The Snowflake Chronicles

Letter From the Editor Fantasy NL March (deadline3/24/2014)

Title

Answering a Question about Self-Publishing

What it"s about

Free publishing versus Vanity Publishing

Paragraphs about this NL

'Self publishing' is not as easy as it is portrayed! When you think you have finished your book, proof read, proof read again, and again, and again. Don't believe it is ready until you have a hard copy proofed!' - Phil Simpkin

'A successful self-publisher must fill three roles: Author, Publisher, and Entrepreneur'or APE.' - Guy Kawasaki, APE: Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur. How to Publish a Book

'Whatever you may have heard, self-publishing is not a short cut to anything. Except maybe insanity. Self-publishing, like every other kind of publishing, is hard work. You don't wake up one morning good at it. You have to work for that.' - Zoe Winters, Smart Self-Publishing: Becoming an Indie Author

Letter from the Editor

I could not find any definition to Free Publishing, what I did find was online or downloadable tools that assist an author to self-publishing the completed novel. Vanity Publishing refers to publishing houses that charges authors for publishing the book.1 There are self-publishing houses that assist the author with the publication of the book, but the author has to pay for these packages.2 These self-publishing house, which are not vanity publishers, charge range of prices for the different packages that include various items such as design and various other tools or services.

No matter how you chose to publish your book you have to do research. If you are submitting your book to a traditional publishing house, you have to determine the types of books they publish. If you decide to use downloadable or online tools to assist in self-publishing you have to find out precisely how easy those tools are to use and make sure that you have a back-up copy of everything. If you decide to use a self-publishing house to assist you have to find out what each of their publishing packages include and then decide if you can afford the price.

Before deciding on self-publishing an author needs to as this question: "Am I willing to take on the extra work and time necessary to self-publish?" If the answer to this question is yes and you are willing to put in the work necessary, then go ahead. I wish you all happy and successful publishing no matter which method you chose.

Please let me know any questions you have about publishing?

Footnotes
1  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vanity_press
2  http://completelynovel.com/self-publishing/how-to-self-publish