Should I Self-Publish My Next Book?

You all know about my e-book novella, the Salvation of Billy Wayne Carter, which you can buy here. I have another finished novel titled, Zen, Mississippi, which I’ve been trying to get published for about the past year. Every agent that reads it basically says, “I like the writing. You’re a really good writer. I can’t sell this. But definitely send me your next book.”

Well, if they couldn’t sell it then, it seems damn unlikely that anyone could sell it now with the entire mainstream publishing industry essentially facing Armageddon. It was already a difficult business, but this week alone, there were layoffs at Houghton Miffllin and Simon & Schuster, a major shakeup at Random House, and a payment freeze at Penguin. There were also layoffs at Scholastic and Borders recently. So if everything is going to shit anyway, why not take some control and just publish the damn thing myself?

Thoughts?

Generally, self-publishing is looked down upon by the ivory tower elites who hold the reigns of power in that business. It’s harder to get reviews. It’s harder to get distribution. And there’s a general stigma that if you are publishing something yourself, you’ve already failed at the more traditional route. I’m not quite willing to concede failure, but it seems like it might be a while before the industry straightens itself out enough to take what I do seriously. By then, I’ll have another book ready for them. I really want to do something with this book RIGHT NOW. Or soon at least. I’m getting impatient, and I’m addicted to instant gratification (among other things).

Moreover, the hurdles of reviews and distribution are much more easily overcome than they used to be with the rise of Print-on-Demand publishing, Amazon, and other resources available on the web. And even if you get a book deal with a major house, there’s a good chance that you will still have to do most of your own publicity. So I don’t know. Anybody have any advice for me?

Time Cube

One of the inspirations for the TH2 character in Salvation is the Time Cube guy, who has been posting his insane time rants on the web since 1997. I always imagine Thom Hawkins, Jr. as a guy who eventually be this crazy but isn’t quite there yet. I hadn’t looked at the Time Cube site in several years, and I checked it this morning just to see if it’s still there. It is, and crazier than ever. If this has somehow escaped your web radar the last 10 years, you really should check it out and browse through some of it.

As far as I can tell, his theory is that there are four days occurring simultaneously around the globe, but that’s about as much as I understand of it. But then, I don’t think it’s possible to understand much more than that about it.

Time and Nothingness

I have to say something about this this article because the book they’re reviewing is similar (in theory) to the kind of books that Thom Hawkins, one of the major characters in Salvation writes. The authors of the book have identified six different attitudes about the concept of “time,” and they say that the category in which you fall can have a lot to do with your happiness and success.

I took the quiz attached to the article, and the results were contradictory. Apparently, I’m both more likely and less likely to be depressed, aggressive, and conscientious and to use drugs or alcohol. Hmm.

I took the quiz again imagining Thom’s POV, and he was more consistent–that’s a fictional character for you.

Save Billy Wayne Carter

Although the book came out almost 9 months ago, I’m starting this blog now in order to try to give it a second life. It turns out that marketing an e-book is not an particularly easy thing to do, and sales have not been quite what I’d hoped for.

A couple of months ago, I wrote an article for mediabistro.com (subscription only, unfortunately), which profiled my publisher, Cantarabooks, and examined the pros and cons of their business model. In a nutshell, the model is this: First they publish a book electronically, and if it sells over a certain threshhold, they will then publish it in paperback. Compared to options like print-on-demand and self-publishing, I concluded this was a good option for some writers, especially if they were having a hard time getting their foot in the door of a more traditional publishing house.

The biggest advantage I can see to this type of publishing is that e-books cost almost nothing to produce, so the house can afford to take a chance on an author that is unconventional or unknown.

As of today, I need to sell only 53 more books to be offered a paperback contract by my publisher. I’m being up-front about this number because it seems low, but, in fact, I’ve already tapped almost all my friends and family, and word just isn’t spreading about the book outside my relatively small circle of acquaintances.

So buy a copy today and help bring Salvation to life as an old-fashioned book that you can hold in your hands, carry with you, and lend to friends.