Published my own novel

Kinda put this in the literature forum before, but I'll put it here. Hope some of you give it a shot, let me know what you think of it.

http://www.amazon.com/Lunen-Triblood-Volume-Ahmed-Al-Sheikh/dp/1479359718

First of all, congratulation for publishing; as far as I know, there is only one troper who actually got his book published. You have done what most of us haven't yet.

It's this guy, by the way.

edited 3rd May '13 4:52:49 PM by dRoy

Congratulations. :)

Achievement Unlocked: Realize every troper's dream.

I'm jealous. I want to publish Fafnir's Bane!

I would greatly appreciate any insight you could share into the self-publishing experience. I might try this myself one day.

Congratulations and well done! ^_^

I like the cover art and the premise is interesting.

Nicely done. Thinking about doing this, except not the self-publishing part.

The page you linked seems to show that your novel got praise from Kirkus Reviews and several anonymous individuals. Good show, good show! It's one thing to publish a novel, and another to have people read and enjoy it; you seem to have managed both.

Thanks for all the kind words. After the roughness of selling it lately, it's been hard to see the positive. And you guys can ask anything about self publishing.

Nice work - looks good, and good job on getting reviews as well! :o

I myself published a book on kindle, as well as printing up physical copies, that people have said they liked. Unfortunately, none of them left reviews on the website, which is kind of a pain! D:

It would be interesting to hear about what led to the decision to self-publish.

On the question of why I chose self-publishing, it's mainly because after years of submitting my work to agents and the occasional publisher who actually accepted manuscripts without an agent, I noticed a pattern beyond simple rejection. Almost all my rejections were generic, with no actual comments or criticism on the work itself. I did a little investigating, and learned a lot about the process. Of particular note is that unless you're already a well-known person, nearly all new writers are rejected outright (with one guy's story as an intern at a publisher being that he found the best written submission so that it could get a personalized rejection letter). This is mainly due to the change in how books are marketed. I'm sure you've all noticed that these days, even if it's not always the biggest text on the cover (and it often is), the author's name is at the top. This is why someone like Snooki from the Jersey Shore can get a book deal even if she's a bad writer, because she already has a built-in audience. From a business standpoint, it makes sense, especially because it's easier to gamble on a thing guaranteed to turn a profit rather than something you may think is a good work, but is an unknown entity that isn't going to turn heads. I mean, Harry Potter nearly didn't get published because none of the publishers it was sent to actually showed it to a child to see how it would work (with the person who did publish only doing it because his daughter found the manuscript and said she wanted to read more). I also met a man named Dan Poynter, an author and self-publisher, who postulated that in the modern age of ebooks and print-on-demand technology, we have a new model for how authors get noticed. Basically, self-publish to get your career started, while still pursuing the mainstream. This makes sense, because like a band playing gigs, how better to build your career as an author than to get your work out there? In the end, I'm still doing my thing, learning as I go. With the way tech is developing, I'm sure more indie authors will come. And while I'm not saying that you should quit the traditional method of sending your work to agents and publishers, I just think everyone who wants to be an author should know that there's more options. Sorry if that was long-winded. I'm preparing for a panel I'm hosting at an upcoming convention.

How are you promoting your book?

Well a panel is certainly a good place to promote.

Mostly through book trailers, getting reviews on reputable sites like Kirkus, and I entered it in the writers digest self published awards. And of course, connecting with my target audience like I am here. But eventually, you have to stop promoting and get back to work writing.

@Ksa

- Thanks for the insight. It's kind of frustrating when publishers tell you that your material isn't qualified for publishing. Least I know what to expect.

I do plan to join in eventually, but I'm currently working on a sci-fi law enforcement postcyberpunk story.

edited 4th May '13 4:20:17 PM by Ominae

first of all, congrats ! but i have a question to ask; is it even worth it, as an unpublished author in the fantasy genre, to send in a query letter etc. to a publisher/agent, or is it best to go straight to self publishing? although i haven't really got anywhere near finishing my manuscript, the plan is to try and get it published and after it is inevitably rejected, self publish it on the kindle store and sell it at a low price to sell well (apparently $0.99-$2.99 people will just buy even if they have little interest in it) and get my name out there. should i just skip the trying to get published part?

I suggest you try submitting for a bit before going straight to the indie route, you may get lucky. And while you should always have an ebook version, trust me, nothing feels as good as seeing a physical copy. Also, doing a giveaway with physical copies can help get more readers.

sounds good! thanks for the help! now to finish the damned thing...

Thanks Ks. Gives me hope that I can publish me own work.

Believe me, hope is something the next generation of storyteller need. You all have the potential for greatness, and you deserve to know all the options available to you.

Congrats on the publishing! =D I'm sure a lot of us aspire to have our work out there, even if it's only in e-book sales. Still, if there were physical, paperback (or even hard cover) copies of my work floating around, it would be unlike any feeling in the world!

I really should edit my Na No Wri Mo 2011 draft. I think I could make it happen.

You have inspired a lot of us! I hope you know that.

Ksawarrior, I believe this is for you. You deserve it.

Really, I mean it. Congratulations on your success — and beyond that, thanks for the words of advice AND your well-wishes. Here's hoping that you can go even further in the future.