Cory, I’m glad you mentioned the second point about going it alone. All too often in these discussions, the basic argument ends up being:
- Write book
- Self-publish
- ???
- Profit!
“Who needs publishers at all?!” is usually the conclusion. I do music reviews (often for unsigned, underground bands), and I often see the same discussions about record companies. It’s true–going with a publisher (or record company) by no means guarantees success either, but you’ll definitely be relying on no one but yourself for a lot of work if you go the self-publish/self-release part. I suppose we all want to assume our work is brilliant and will catch the world’s attention just on its own merits, but throwing a book out there on Amazon among millions and just posting about it to your Facebook isn’t likely to catapult you to the status of phenomenon. I have a bandcamp page, and in spite of a decently sized social network and appreciative listeners, my stats are nothing to get excited about. (Granted, I just put music up there mostly so distant friends and family can hear it easily, so I’m not chasing fame or any kind of a career.)
