Which Is Which: Traditional Publishing Or Self-Publishing

Every writer dreams of getting published. Whether it is traditional or self-publishing, it would be great for every writer to receive royalty checks from publishers, to see your book on the shelves and being acknowledged for your work done.

Most of the writers would get published through publishing houses like Bantam, Wiley and other similar names. But it is a long process. Writer who would get published by these houses would be able to see their books in book stores from 12 to 24 months. There are is a long process, since writers would have to get and agent that would represent him in the talks with the publisher.

Authors would find difficulty non only in being accepted by the publisher but also in looking for an agent. The agent is responsible for catching the attention of publishing houses. The publisher would then either accept or deny the proposal. Getting rejected by publishing houses is something that every beginning writer has to deal with. Even big names like J.K. Rowling had been rejected. If the author and the agent are denied by any publishing house, then they can bring their proposal somewhere else.

This lengthy process of getting accepted by publishing house is what sometimes push writers to drop their dreams and eventually stop writing. Even if they get to be published, they can sometimes encounter problems in promoting the book and later on achieving sales. Royalties that the writer receives will be based on the sales of the book. Most authors who get published by publishing houses also do some promoting and marketing of their own.

But with self-publishing, time is of importance. There is nothing more important to a budding writer that getting the books finished and out in the market. Since in self-publishing, the author can be the editor, promoter and marketer, and publisher, it would considerably cut the time in half.

But in self-publishing, there are some things that a writer should be careful about. There are some self-publishing companies who would advertise that they would help you earn the profit, but in the end they will ask you to cover expenses. But there are also reliable self-publishing companies out there. Authors just need to be alert and know everything about a particular self-publishing company interested in them.

With traditional publishing, the publishing house takes care of everything, the editing, layout, design of the book and the promotion and marketing strategy. But in self-publishing the author is everything. He or she is expected to handle the production and commercial processes. Publishing houses would also cover the expenses while publishing the book, but self- publishing would require you to shell out some funds. But be aware of the amount that they are charging you.

Some readers think that going for a publishing house and getting approved and published by them would mean that the book is actually really good. Some readers would even shrug their shoulders over self-published books. But the general public thinks that all the books on the book store would not be there if they are not even meaningful or worth reading. So most writers try really hard and their best to make sure that their books would reach the shelves.

But even if your book gets rejected by a major publishing house, do not be sad because there is still hope. You could always look at self-publishing as an option. But the most important thing here is that the author will work in a way comfortable to him and would suit his needs and requirements, whether it is self-publishing or traditional publishing.