How do you decide between promoting your book through traditional publishing or self-publishing?
I have learned over my life as a father, pediatric pulmonologist, counselor of children, adolescents and young adults , they would have to sell 500 books to break even. Early in the process of preparing my books, I already knew that, whether I chose the traditional or self-publishing route, I would have to carry most of the burden of marketing the book, as even traditional publishers have largely ceded that responsibility to authors.
Once I decided to pursue traditional publishing, I learned that if I wanted my book to be considered for publication by a major publisher, the book proposal needed to be submitted by a literary agent. The major publishers want an agent involved because this ensures that the book is vetted by a professional whose goal is to find books that are likely to sell well. To find an agent, I prepared a 50 page book proposal that included a summary of the book content, why the book was needed, why I was the author to write it, my curriculum vitae, the target readership, the book’s table of contents, a one page description of the content of each chapter, a sample chapter, and a marketing plan. I prepared a 6-paragraph query email and sent it to 90 literary agents whom I identified through perusing a Writer’s Market book. I personalized each email by explaining why I thought my book topic was a good fit for each of the agents’ listed interests in the Writer’s Market book. To my dismay, only a third of the agents deigned to respond. I especially disliked that many of the agents stated in their instructions to authors that if they don’t respond within a few months, we should take it as a “No.” Ultimately, three agents stated that they wanted to represent my book. All three responded to my query within two weeks after I emailed it. I sent them my full proposal, interviewed all of them, and picked the one who seemed most enthusiastic about spreading the word about my work. Unfortunately, all the many publishers to which my agent initially submitted the book proposal turned it down, largely because their acquisitions editors felt parents would not want to read about hypnosis. With that in mind, I started reconsidering self-publishing because I believed my book’s message to be important, and it seemed as if the book market was uninterested in taking a risk with publishing my book.I think that the current-day major publishers are interested mostly in the bottom line and therefore choose to accept books that they believe are likely to sell well. Such books are typically formulaic, and, thus, unusual topics often are turned down. We see the same trend in movies, wherein major studios prefer to remake movies that were classics, or present sequels to successful movies, rather than taking a chance on a new kind of movie. Just as I was about to give up on traditional publishing, my agent reported that the last publisher to which she submitted my proposal was willing to offer me a contract. I was delighted. However, the acquisitions editor at that publisher felt I should change the book title so that the potential reader would immediately understand what the book was about.Changing Children’s Lives with Hypnosis: A Journey to the Center. Little did I realize the potential consequences of the change in title, which I will discuss in Part 2 of this blog series.Self Tests are all about you. Are you outgoing or introverted? Are you a narcissist? Does perfectionism hold you back? Find out the answers to these questions and more with Psychology Today.
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