I have been writing about independent publishing, about how sometimes, the road to traditional publishing has to go through independent publishing.
Now, I am wondering: Is there really a difference between independent publishing and traditional publishing? How can you tell if the story is a damn good story? Easy. If it excites you. If it does, then there is a good chance your readers will get excited about it, too. It is all about emotions.
Do I dare say it?
I do. No.
Why?
Well, whether you choose the independent or traditional publishing route, it shouldn’t really make a difference if you have written a damn good book.
What I mean by a damn good book isn’t about grammar. What it is about is story. Is the story you’ve written a damn good story?
Yes, grammar is important, very, very important, but story, whether one wants to admit it or not, comes first.
In other words, you can construct eloquent sentences, poetic sentences, poetic prose, prose with accents like alliteration, but, if your story isn’t there, if there is no story, then all you have is, although eloquent sentences, sentences that go nowhere.
Ask any author. Go ahead. Ask them. They will say that when they’re trying to get the first draft of their story written or captured down on paper, the last thing they’re concerned about great grammar, correct grammar. They’re main concern is getting it all, the story, on paper, “then” worry about the grammar later. The late Jimmy Buffett wrote the line of a song: “And if I could just get it all on paper….” There is a reason why they call it a first draft or the vomit draft, well, the people in the screenwriting world do.
Of course, if the story is there, and your lucky enough to win over an agent or traditional publisher with it, they have the people, they have the staff to polish the grammar to mirror finish.
But, if you’re not one of the rare lucky ones—we rarely are—but, indeed, the story you’ve written is, you believe, is exciting, then, if you feel you’ve exhausted all the possibilities, all your options, all your strategies of attracting a traditional publisher, then you must choose the only other option left—independent publishing. This means that you must make sure, whether through you or a paid professional editor, the grammar in your story is as precise and polished as it can possibly be, and this means to a mirror shine.
But, it does not stop there.
Then there is the book cover, then the book blurb, and both must be artistically and verbally superb, enough that the potential reader strolling by the bookshelf has no choice but to stop, pick it up, and read the blurb, and holding the book close to their heart, take the book to the register.
Yes, traditional publishing houses have the staff do it all and do it all very, very well. They have the editors, copy editors, and the artists to bring out the best in your book.
The difference with self-publishing is, well, unfortunately, you have to do it all, including the marketing, which has always been without question, I admit it, my greatest weakness. But, I am still betting on, I still believe that word of mouth can work wonders. Write an damn good book, tell a damn good story that will stir the hell out of your readers’ emotions, and their experience with it will spread like a wildfire to everyone they know—even, I am willing to bet, people who don’t read books!
If I had heard it correctly, the author himself, R.L. Stine, of the Goosebumps books series swears that the success of the book series came about because of word of mouth, not because of marketing, and he is, if you have ever watched any of his interviews on YouTube, dead honest. He simply tells it like it is.
So, that’s the path I am on right now, making sure that every story, every thriller novella that I write is not just edited but edited incredibly well, and its cover is a work of art, and its book blurb is superb. You only get a moment, or two if you’re lucky to win a reader over in a book store. How long do you want your book to stay in their hands?