You’ve drafted your manuscript, edited and fine-tuned it, selected your cover design, and it’s ready to hit the presses. Now what?

What are the chances a publishing house will pick up your book? We hate to bring reality crashing down around you, but the truth is it’s not likely that you’ll be getting calls from Random House or Penguin anytime soon.

Even if you invest your time into reaching out to publishers, you’re competing with thousands of other authors from around the globe. What makes you think you’re the standout they’ll pick as the next J.K Rowling?

Surprise fact – Even Rowling started a self-published author, and that’s going to be the route you’ll have to take as an industry newcomer. Before you throw your hands to the heavens in dismay, relax; being a self-published author isn’t a curse; it’s a blessing.

That might be hard to wrap your head around right now, but let us present why self-publishing your work is the way to go.

Reason #1 – Technology – A New Era of Publishing

Self-publishing your work in the 1990s presented a vastly different landscape to the opportunities available to authors in today’s market. The advent of the internet changed the world. Technology saw the growth of marketplaces like Amazon, and shifts in consumer habits saw them move from retail to online shopping.

Fortunately, you can leverage these changes to make yourself a self-published success. Today, you can publish your book using digital tools, market it using social media, and build a reputation online as the next up-and-coming self-published success. Sound good? Well, we’re just getting started here.

Reason #2 – Complete Control Over Artistic Expression

As a self-published author, you don’t have to bow down the “the man.” You get complete creative control and publishing rights over your work. No agent or publisher is telling you what to do, how to edit your work, or change your storyline – You’re in charge of your future, your work, and your future.

Reason #3 – You’re the Boss

As a self-published author, you’re the boss. You choose when you want to write, set your deadlines, and control the creative process and the marketing experience. That’s personal freedom you don’t get when you’re signed to a publisher.

When you realize the freedom you have as a self-published author, you’ll laugh at ever wanting to sign with an agent or publishing house. The reality is the only thing pushing doubt into your mind is the income and sales you receive from the publisher.

Take that out of the equation, and the benefits of being a self-published author seem all the more appealing, right?

Reason #4 – Work to Your Timeline, Not the Publishers

Published authors might get that wonderful advance, but every blessing comes with a curse. Publishers run a business, and you’re nothing but an employee to them. They see you as an asset, and they control you.

If they decide they don’t want to invest capital into marketing your book or feel like leaving it on the shelf for years while they work with other established authors, that’s not their problem. As a self-published author, you work to your timeline and set your goals for publishing, marketing, and promotion.

Reason #5 – The Lion’s Share of Profits

When you sign with a publisher or agent, you benefit from that tasty advance. It seems amazing at the time that someone paid you something for your work. While you’re over the moon with the situation, the reality is you’re probably getting short-changed.

As we said, a publishing house is a business. They keep their best interests at heart, not yours. They see you as a cash cow and nothing else. So, if your book does become the next “Harry Potter” franchise, you’re not going to get the rewards you deserve.

The publisher locks you into a contract that benefits them, not you. If you become a smashing success, you’ll get the short end of the stick, and those checks aren’t as big as you expect. As a self-published author, you get the lion’s share of the profits, and you don’t pay a publisher a cent.

Reason #6 – You Control the Marketing Budget and Strategy

Signing with a publisher might seem like a dream come true, but it could become your worst nightmare. The publisher won’t see your book in the same light as you do. They might decide they have other projects they want to dedicate their budget too, leaving you waiting in the wings.

It could be years before your book hits the shelves, and you’ll be left holding the bag as you watch that advance disappear under your expenses. As a self-published author, you get to promote and market your book. Sure, you might not have the same capital to invest in a marketing plan as a publisher.

You can still do plenty to promote your book with a small budget. Social media and networking allow you to get your work in front of your target audience with minimal investment in a marketing plan.

Reason #7 – Bookstore Sales Aren’t as Important

As a self-published author, you market online, and the bulk of your sales come from online marketplaces like Amazon. You don’t need to get your book into a Barnes & Noble. It might shock you to learn less than 1% of global book sales come from bookstores.

Feeling more confident now, right? Amazon changed the game for self-published authors, allowing you to market directly to your target audience. Many people read books on devices like Kindle, and you have the opportunity to sell eBook versions of your novel, driving down your publishing costs.

Reason #8 – Get Discovered by Publishing Houses

If you still have the dream of being published, that’s fine. Self-publishing your work provides the springboard to landing a fat contract with a publishing house. If your book is a success, you have more leverage to negotiate a favorable contract and start a bidding war between publishers for your work.Don’t take our word for it. Just ask J.K Rowling.