Guest Post: Write On, by Lloyd Lofthouse

By Lloyd Lofthouse

In the world of alternative publishing, self-published books start out untested, which mean the book hasn't run the gauntlet of professional agents, readers and editors that traditionally published books have to survive to reach the marketplace.
Sure, traditional publishing is a flawed system and good books aren’t selected all the time. Due to individual biases, the people that populate this pipeline make mistakes. On the other hand, what human system, corporate or government, is perfect?

In addition, do not forget that traditionally published books reach bookstores with a guaranteed buy-back if they don't sell. Why should a bookstore or library take a risk on a self-published book that hasn't been vetted by agents, editors and reviewers before it is available just because an author with an over inflated sense of self-esteem believes his self-published work is good? The reality is that there is only so much shelf-space in bookstores and libraries. Books that have proven themselves already fill most of that space. There isn’t much room left for newcomers. Even authors published by Traditional publishing houses don’t get into every bookstore. How can they when the average bookstore has room for twenty to fifty thousand titles and there are over a hundred thousand new titles published each year?

There is a good reason for the traditional book world being the way it is. A bookstore owner has to sell books to survive, so he shelves books that have already passed the test. Why take a chance on a title that has no guarantee?

There is no way to prove that a self-published title arriving out of the cold with so many other self-published titles is worth taking up shelf-space in a library or bookstore unless that self-published book somehow earns further attention as “The Shack” by Wm. Paul Young did.
That's where the promotional challenge begins.

It is up to the self-published author to prove that the book he or she wrote is worth further attention. To do that, the author must seek reviews, enter literary contests, promote on the Internet, and drive to brick and mortar bookstores in and near his hometown. In other words, get noticed as often as possible until people start paying attention. Don’t forget, tens of thousands of other self-published authors may be doing the same thing. Regardless of what your teacher, friends and family may have told you about your ‘fantastic talent’, that does not guarantee success. Watch the early tryouts for America Idol, and you will discover what I mean.

Sitting back and waiting for lightning to strike is not going to bring the vast majority of self-published books to the attention of the people that buy and read books when there are several hundred thousand new titles each year and more than six million books in print.

Who has time to read them all? Book store owners and librarians have more to do than read endless books from self-published authors, most of which may be of a questionable quality making it more difficult for those that are up to traditional standards to get noticed--like a rusty needle in a hay stack the size of a ten story building. It may be easier to win a state lottery than getting a self-published book noticed if the author sits around waiting to be discovered.

I suggest that a self-published author gets started close to home by becoming a salesperson and taking a copy of his book into the local brick and mortar bookstores while also mailing out copies to the best reviewers she can find that will give the book a chance. When the bookstore owner is not interested, be nice. You never know. A door closed today may open tomorrow.
One virtual place to seek reviews is PODRAM, which is a review site with several volunteer reviewers. There is also The Midwest Book Review among others. Some of these free book review sites may have good reputations and others may not. It’s a learning process. It will cost an author the price of the book and postage to find out. These reviewers, for the most part, expect to get the book free. Self-published authors should also become involved in a virtual literary community like Authors Den (there are several sites like this) where writers post their work and hope readers/strangers will stop by and leave a bit of praise now and then. Heck, that readers may even buy your book.
If a writer does not have the confidence in what he or she wrote to send that work to those reviewers that give self-published work a chance, why are you writing? Stick your neck out. Take a chance. Grow a thick skin. You might be surprised. If the reviews are not glowing and the author drops into a depression, he may need to return to the drawing board or change his dream while holding down that crappy day or night job that pays the bills.

It helps when writing is a passion. That passion may keep an author going even when it seems dark and forbidding out there. That way, if you do not make it onto the bestseller lists and become the next King or Grisham, on the day you draw your last breath, you can say you gave it your best shot. Who said life is fair and dreams come true? Anyone that said that was a liar.

Lloyd Lofthouse is the author of My Splendid Concubine, a historical novel set in 19th century China. Lloyd will be the guest on a discussion of his work at Let's Read Historical Fiction, June 2, at 9 PM Eastern on AccessibleWorld.org. See the site for the time in your time zone.