Self or traditional publishing? Important insights from hybrid publisher Hugh Howey
Self or traditional publishing?
It’s the big question most writers are considering no matter what point they’re at in their writing. Writers have more options than ever with all the changes in publishing in the past five years.
As I’ve been learning about the paths to publishing, I’ve been struck by insights from hybrid author Hugh Howey that you might find helpful as you build your writing career. Howey is known for his popular series Wool, which he independently published with great success through Amazon.com’s Kindle Direct Publishing system. Wool – Part One is currently available for free.
In 2012, Twentieth Century Fox bought the film rights to Wool, and Howey signed a deal with Simon and Schuster to distribute Wool to book retailers across the U.S. and Canada. The deal allowed Howey to continue to sell the book online exclusively. He turned down seven-figure offers and instead opted for a mid six-figure deal in order to retain e-book rights.
In a blog post by Porter Anderson on Publishing Perspectives yesterday, Anderson asked Howey to offer advice for self publishers. Here’s one piece of it:
1. Asking people to buy your book doesn’t work. Instead, try to entertain or enlighten with your Facebook posts and tweets. Read more
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