Indie Publishing

There are a lot of different reasons writers decide not to publish traditionally. There are a lot of different ways to analyze and assess the pros and cons of such a choice.

I don't know very much about that. In fact, my reasons for deciding on indie publishing has very little to do with pros or cons.

When I first started writing as a kid it was mostly because my friends had decided that we were too old to dress up and play make believe (they were wrong, of course, and apparently didn't know about Renaissance Faires and SCA). I liked books and it was a fun way to channel my imagination.

It wasn't until I'd graduated high school and had already written two books that I began to seriously consider publication. Everyone was suddenly asking me what I was going to do with my life and I thought, well I like writing stories. I like playing ideas and characters and possibilities.

I've grown a lot as a writer since then. I've learned from classes and books and other writers. I know more about how the business works and what the readers expect. My writing is better because of it but somewhere along the way I started focusing less on fostering my imagination and telling a good story and more on "succeeding as a writer".

I wanted a reward for my work. A paycheck. Some important person giving me that stamp of approval. "Yes, you are a writer", "Yes, people care what you have to say", "Yes, you should write more".

But I don't need that. That's the kind of utilitarian thinking that is never satisfied. The process of writing is its own reward and the only person I have to impress is myself.

That's my first reason for deciding on indie publishing. Not because I think there is anything wrong with traditional publishing or that writers shouldn't want payment or appreciation for their work but because I remember what it's like to surrender completely to the story I am trying to tell and let everything else go. I want to enjoy the process and not worry about what I am going to earn in exchange for it. Art for art's sake.

The second reason is a little more psychological and related specifically to me. I tend to be a very cautious person. I like to research decisions before I make them. I like to know what I am getting into. I analyze. I decipher. I consider.

Unfortunately I rarely feel I have enough information to know anything for certain and so I put off making decisions. Sometimes for years. Sometimes forever until the opportunity is beyond gone.

I believe it is time for me to jump, eyes closed, future uncertain, into the great abyss. Maybe I'll crash. Maybe I'll break a few things.

Maybe I'll fly.