I'm
seriously in a stuck place. For working on my first Tween/Y.A. book,
should I work my butt off and send quires to an agent/publisher?
Or
should I self publish to get my name out and noticed, then get with the
above? (Agent or Publisher)?
Any suggestions? Thanks.
P.S.
Writing a drop dead query letter is not my cup of tea. I'm having a tough time coming up with a catching sentence and short description of my book.
P.S.S.
If I want to self publish, there are a couple places local to where I live (and a friend in a different state that isn't too far away). But my book has local valley history in it. So...would I have a better chance in S.P. w/the local since it has the history in it? (I'm not sure this last statement made sense, sorry if it didn't)
You know what I'd say, Jeanette. But you have to do what ultimately works for you. If you decide to go my direction, let me know. I would be happy to help you.
ReplyDeleteIf you decide on the query letter avenue, I may also be able to help you. My first book was traditionally published and I've sent out many, many of these letters.
One point is, is that I don't have the money to S.P. Need to start saving. lol.
ReplyDeleteCheck out this blog.
ReplyDeletehttp://sallyawolf.blogspot.com/2012/07/i-am-now-published-author.html
Since I haven't done any of these, my thoughts are based on what I've heard from the experiences of others.
ReplyDeleteThe agent/publisher is a tough route that requires persistence and a healthy dose of optimism grounded in reality. It may take a while and require a lot of work, but I think this is the preferable route.
Self-publishing can be so expensive and often dead-ends. It you go that route then devise a good plan with alternative strategies. Stick to the plan and be ready for a lot of work on your own and promotional ingenuity. I wouldn't spend a lot of money unless you are convinced that your investment will pay off and do the research to find out if what you hear is true. Don't rely on what the self-publishing house tell you to spend with them to increase your sales because they are mostly just trying to increase their sales of extra products.
Don't let your fantasy cloud the real picture. You may know your book is good, but that doesn't mean it will sell. I think of a friend of mine who self-published several years ago. He did an initial run of 2000 books. He tells me he only sold one. I've gotta believe it was more, but still I think he was trying to make the point that he didn't sell many and it sounds to me he made a good effort at trying. He said he shipped most of them to the soldiers in Afghanistan as donation to the troops.
I wish you luck with this and look forward to hearing the next part of this story.
Lee
Wrote By Rote
Oh, and don't forget the e-book route. It can get your foot in some doors and your name in the public eye. I've heard about some people doing it with little or no investment other than their time.
ReplyDeleteMight make for a good way to experiment in your first book outing.
Lee
Wrote By Rote
Don't forget small presses. They're kind of the middle ground in between self-pubbing and trying to land a big-name agent.
ReplyDeleteJeanette, I plan to work my butt off - and I have been, first in critique groups getting all the input I could, now with beta readers to get input from a readers perspective, and also editing, editing, editing.
ReplyDeleteI plan to publish via Amazon.
In preparation for this I've joined an authors social media group, gathered almost 3,000 followers on Twitter, joined Goodreads, Pinterest and created a facebook Author's page.
It really is work, but will be well worth it if my launch goes well.
Self publishing isn't the ugly word it used to be. A lot of people are doing it very successfully and some are being picked up by publishers IF that's the way they want to go.
I'd definitely look into either Amazon or Smashwords to publish my first baby. :)
OHHH and if you decide to go with small presses, be sure to check editors and preditors to be sure you have a decent one!!! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you all for your comments. I really appreciate it. I'm still a little puzzled on what to do, but I will start taking the small steps to lead me in the right direction.
ReplyDelete