Self-publishing: Thoughts/Suggestions?
So recently I've been seriously dabbling with the idea of self-publishing. In particular, I've been toying with the idea of self-publishing a sword & sorcery novella. I'll be the first to admit that when I send a story out on submission--as I have with this one--and it gets rejected time and again, the editors are usually right. It belongs in my trunk.
But in this case, I don't think it's so cut and dry. For starters, there are only so many worthwhile markets for novellas. On top of this, there are only so many worthwhile markets for sword & sorcery. And when your fiction is Rated R--as this piece is (along with most of what I write)--this limits your market options that much more. Translation: I ran out of quality markets for this story very quickly. On top of this, the previous stories I wrote in this universe have all found a home ...but none were even close to 22,500 words, the length of the story in question. But knowing that I have sold three other stories in this world gives me a little extra confidence that this story is still worthwhile enough that I should explore other options. My confidence in it really hasn't wavered at all.
So with this in mind, I thought I would reach out and invite anyone who has any thoughts about self-publishing to share their observations and/or experiences. No need to go in flying blind if I don't have to. Mind you, if I do decide to self-publish it probably won't be for a while yet. If I go this route I'm interested in laying out money for a copy edit, real artwork for the cover, etc. If I'm going to do this I want to do it right (right by my personal definition for me going this route, so no one should be offended by me writing this). And while I could make these investments right now if I want to, I'm more inclined to wait for a more opportune time, probably early in 2016. I also won't rule out the possibility of sending this story back out into the wilds of the traditional publishing circuit if in the interim a new market opens up that suits this piece. Again, I'm not 100% sure that I am going to self-publish, but right now I feel like I probably will.
So with all this said, I'd love for people to share their thoughts and especially their experiences in the world of self-publishing. Asking about this now should give me plenty of time to make sure this is actually the route I want to follow, and if it is I'll have more than enough time to plan things out properly. So please, folks, have at it. No thought is too big or too small if you're inclined to chime in.