little over a year ago, and, not only has it
made me well over $40k in royalties, but it's been bought by foreign
publishers and has been released in several other languages as well, and
royalties have actually increased in recent months because of foreign
releases.

Sort of a point-by-point take on my perspective of the author's main points in
his blog post:

I own the copyright to both my books. Didn't have to ask for it, didn't really
care, but it seems to be pretty standard among publishers (although I could be
very wrong about that, and just lucky). Honestly, I didn't really care about
owning the copyright. It doesn't affect my day-to-day life. I've heard of
sketchy publishers taking an author's content, re-writing it, publishing under
someone else's name, or re-using it in weird ways, but that's not really an
issue with my contract, and shouldn't be an issue with any reputable
publisher.

Writing for fun? It was fun! Sort of. It was a lot of really intense work, and
late nights. But I enjoy the subject immensely. If you write a technical book,
money should be a very very low priority -- it's a nice surprise at the end,
the icing on the cake. So _who_ the money is going to, or in what percentage,
shouldn't affect your motivations or the "fun" you have doing it either way.
It really didn't feel like "working for someone else" at all, it felt like it
was entirely my project, but I had an excellent support team to help me out if
I needed it.

The ability to update whenever you want? Sounds like a bunch of maintenance
work pressure. The book was analyzed by technical editors, copy editors,
layout people, illustrators, and god-knows-what-else to death before its
release. It was stamped with the ISBN number, preserved in the Library of
Congress, and it's done. Although I did some additional (optional) editing
when foreign translators gave some feedback, I don't have to do anything else
until (if) I decide to write a second edition. It's not a constant side
project, I don't have to track sales, I don't have to advertise, it's not
something I think about much, I just watch my bank account get a big boost
once in a while, and send the IRS money every quarter. The publisher sets up
book signings and talks once in a while, but those are totally optional, and
it's kind of a nice tax write off weekend vacation for me, and I turn them
down as often as I go to them. "San Francisco for a week?" Ehh. "Las Vegas for
the weekend?" Yes please.

Advanced sales analytics? Sweet summer child, I have a publisher to worry
about stuff like that. If I cared (which I only did in the first month or two
of sales, before I realized there were more important things in life, like
drinking and watching Netflix), I can call them up and get as many gory
details and spreadsheets as I want. So really, I feel like I have the best of
both worlds.

Money: Yes, it's sometimes a little nuts to see that my publisher has made 6
figures off this book and I'm sitting around saying "Sweet! Another $3k in my
bank account!" But I make 25% off of online sales (and licensing, and a few
other things) and 10% off of hard copy revenue, so life isn't really that bad.
The last time I had to do anything with the book was a year ago, the
publisher's probably put more work into it than I have at this point, and they
have an amazing network of resources to promote it. My book is in libraries,
bookstores, sold at conferences -- and I don't have to do a damn thing to get
it there. Colleges that wouldn't even admit me have my book in their library!
Sometimes I google "<name of book> syllabus <year>" to see what kind of
professors are using it for required reading this semester.

I might seem a little aloof, but don't get me wrong, I LOVE my book, and am
extremely attached to it. But, sometimes, you children have to grow up and
leave the home, and I'm happy to pay my publisher to allow it to do that. So,
if you like ongoing projects, and are an entrepreneurial self-promoting type,
definitely self-publish. But I'm not an entrepreneur. I'm have some writing
experience, professional teaching experience, and am a full-time software
engineer, but not all of us have to want to start our own business to get a
book out there.

~~~
geerlingguy
Thanks for the honest opinion! It seems the key difference is whether you
approach the book project as more of a singular project vs. an ongoing
'product'. I may want to write more about motivations and try to strike up a
conversation about that difference too :)

