Should You Self Publish Science Fiction Books?
Many would-be authors find their hopes dashed when they send query letters and manuscripts off to New York City, hoping to find a publisher for their works. Sometimes these aspiring talents turn to self-publishing resources like so-called Vanity Presses to publish their books. Professional writers offer stern warnings against the use of vanity and subsidy publishing houses for fiction. Non-fiction books sometimes do better, especially when they are published by corporate projects tied to products and services or which are backed up by advertising budgets.
However, some people hope that — rejected by the commercial publishers in New York and other places — they can reach for publishing success by putting their books out themselves. Not so, say authors like Robert J. Sawyer and Michael Martinez. Sawyer, a noted and successful science fiction author, says “don’t do it”. Martinez, a popular essayist and Website promoter, explains why it’s nearly impossible to generate book sales for an unknown novelist.
Science fiction is simply too hard to sell for when no one knows who you are. You can try to get on the guest lists of science fiction conventions, purchase dealers booth space at the conventions, and work with a publicist to get book signings and interviews. But these strategies cost a lot of money and there isn’t much profit on any book sale. Online sellers like Amazon, eBay, Barnes and Noble, and others don’t really help you promote your books, either.
The key to success, Martinez says, is to have an audience that knows your work and demands more of it. Commercial publishers work with booksellers to create that audience demand but they divide their editorially-chosen books into “A Lists” and lesser books. Only the A Listers get the top-dollar promotions and press tours, and those are few and far between for the science fiction crowd. The big marketing dollars usually go for mainstream titles that are expected to have broader appeal.
