For nearly 400 years, publishers have dominated the writing industry, controlling almost all literature marketed to the masses. From the early British Stationers Company and their monopoly on the printing press, to the westward spread of literature and the large-scale industrialization of distribution, publishers have always sat at the top. When companies once shone as conduits for advocacy and creativity, their recent selectiveness has promoted a distasteful process for new writers. Many young writers have begun to explore a different route. The disparity between self-publishing and the use of traditional publishing houses is growing wider by the year, but why?
From the perspective of a new author, publishing can be an intimidating process; however, before they can consider their options, they must first write the book. This can often be the hardest hill new authors have to climb. Writing requires discipline, a word per day goal and extra worldbuilding. The specific work entailed might vary depending on the genre. For instance, in a high fantasy book, not only would you need to write the book, but you would also need to put a lot of time and effort into the setting. On the flip side, this phase is usually where authors, both new and established, have the most control and creative license.
“Writing the book is absolutely the fun part. It really only ends up being 40% of the work that goes into creating the finalized product that other people will see,” Young Adult Fantasy Author Kenny Gould said.
After the writing is completed, it’s time to make the decision: traditional house publishing or self-publishing? This is a complex decision as there are advantages and disadvantages to either option. Many writers are initially drawn to large publishing houses due to their resources and unparalleled distribution. The tricky part is getting accepted. Usually, authors at this stage find themselves an agent, but things can derail quickly. Like publishing companies, agents need to know that a book will sell and they won’t agree to advocate for a book they don’t believe in. They can be highly selective at times. Literary agents are like the brokers of publishing because they represent specific authors, negotiate contracts and eventually sell the manuscript to a publishing company. In addition to this support, they often provide initial editorial support and feedback. The sad truth is, only 1% to 2% of manuscripts are fully accepted by publishers, according to Aspiring Author statistics. For the most part, it’s due to writing quality.
The only solution in this case is practice and time. Many young authors are inspired to submit their ideas and drafts, but most get rejected because they haven’t built up the authorial knowledge and skills to be competitive. For example, when Gould was 18, he sent his first book to a multitude of agents and didn’t get any responses. With no degree, previous works or qualifications, it was hard to get noticed in the storm of manuscripts agents have to look at. The upside is, as long as an author keeps going and putting in their all, there’ll be someone who notices.
“It might not happen in the time frame you want it, but if […] you’re willing to learn, practice and take joy from the process, which can be a really hard thing to do, eventually you will have everything you want,” Gould said.
The other piece to ponder is marketability. Publishing is a business, and publishers need to make money on the books they sell. If there are a lot of cheesy high-school romance novels on the shelves, another look-alike probably won’t sell. On the other hand, if a book has an engaging authorial voice while giving a unique twist to the same tropes, one might have a better chance. In that case, there would be a reason why people might buy your book over all the others. The key is to find what gives an author’s writing the edge it needs to stick out of the crowd and lean into it.
“That’s what makes my authorial voice unique, by leaning into the things that I like and the things that I’m really good at. Yes, it’s taken me a while to realize what those things are, but if you stick with it, you’ll be sure to find it in the end,” Gould said.
In Gould’s case, he started by looking at what he liked to read. Whimsically creative stories like, “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” by Roald Dahl were what he enjoyed, but he also loved the elaborate worldbuilding of epic fantasy. In order to find what made his voice unique, he took those concepts and fused them together, starting with a Sci-Fi novel about a famed athlete who works with a sentient floating potato to escape a dungeon. Finding this voice, no matter how niche, could give an author what they need to get the attention of a publisher. This isn’t instant; many authors spend most of their career searching for that voice. It’s no guarantee, though, and the endless rejection can have a significant impact on self-confidence and motivation.
“When you decide to play this game and make it your life, the people who lose are the people [who] quit. If you stick to it and you keep working hard at it and you keep that dream alive, you will get to where you want to go,” Gould said.
On the off chance that an author’s manuscript is accepted by an agent and they work out a deal with a publishing company, the resources they have access to compound dramatically. Publishing houses have experts like cover artists, grammatical editors, plot editors and marketing professionals. They also have access to arguably the most important resource as an author, distribution. With the help of these companies, one can expect books to be on shelves in major bookstores, bought by libraries and widely accessible nationally. Many might decide to take another route, though.
Self-publishing is the process of either hiring professionals in order to perform the roles needed for book release or doing it by oneself. Hiring professionals is expensive, and it’s rare that someone is able to do everything on their own. Thanks to various tools, though, it’s easier than ever to circumvent these limitations. Senior Mira Lowitz used an increasingly popular tool called Amazon KDP in order to self-publish a book.
“I was 13 at the time and I felt a lot of trepidation, but I decided to just go for it. I learned a lot about the process and what I like about self-publishing. It gives you a lot more freedom and lets you keep your unique voice. For me, it was more about getting my words out than making money,” Lowitz said.
KDP specifically is a user-friendly interface, allowing for a lot of control during the publishing process. While publishing houses provide access to helpful resources, they also buy the rights to make a lot of decisions about the book, including the cover art, formatting and pricing, which can be a red flag for authors who need independence. In addition, many interfaces allow for digital publishing, which allows for a greater profit margin for authors, given the lack of manufacturing costs. Thanks to these opportunities, young writers like senior Adelyn Qian are able to share their voice without the prospect of rejection.
“I started this project at the end of freshman year with three other girls. After brainstorming and researching, we wrote several drafts of scripts and storyboards. It was hard to balance with extracurriculars and school because illustrating can take serious time, but we were able to get it done. We wanted to incorporate unique cultural designs as well for children to be able to enjoy,” Qian said.
Like Lowitz, Qian wanted to publish a book in order to share her voice rather than for money. Instead of a typical novel, however, Qian and her friends wrote and illustrated a children’s book, which they then formatted through KDP and published. It wasn’t an easy process, but they were able to fully produce a novel in high school all by themselves while balancing the stress of typical upperclassmen. Although it might not be stress-free, there are a multitude of options aside from traditional house publishing.
There is a very different process when discussing other forms of media. Self-publishing is all well and good for novels, ebooks and children’s books, but the commodity has yet to expand to other vessels for storytelling. Arguably, the biggest competitor to novels is digital media such as movies or TV shows. In essence, it’s a similar concept of coming up with an idea, worldbuilding and writing, with a twist. Novels and creative writing is often composed of prose, the standard format of writing allowing for an enjoyable experience reading the book. Reading words is all there is when it comes to a standard book, and so the words themselves have to be engaging. When it comes to play or screenplay writing, it’s technical writing, a style meant to give clear instructions to actors and people behind the scenes with the least amount of fluff possible. The real entertainment comes from how those directions unfold on-screen, not from how they’re worded in the script. A written screenplay has to be of impeccable quality however, because unlike novel publishing, if your play gets rejected, there is no self-publishing. Unless someone is a multi-millionaire who can hire their own cast, design their own set and shoot immediately, a writer is going to need a company to bring their ideas to life.
“I mean, you have to be an exceptional writer. It’s definitely not a good idea to submit scripts of mediocre quality; that’s why you spend so much time rewriting. For example, as a reader for the Austin Film Festival, they get scripts all the time, and many of them are not ready for public viewing. This is usually because the writer has not had the story fully vetted and spent enough time in the rewrite process,” English teacher and Screenwriter Renita Spears said.
While Spears is an English teacher at Sequoia, she and a group of other writers are currently working on a script for a TV show about a high-stakes FBI case. Although she works full-time, Spears meets with a writing group at least once a month to develop her idea. Due to the high standards writers are expected to meet in the industry, editing and rewriting are essential for fine-tuning a screenplay. Of course, self-editing can be helpful; it’s often the most beneficial to find a community to bounce ideas off of and circulate scripts through.
“People always want to reach up and meet the executive and the agent, but you need people on your same level who can give you feedback. Find your scribe tribe. It’s important because once you have that, they can give you really hardcore advice that lets you know if you are ready to talk to an agent or to a manager or to someone who has a connection to publishing,” Spears said.
Overall, it doesn’t matter which route someone chooses to follow, be they an author, playwright, illustrator or podcaster, it’s going to be difficult. Challenges will appear at every turn with plot holes, manufacturing issues, writer’s block and everything in between. One can choose to submit a proposal, manuscript or proof of concept to a publisher. If they get accepted, awesome; if not, keep working. Depending on the medium, there might be other options such as KDP or social media. In the end, though, it’s all hard work.
“Probably the best thing I can say about publishing is, if you are interested in getting published, you will submit. You will get rejected so many times in your life. And the only thing you can do is adjust based on the feedback you get and keep going. The only missing piece is time,” Gould said.