Kevin, that was an excellent post. Thanks!
Ravana, I think we are going to have to agree to disagree. Obviously our thoughts on self-publishing are coloured by what we personally look for when buying books; unlike others in the thread, I *don't* look at the publishing house on the book. About the only thing that constitutes a label that I look for is the author, and even then I will occasionally take the chance on a new author (regardless of how it was published).
I think that's why I don't see self-publishing as such a bad way to go if you're going to release a book. Yes, if I'm going to self-publish, I have to do all these things myself (or at least hire somebody myself, as it were). To be frank though, I would probably release my stuff for free rather than worry about making sales. So why sink a ton of money into it when I can do as much on my own as I can? People are a lot more forgiving when it comes to free stuff.
I also have reasonable expectations when it comes to self-publishing. I definitely don't have it in my head (at least not anymore) that I'm going to make a decent income by self-publishing. I know how much work is involved when it comes to self-publishing.
But I would still recommend it to anyone if they're on the fence about it. Like I said earlier, if someone is dead set on submitting their manuscript to a publishing house, I wouldn't stop them. I agree, there are plenty of advantages to going with a print publisher. Still, I think there are more advantages to self-publishing. But I'm looking at it from my own interests, and not everyone sees it that way.
Ravana, I think we are going to have to agree to disagree. Obviously our thoughts on self-publishing are coloured by what we personally look for when buying books; unlike others in the thread, I *don't* look at the publishing house on the book. About the only thing that constitutes a label that I look for is the author, and even then I will occasionally take the chance on a new author (regardless of how it was published).
I think that's why I don't see self-publishing as such a bad way to go if you're going to release a book. Yes, if I'm going to self-publish, I have to do all these things myself (or at least hire somebody myself, as it were). To be frank though, I would probably release my stuff for free rather than worry about making sales. So why sink a ton of money into it when I can do as much on my own as I can? People are a lot more forgiving when it comes to free stuff.
I also have reasonable expectations when it comes to self-publishing. I definitely don't have it in my head (at least not anymore) that I'm going to make a decent income by self-publishing. I know how much work is involved when it comes to self-publishing.
But I would still recommend it to anyone if they're on the fence about it. Like I said earlier, if someone is dead set on submitting their manuscript to a publishing house, I wouldn't stop them. I agree, there are plenty of advantages to going with a print publisher. Still, I think there are more advantages to self-publishing. But I'm looking at it from my own interests, and not everyone sees it that way.