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We often work with writers who’ve already decided to self-publish their books. Others want to find a literary agent or royalty-paying publisher, sometimes called a “traditional” publisher. It’s an important decision, so we’d like to share a bit of what we’ve learned about both options with you.

To find an agent or publisher requires four things besides a well-written, well-edited manuscript:A compelling query (sales) letter. This is usually your first point of contact with any agent or publisher.
The right marketing tools: for fiction, a synopsis (summary) of the story; for nonfiction, a persuasive book proposal.
A list of carefully researched agents and publishers.
Plenty of patience: Finding an agent or traditional publisher can take months, or even years, with no guarantee of success.

Most writers have no problem with the first three requirements. Unfortunately, it’s hard to maintain a patient attitude when someone has a manuscript they dream of seeing in print as soon as possible. For that reason, more and more writers are choosing to publish their books themselves: Depending on the method and company chosen, a self-published book can be ready to sell in as little as one month.

Aside from faster publication, there are other reasons writers choose to self-publish. Perhaps you only need a small quantity of books for family and friends. Or, if you’re a public speaker or consultant, you want a published book to add credibility to or complement your platform or business concept. Some writers choose to self-publish as a sort of “test market”—to see if there is enough interest in their story or book idea to make it worth the time and effort required to approach literary agents and royalty publishers.The biggest advantages of self-publishing are profit, and control of the rights. Any profit made after expenses goes to the author (you), and you’ll usually be able to cancel your self-publishing contact if a royalty publisher makes an offer for the book. You’ll also have control over how your finished book will look, its content, and its retail price.

Today, there are three major types of self-publishing—traditional self-publishing, where hundreds of books are printed in one or more “print runs”; POD (Print On Demand, one-copy-at-a time) publishing; and ebook publishing, which can be done with or without an accompanying print book. Each method has its own distinct advantages and disadvantages, so be sure to do plenty of research while making the decision. At the end of the article, you’ll find two books that will help you with the research.

Another important advantage is that your overhead is lower than a larger publishing company’s. Depending on which printer or company you choose, you might have to sell as few as several hundred copies to recover your original investment.

Other issues to consider: If you have the knowledge, energy and networking ability, a nonfiction book can often do as well or better with self-publishing. Self-publishing is also a good option for poetry and short story collections, since there are fewer royalty publishers for that type of writing. On the downside, novel-length fiction rarely does as well with self-publishing.

In traditional self-publishing, you’ll usually need to fully prepare the book before it goes to the printer—a term often called “camera ready.” This includes steps like layout, graphics or illustrations, cover design, author photograph (if you use one), and the book jacket text. Editing is important no matter which publishing method you choose, but since making changes later is usually quite expensive with this method, you’ll also want to make sure the book is edited and carefully proofread before sending it to the printer or book-layout professional. Traditional self-publishing is the most expensive of the three methods; it can cost several thousand dollars, or much more.

These preparations might seem daunting, and it’s true they take a good bit of time, knowledge and effort. For that reason, some printers provide what’s known as “turnkey” services, and take care of some or all of these things for you. If you decide to use a turnkey service, make sure that every task is thoroughly detailed in the agreement you’ll sign. There are also freelance professionals who will do some or all of these steps for a fee.

With traditional self-publishing, you’ll usually be required to order at least several hundred to several thousand copies of your finished book. However, buying in bulk makes the cost-per-book fairly low—in some cases, as low as three to five dollars each.

Also, since you’re paying all the costs upfront, you should be able to retain all the rights to the book. Again, make sure this is specified in the contract; most printers are ethical, but as with most industries, there are some sharks in the water.

Print-On-Demand publishing (also known as “POD publishing”) is a relatively recent technology made possible by the use of high-speed laser printers. With this method, the author-to-be pays only for the cost of setting up the book for printing, and copies are only printed when they are ordered. Even though a different printing method is used, the finished book should be difficult to distinguish from a traditionally printed-and-bound book. The upfront cost is lower than for traditional publishing, and you won’t have to store large numbers of books until they sell.

Like traditional self-publishing, many POD companies also offer services to help you prepare the book. Some services might be included in the setup fee; others might offer a list of “menu options” you can choose from. Some companies even offer marketing (selling) assistance. A few cautions about this:

- Possibly because of the convenience of purchasing these services as a package, some of the services are more expensive, possibly much more expensive, than if you obtained them from different vendors.

- If you’re considering a “package editing” service, ask for and expect to receive a free sample edit from their editor, as well as a guarantee that you’ll be able to work directly with that editor. A company that won’t allow you to meet the editor who will edit your book, or is hesitant to allow you to personally gauge the quality of the editing you’ll receive for your fee, is a company you probably don’t want to publish your book either.

For these and other reasons, it’s a good idea to shop around before accepting a package deal.

Your setup costs are much lower with this method, but since POD publishing isn’t as cost-effective, the retail price of the book (and the cost to you, if you order your own copies) will likely be higher. However, many POD companies will work with you to get the price of your book as low as possible.

Here is advice that applies no matter what your decision of publishing path:

With any publishing method, you’ll often be asked to give up some of your rights for a specified time. The most common are the exclusive right to print the book (or publish the ebook), and to sell it from the company’s Internet site. No matter what rights the company asks for, their contract should have an end-date for these rights, or a way to regain these rights. Remember: If you’re paying for publication, you should never have to sign away any right indefinitely, and there’s no reason a company should ever ask for all rights to your book.

With either method, choosing the right company is important. Some tips:

- Ask for and check at least one client reference for any company you’re considering. Some companies display their clients books on their Web page; others should be happy to share this information.
– Order and visually inspect at least one book by the company. This will help you make sure their binding and materials are as good as they claim.
– Ask for and carefully read their standard contract. Most ethical companies will make this available to you if you ask. Never sign any contract you don’t understand or agree to.
– Make sure the company cares as much about excellence as you do. Too many self-publishing companies will print any manuscript presented to them regardless of quality. We urge you to stay away from these companies. You don’t want your book painted with the same brush as poorly written/edited books by the same company who printed your book!

The decision over whether to seek an agent or publisher, or to self-publish, requires research, and the more you know about both paths to publication, the better decision you’ll make for you and your goals. Here are references you’ll find useful:

- The Complete Guide to Self-Publishing, 5th Edition, by Marilyn Ross and Sue Collier (Many libraries have this book, but if you self-publish, you’ll want to have this on your permanent bookshelf.)

- The Pursuit of Publication: An Unvarnished Guide for the Perplexed, by Ken Umbach (Inside this quick-reading ebook, you’ll find a mountain of links to other terrific resources, both online and in print. Also gives additional help in the “Should I seek a publisher or self-publish?” decision process.)Deciding whether or not to self-publish is a big decision, but we hope this information will help you navigate that sometimes-rocky path to the goal of seeing your book in print.