29
Jan
To Publish or not to Publish
The prolific Leo Stableford intrigued me with a recent post in which he quoted GOB . The topic: whether to publish a book atall. GOB concludes, based on years of experience, that to pursue writing with a view to making money (or fame) publishing is a fools errand.
I agree, but do not think that is the end of the story.
What should you do if you trip over a beautiful artifact on the street, the like of which has never been seen before. Should you grunt and walk by, or pick it up? And if, when you get home, you see that there is a market for novelties, would it be unreasonable to try to sell it?
This is the position I find myself in - and suspect I am not alone. I have three completed novels on the shelf and am simply trying to figure out what to do with them. Whether any of my books is a unique treasure is for others to decide, but I like them. More importantly, at this point the economic calculation of payoff against input does not include the sunk cost of writing, only the future cost of packaging and marketing. In this context I think it quite prudent, if one believes in the truth of the book and in one’s marketing ability, to make a modest investment in trying to sell it, first to the high return/low probablity traditional channels, but if that fails to the low return/higher cost (in terms of editing, designing covers, etc.) POD market, probably supported by online marketing to help drive up the return.
Thanks to GOB and Leo for makingme apply a sound economic analysis to my situation. It actually tells me I’m pursuing the correct course - for now!
