Why One Author Chose Traditional Publishing--And How to Decide if it's Right for You

Roni Loren's blog Fiction Groupie has been one of my favorites since I first began reading blogs. I was so happy for her when she signed with her agent, Sara Megibow (who is with one of the classiest, most pro-author agencies around, the Kristin Nelson Agency.) Then I was even happier when she got her book deal. 


As most of you know, I turned down an offer of representation last fall and decided to go the small publisher route so I could keep more control. It's working very well for me and I'm about to launch book #5, THE BEST REVENGE--the prequel to my comic Camilla Randall mysteries.


Ruth Harris has happily gone from the Big 6 (as an editor as well as author) to self-publishing, and we've talked a lot about the indie Kindle revolution. We had a popular post from Rick Daley in October, "When Landing an Agent Lands You Nowhere" telling what it's like to be represented by an agent who can't sell your work.


But lest Ruth and I seem to give too much weight to the "Self-Aggrandizing Self-publishing Monarch-persons," I decided it was time to hear from an author who is comfortable with the traditional publishing process. There's a lot of snarky "us vs. them" talk that goes on in the blogosphere, so I wanted to offer a positive view of traditional "legacy" publishing for those of you who are still holding onto that dream. If you read Publisher's Lunch, you'll see that deals are still being made for debut authors every week, and New York publishing is still alive and well. Not everybody is cut out to be a "wrublisher" or deal with the seat-of-your-pants world of small presses. So here's Roni with a great "can't we all get along" message for the Holidays. She is so right: don't let anybody criticize your dream!

Why I Went Traditional and 

7 Reasons Why You Should (or Shouldn't)
by Roni Loren

First, I want to thank Anne for having me over here at her fantabulous blog. I always learn something new when I stop by, and I love her philosophy of slow-blogging (even though I have yet to take it up myself, lol.) And Anne and I are both traveling on similar journeys with our books coming out, yet we've gone about it different ways. So Anne asked me to talk a little about the journey to debut authorhood from the perspective of someone who chose the traditional route.

There is some polarizing going on in the writing world lately. People in general like to take sides on issues and writers are no exception. Plotter or Pantser? Fast Drafting or Edit-As-You-Go? Literary or Genre Fiction? Man, we love to debate.

And most recently the topic on the docket is Indie vs. Traditional publishing. Both "sides" are guilty of hocking loogies at the other. Traditional pub people complain about the lack of quality in self-pubbed stuff, they fuss about Amazon, they lament about ebooks and missing the smell of paper. (Dude, WHY is everyone smelling their books?)

Then indie pubbed people talk about how traditional authors are letting themselves get totally screwed, they refer to Big Publishing like they're evil overlords, and they talk about how so many horrible books get published traditionally every day. "Look a typo! In a Big 6 book! Gah, the crap that makes it out! Editors aren't editing anymore!"

I'm not going to go into the whole debate because that's already been done well by Bob Mayer--read his post Writers For Traditional Publishers=Slave? Indie authors=f**kwad. Come on!.

But here's the thing I want everyone to hear: WE ARE ON THE SAME TEAM

Writers are writers. Day to day we do the same things. And unless you're one of the BIG TIME multi-million dollar deal writers, we're ALL underdogs. We all have an uphill battle trying to sell books in a crap economy to a public who is reading less and less every year and who would rather a new app than a new book.

And you know what? How we do that is just a detail. Yes, if you go indie, you're going to have different challenges than if you go traditional. But the reverse is also true. Each path has it's own pros and cons. And the beauty of this whole thing is...

Your dream doesn't have to be the same as my dream.

So stop wasting time with these debates on who's right, who's better. Worry about what is best for YOU and your career. What path is going to fit your needs best?

Not sure what path is better for you? 

~Some key things to consider~

1. Validation - How deep is your need for validation from professionals?

This was a component for me. Part of my dream was to hear from an agent and a respected editor that my writing was good enough and that they believed it was worth paying money for. I found it enormously validating to know that Nelson Lit got 36,000 queries in 2010 and only signed 9 clients and I was one of them. Maybe that says something negative about my self-esteem, but that was part of my dream. Indie publishing would not have given me that. 

However, if you don't need that kind of validation. If you only need to hear from readers who love your work, than that part of traditional publishing doesn't offer you any additional benefit, so maybe indie is the way to go.

2. Deadlines - Do you find them motivating or restrictive?

Working on a deadline can be stressful. And working on someone else's time table is WAY different than your own self-imposed deadlines (like Nano or something). Self-imposed deadlines don't have true consequences beyond a little disappointment or guilt. But deadlines with traditional publishers are part of a legal contract. They are a big deal. 

I do get stressed knowing I have a deadline, but I also find it very motivating. It's taught me to reaarange priorities and not to slack. But if your creativity shuts down under a deadline, then this is a con of traditional publishing. If you indie pub, you set your own schedule.

3. Marketing - Can you balance this with writing?

Let's face it, even in traditional publishing, a lot of your marketing is up to you. I am fully responsible for building my online platform, for blogging, tweeting, getting the word out, blog tours, etc. But there's no denying that I get in some doors that would be much tougher if I were indie pubbed. My book automatically gets reviewed in RT Book Reviews magazine because they review all Berkley Heat books. I was in the Breaking In feature in Writer's Digest magazine this month because I have an agent who helped me with that. I get into the bookstores. I have a publicist through Penguin. My book was selected for Rhapsody's Book Club. I have someone working to sell my foreign rights. All of those things are possible for indie authors but there would have to be a lot more hustle and work for an indie author to get those things.

So I see this as a big pro for traditional publishing. I want to have time to write. I'm not an overly aggressive person, so trying to get my foot in the door for promotion doesn't jive with my personality.

4. Genre - Do you know where you would be shelved in the bookstore? 

I write erotic romance. It's a clearly defined subgenre that sells well. I know exactly where I would be shelved. And that's what a publisher wants. They want to know when they read your book exactly how they would market it and to which kind of readers they would sell it to. When I queried Sara, I said in my query "This story would appeal to readers of Shayla Black, Lauren Dane, and Maya Banks." (Note: I didn't say mine was just like theirs or better than or any such nonsense. I just told her who my market would be. Incidentally, I sold to Berkley Heat who publishes all three of those ladies and I now share an editor with Shayla.) 

So if your book crosses a few genres or doesn't seem to fit in a specific spot in the bookstore (or is in a genre that has been declared "dead"), then indie might be the better option because you have a lot more leeway. You can be more experimental. I think this is one of the most exciting things about indie publishing. My own genre started in the small digital publishers before it went mainstream. I love the idea of having new genre options to read like romantic horror or m/m romance (which is now becoming mainstream because of experimental digital publishers.) 

5. Flexibility - Do you want to write in one genre or many?

In traditional publishing, at least when you're getting started, it behooves you to stick to one genre. You're trying to build a readership and your publisher wants to do the same. So, they don't want to sign you for a three book deal where one is horror, one a western, and one sci-fi. They want you to do one thing really well. Then, once you build up a fan base, you can get the flexibility to branch out. (Just ask those authors I mentioned above. They all do much more than erotic romance now.)  

But writers often have ideas that genre hop. I know I do. I don't only get erotic romance ideas--I'm not a hussy ALL the time. ;)  But I'm happy putting my energy into this right now because I love my series and want to build momentum. However, if that feels overly restrictive to you--indie affords you options. You can publish what you want. You can see which genres sell best for you.

6. Speed - How prolific are you?

Indie publishing favors the fast writer. The more backlist you have, the better chance you have for making a good living. If you can bust out a quality novella in a month, then the thought of waiting 12-18 months (the normal publishing turnaround time for publication) may seem interminable.  

I am a slow-ish writer--though I'm steadily improving. My deadlines are set up to have me finish a 90-100k book in 4-6 months. And that's a fast schedule because my books are going to be released every six months instead of once a year. If I was indie publishing, I wouldn't be getting anymore than two books out a year anyway, so the traditional publishing schedule doesn't hinder me any.

7. Control - Are you a control freak?

In traditional publishing, you still have a lot of control--at least in my experience. They haven't made me change anything I didn't want to. I had input on the covers before their development and after. (In fact, they scrapped my second book's cover when I pointed out an issue and gave me a completely different one.) I had full permission to rewrite the back cover blurbs. I wrote my tag lines on the front. They didn't like my original title but I'm the one who came up with the new one. However, they didn't HAVE to give me all that control. And I'm sure with some publishers, they're a lot more restrictive. And there are definitely things I have absolutely no say in like pricing, print runs, etc. 

So if you know you will have trouble not being in control of some of those things, indie may be the better route. However, remember with all that control comes LOTS of responsibility. My work on my cover involves sending an idea of what I want and photos of my character inspirations. That's it. Then the professionals take over and I don't see it again until they send it to me for final approval. So I've spent maybe 20 minutes working on my cover. If you indie pub, that is going to be a much more extensive process.

So based on all those things, I chose to pursue traditional publishing. And I'm happy with that decision. But you may come out with a different conclusion when you ask yourself those questions.

Figure out what path suits you best and strive for your dream. Don't criticize anyone else's. And remember that dreams can shift. You may find yourself on the other side of the coin one day. In fact, I think the hybrid author who publishes both traditionally and indie is going to be the one best poised for success. So don't go poo-pooing the other side. You may be one of them one day. ;)

So what do you think? What does your dream look like? Are you as tired as I am of people making this a "taking sides" thing? What made you decide on your own path? Which of the issues above are big sticking points for you?

Roni wrote her first romance novel at age fifteen when she discovered writing about boys was way easier than actually talking to them. Since then, her flirting skills haven’t improved, but she likes to think her storytelling ability has. Her debut erotic romance CRASH INTO YOU will be released January 3, 2012 by Berkley Heat/Penguin. If you want to read more posts like this one or follow her journey to debut authorhood, you can visit her writing blog Fiction Groupie or her author blog. She also tweets way too much for her own good.

For this week's Indie Chicks' story--from Katherine Owen--click here. 


Next week, in preparation for your New Year's resolutions, Ruth Harris will blog about PROCRASTINATION. Yeah. That thing you're going to worry about tomorrow.

How to Blog: Seventeen Tips from Elizabeth S. Craig

Today we’re lucky enough to have a guest blogpost from social media guru and mystery writer, Elizabeth S. Craig, who writes the Memphis-set Riley Adams mysteries. Elizabeth’s blog has been voted one of the Writer’s Digest’s Top 101 Sites for Writers for two years in a row, so she knows what she’s talking about.

So here we’ve got seventeen (count them: 17!) great tips for making your blog successful. You’ll notice that, ahem, I’ve now added #2—a posting schedule--to my own blog here. I agree with pretty much all of these, especially #3: PLEASE have a follow button, or visitors will never find you again, and #6: a white font on a black background is going to drive away about half your traffic before they finish reading your post.

17 Tips for a Great Writing Blog—by Elizabeth S. Craig     

Starting a blog can feel overwhelming.  The internet is brimming with writing blogs—how can you find readers when everyone has their own blog?  Or, if you already have a blog, you might wonder how to get more readers or broaden your platform.

I currently follow more than 2,000 blogs, and I’ve found that some blogs are definitely easier to follow and visit than others.  Here are seventeen tips for your writing blog—for either setting it up for the first time or to use as a checklist for your already-established blog. 

Important elements for your blog:

1) Bio:  Your bio is one of the most important things on your site.  Blogs are all about developing online relationships and readers like to know a little about you, first.  What do you write?  What’s your name (or your pen name)?  It’s also nice to have a picture with your bio. If you’re shy about having your picture online, you could substitute a book cover or avatar that fits the image you want to convey.  Fiction Groupie and 99% both have nice posts on writing your bio.

2) Your posting schedule:  If you don’t post every day (and you don’t have to), consider putting your posting schedule in your sidebar.  For readers who don’t use an automatically updating Google Reader, this will let them know when to expect a new post from you.

3) A way to belong:  People like to feel like they belong to a group. You could either add a Networked Blogs widget or the Google Follower widget for your blog readers to click on and join your blog as an official follower.

4) How to contact you: Post an email address.  There have been many times when I’ve wanted to contact a blogger and couldn’t find an email address anywhere…and Twitter isn’t great for sending longer messages.  You can always type your email address in your sidebar as _________ (at)____(dot)com so the bots won’t grab your email address and spam you.

5) A sales pitch—Have a book out?  Make sure to have your book cover hyperlinked to a bookstore for sales.

6) An easy design for reading: I wince when I come across a black background blog with white lettering.  Although it doesn’t bother everyone, it definitely bothers enough potential readers for bloggers to avoid that design scheme.  A light-colored background with black letters is easy for most people to read.

7) A way to subscribe to your updates—Make sure that your blog has a way for people to easily receive your updates (without having to check your blog several times a day to see if there’s a new post.)  Some readers still prefer receiving posts by email, so make sure that option is available.  Feature an RSS feed button prominently in your sidebar with the word subscribe underneath. RSS is basically just an easy way for someone to add you to their blog reader in just a couple of clicks. (Blogger now has a “subscribe by e-mail” widget, too--ed.)

8) Connect to Facebook or Twitter: If you’re already on Facebook or Twitter, add buttons to your sidebar to increase interaction with your blog readers.

9) Share buttons: Make it easy to share your posts.  With a share button under each post, your blog readers can quickly share your article with friends via different social media apps.

10) Blogroll:  It’s a great idea to have a blogroll in your sidebar featuring the blogs of both readers who’ve visited your blog, and blogs that you enjoy reading. Not only is this a great way to direct traffic to your blogging friends’ sites (and possibly get them to return the favor by listing your blog in their blogroll), but it’s also helpful to writers who are looking for other writing blogs to follow.

Tips for getting blog readers:

1) Visit blogs—The most important thing you can do to attract readers to your blog is to read others’ blogs.  When you leave thoughtful comments on other writers’ blogs, they’ll be encouraged to visit yours, too.  After a while, you may end up with many blogs that you visit in a day. Google Reader is a great, free tool to help you know when your friends’ blogs have updated, and to organize those blogs. I love reading writing blogs. If I had my way, I wouldn’t do any work and I’d just read blogs. Obviously, this isn’t a good way to get books written. So I organize blog subscriptions into days of the week and then read those blogs those days. This way I can be sure to read everyone at least some of the time and still get some work done. :)

2) Have consistent posting: Being consistent in your posting can really help bring visitors to your site.  Don’t launch your new blog until you have a backlog of posts and an idea journal for future posts.  Although it’s best to have an emergency supply of posts before you start your blog, it’s easy to do a marathon blog-writing session and build up a backlog of posts at any time.

3) Guest post—be a host and a guest: Hosting a guest on your blog not only provides you with fresh content, it also brings your guest’s readers to your site. And being a guest on others’ blogs is another great way to find new readers.

4) Respond to comments:  Don’t make your commenters feel like their comments are going into a black hole—keep the comments section a place for conversation. Sometimes the comment section can actually be more interesting than the post itself.

5) Keep your posts short. Or, make them easier to skim by offering bulleted points.  None of us have as much time as we’d like.

6) Use post titles that describe the post’s content. You’ll have much better results if you list your specific topic du jour instead of writing titles that are too clever for the search engines to drive traffic your way.

7) Have good content. At the end of the day, providing interesting content is the best way to find and keep readers. What should you write about on your writing blog? Some writers focus only on craft, some touch a lot on writing motivation and fitting writing into their day.  Some focus on writing process and challenges.  Some focus on writing-related topics some days and different areas of interest for others—I’ve seen Wordless Wednesday memes where the blogger posts an interesting picture each Wednesday. 

One thing that does seem to work out best is writing about topics that most writers can relate to—keeping it universal instead of focusing only on your individual story.  Everybody gets stuck from time to time, trying to think of topics.  There are a few posts I’ve found very helpful when I’ve brainstormed new post ideas:  this one from The Abundance Blog, this one from Copyblogger, and this one from the Traffic Generation Café.

If you’re looking for a straight-shooting run-down of dos and don’ts for the new blogger, you can’t go wrong with Anne’s tips on her post, 7 Dos and 7 Don’ts for New Bloggers. (aw shucks--ed.)

Have any blog tips that I’ve missed?  What do you like to see when you visit a blog?  And—thanks so much to Anne for hosting me today!  I appreciate it.

Bio:  Elizabeth’s latest book, Finger Lickin’ Dead , released June 7^th.  Elizabeth writes the Memphis Barbeque series for Penguin/Berkley (as Riley Adams), the Southern Quilting mysteries (2012) for Penguin/NAL, and the Myrtle Clover series for Midnight Ink. She blogs daily at Mystery Writing is Murder, which was named by Writer’s Digest as one of the 101 Best Websites for Writers for 2010 and 2011.
Writer's Knowledge Base--the Search Engine for Writers
Twitter: @elizabethscraig