Pros and Cons of Self-Publishing

If you’re a new author, you may be wondering if self-publishing is the best way to bring your book to market. A lot of the past stigma surrounding self-publishing is gone, but that doesn’t mean this approach is right for everyone. Let’s look at some of the pros and cons of self-publishing so you can decide if it’s right for you.

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Topics Covered in “Pros and Cons of Self-Publishing”

• Self-Publishing: The Cons
• There’s a Lot to Keep Track Of
• Traditional Distribution Is Out of Reach for Many
• There’s No Guarantee—Especially With Your First Book
• Print-On-Demand Formatting Options Are Limited
• You Have Full Creative Control Over Your Book
• Self-Publishing: The Pros
• You Can Choose the Marketing That Works Best for You
• You Keep 100% of Your Royalties
• Full-Color Interiors Look Great These Days
• You’re In Charge of Your Book Listings and Publisher Accounts
• You Have Full Creative Control Over Your Book
• Self-Publish With Spoonbridge Press

Self-Publishing: The Cons

While there are many advantages to self-publishing, there are also very real challenges that you should consider before diving in. Here are a few potential drawbacks you should know about so you can make an informed decision for your book.

There’s a Lot to Keep Track Of

There’s a reason traditionally published books can take years to bring to market—there are a lot of steps! When you self-publish, you’re the one responsible for making sure each of those steps is completed.

These are just a few of the steps you (or the people you hire) need to take care of:

• editing
• back cover copy
• cover design
• interior layout
• proofreading
• bar code
• ISBN
• sales copy
• setting up book listings
• researching keywords and categories
• marketing and promotion
• project managing the whole shebang

Of course, there are hybrid publishers and self-publishing companies who can do this for you (like us!). But ultimately, you’re in charge of making sure everything is taken care of and up to industry standards.

Traditional Distribution Is Out of Reach for Many

Through KDP, IngramSpark, and other platforms, independent authors can connect with more bookstores and libraries than ever before. This means you can easily create online listings at target.com, bn.com, and thousands of other outlets around the world. You can even offer a wholesale discount through IngramSpark.

However, getting physical copies of your books on the brick-and-mortar shelves of these establishments is extremely unlikely. As a self-publisher, you don’t have access to the same distribution network as a traditional publishing house.

Many local bookstores and libraries stock independent books, but with around 11,000 books published every day, competition is stiff. Your best bet is to go bookstore by bookstore and meet the people in charge of choosing the books to stock—or simply focus on online sales.

There’s No Guarantee—Especially With Your First Book

When we hear new authors mention that they want to recoup their investment, our hearts sink a little bit. That is certainly a worthy goal, but it’s not a guarantee, especially if you’re only written one book. The fact is, you should never invest more into your book than you’re prepared to lose. 

In reality, most successful independent authors have reached that point after publishing several books. Every new publication increases your chances of Amazon’s algorithms putting your books in front of readers who might love them. Some readers won’t even consider a new author unless they know they have at least a few books out. Pinning all of your hopes on the immediate results of a single book will likely disappoint you.

Of course, working with a traditional publisher is also no guarantee of success—but when you self-publish, you’re the one taking the risk.

Print-On-Demand Formatting Options Are Limited

Print-on-demand (POD) is how the vast majority of independent authors use to publish their book. It’s the lowest-cost way to bring a book to market: since books exist as digital files and are printed and shipped when orders are placed, there’s no need for separate warehousing and fulfillment. 

But while POD works very well for most types of books, it isn’t the right approach for everyone.

You’ve seen books that are primarily printed in black-and-white but have a section of glossy, full-color pictures. Unfortunately, POD can’t accommodate this. Interiors are either black-and-white or full color—no mixing and matching. And because a full-color interior costs more to produce, the higher list price typically isn’t worth it just to include a few full-color pages.

Further, while both KDP and IngramSpark offer hardcovers, only IngramSpark offers dust jackets. KDP offers case laminate, where the artwork is printed directly on the hardcover, but that isn’t ideal for all books.

Children’s authors face an especially narrow set of options. There’s still no POD option for board books, which means no cutouts, flaps, or even rounded corners. (It is possible to self-publish a board book, but you’ll need to pony up for formatting, printing, storage, and distribution.)

You Have Full Creative Control Over Your Book 

You may be surprised to find this under “Cons of Self-Publishing.” (Full disclosure: This one is on the Pros list too!) Let me explain.

For many authors, what seems like a solid benefit of self-publishing—the ability to make your own choices—can actually hurt your chances in the market.

Before I cofounded Spoonbridge Press, I spent fifteen years as a freelance copyeditor. I watched many, many authors go on to make mistakes that I knew would hurt the marketability of their books.

• Skipping proofreading (“I had my book copyedited, so I don’t think I need proofreading”)
• Forgetting to edit the front and back matter (“I had the manuscript edited, but then I added a bunch of things later”)
• Making their own book covers (“I’m not a book designer, but I whipped something up in MS Paint and it should be fine.”)
• Not considering the keywords and categories that can help them move up the rankings. 

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying these are impossible tasks for every author. But I’ve seen too many independent authors skimp on the important tasks that can make or break their publications. (That’s why I cofounded Spoonbridge Press!)

Self-Publishing: The Pros

Now that we’ve looked at some of the negative aspects of self-publishing, let’s look at a few potential benefits.

You Can Choose the Marketing That Works Best for You

To reach the widest possible audience, traditional publishers use a wide range of traditional methods. This might include anything from author signings and virtual events to collaborations and cross-promotions to print and online advertisements. And helping to market your book is typically part of your publishing agreement. But that’s not right for every author—or every budget.

When you’re independent, you can choose the marketing and promotional strategies that you’re most comfortable with. Love social media or blogging? Great! Prefer to use Amazon ads to reach your target readers? Perfect! Into the idea that success is cumulative and more books means more opportunities to cross-promote? Put your head down and write that next book.

You Keep 100% of Your Royalties

Traditionally published authors receive a cut of their books’ profits—around 10 to 15%—but the publisher keeps a healthy portion. This makes sense: publishing houses do a ton of work at their own expense. They deserve to benefit when a book they’ve backed does well in the marketplace.

But when you self-publish, you keep a much higher percentage of each sale. You may not have a publisher marketing your book, but self-publishing offers a higher payout for each hard-fought sale.

(Remember that many hybrid publishers take a cut of your royalties and might not pay until you pass some threshold. Other companies—like ours—don’t take a cut and set you up to receive royalties directly from the publishing platforms.)

Full-Color Interiors Look Great These Days

You may have heard that full-color interiors look terrible using POD. That used to be true, but over the last several years, the quality of color interiors has made significant headway.

We used to caution our clients against color interiors whenever possible. But today, the top POD printers make even the most vibrant of illustrations look fantastic. (Here’s one we produced—it’s beautiful!)

You’re In Charge of Your Book Listings and Publisher Accounts

New authors tend to underestimate the importance of being in charge of their book’s metadata and categories. But if you’re focusing on online sales, there’s almost nothing more important to your publishing success. 

When you have access to your publisher accounts, you can make key changes to increase your chance of success:

• List your book in categories you can actually rank in without having to sell hundreds of books a day
• Use keywords your readers are actually searching to find books like yours
• Target different sales channels with marketing copy focused on those readers (and their keywords)
• Try out a new book cover or make updates to your book

Without this control, you’ll be at the mercy of whatever categories Amazon or your publisher decides to put you in. It’s best to optimize your listings to connect with the readers you know best.

Note: We use PublisherRocket (affiliate link) from Kindlepreneur to research keywords and categories, and we recommend you use it too.

You Have Full Creative Control Over Your Book 

Here it is, the thing that makes self-publishing so attractive to so many authors. When you’re in charge of your book—and when you take all the necessary steps to make your book a success—self-publishing can be incredibly rewarding.

If you’re a novelist, you may not want a publisher changing your book to align with their marketing calendar. You also may not want to give up control of your book cover or compromise on your book’s positioning.

And if you’re a nonfiction author, there are other factors to consider. It’s probably important to you that you can connect your book’s back matter to your speaking career or business. You may want to use your branding elements on your front cover or publish under your own imprint.

When you’re self-publishing, your book comes together on your terms and has the potential to connect you to your readers in a whole new way.