A little help

It’s amazing how much goes in to self-publishing. After the long, exhausting act of writing the book comes the long, exhausting process of getting the book to readers. There’s formatting and design and more formatting and websites and connections and, yes, more formatting. There’s long hours and dead ends and costs at every turn.

The expense is something I hadn’t really anticipated.  I live paycheck-to-paycheck, so any costs would cut into my grocery money. I didn’t want to shoulder the expense of sharing my story, after having shouldered everything involved in writing it. I needed a little help.

I got it through a fundraising campaign on Kickstarter, an online funding platform for creative projects. Within a few hours of signing up, I had a page of my own that described my project, listed options for contributions, and offered small “rewards” for pledges, which included a thank you in my book and the chance to weigh in on cover designs. Then, I simply shared it on Facebook and let Kickstarter list it on their site.

The campaign ran for just over a month, and it exceeded my modest goal through contributions from my friends and family, as well as strangers who had come across my project and believed in what I was doing. More about my Kickstarter funding is featured here

I received my funding, minus a reasonable administrative fee, soon after my campaign ended, and I used the money to do what I said I would do: create a website and pay to have my Word document converted into e-files that I could share for free. Fast, simple, and successful. I now had the money to step forward.

 But what I took away from my Kickstarter campaign was more than funding. Everything I was about to do was new and frightening: share my personal story with strangers, seek reviews from critics, open myself up for criticism. I believed in my work and was willing to take the risk, and now with the support of my Kickstarter backers, I felt like others believed in me too. In addition to funding, I had raised a vote of confidence, a show of support that I really needed before stepping into the intimidating, unknown world of self-publishing. It was something to hang on to as I stepped forward, and for that I’m grateful.  

To free or not to free?

It’s only recently that writers have faced this question. Traditionally, writers turned their work over to publishers, and the publishers set the price. But with the advent of online and e-book technology, independent writers can now set our own price. In fact, we can go as far as to give it away for free!

I was completely enamored with this notion when I finished writing 13 Years in America. My book is about rejecting the status quo and demanding authenticity at all cost, so of course I had to be true to my own message. My brief research of the publishing world showed me that I would undermine my book if I were to seek a traditional publisher. Here’s a few examples of the advise the publishing industry gives to writers:

"Good writing is useless if you don't know which markets will buy your work."  -- 2012 Writer's Market

 "You must understand that how well you can write your book, indeed how good a writer you are, doesn't initially come into play.  First an editor must determine if your project is, in concept and focus, commercially viable." -- Thinking Like Your Editor

"The more salable a book is, because of its literary of commercial value or both, the easier it is to find an agent and sell your book." -- How to Get a Literary Agent

 Writers are being told that it's not their writing that matters, but rather how much profit agents and publishers think they can make off the writing. So, I turned in the opposite direction. I decided to spend my time and energy connecting with readers, not trying to jump through the industry’s hoops.  

Offering my book for free was my way of rebelling. It was a statement that my book was about more than money, and that I cared more about sharing my story than making money off it. I had it edited and formatted, and posted a free PDF on my website. I also opened an account on Smashwords.com, entered a brief description, and uploaded the cover image and Word document. Smashwords converted the file into formats that people could access with various e-reader devises, and they shared  it with other online distributers. 

Smashwords did this for... free! Because I wasn’t charging for my book, Smashwords didn’t charge me to distribute it. Online retailers such as Amazon were not so accommodating, requiring that I charge so that they could take a cut. If I signed up for their exclusive “Prime” program, I’d be able to list it for free a few days a month, they said, but that required that I list with them exclusively. No thanks; I want to keep my work  independent.  I want to use online resources to connect with my readers, not have them use me. 

So, depending on the outlet, 13 Years in America is either listed for free or at a cost. And I’m fine with the discrepancy. Where it’s in my control, I list for free; if the source requires a charge, then I list at a cost. I want to connect with readers, but if I also earn some money from my work, that’s great too. I get a small cut of the charge and, hey, like most writers I dream of making enough money to be able to write full-time. If charging for my book on sites that require a charge brings me closer to that dream, then I’ll roll with it. Just not at the expense of my first priority: to connect with readers.