Hi all,
I'm struggling with a dilemma right now and am hoping for input from other writers. I don't have an agent or any published work, and I'd love to hear opinions from people with more experience. If this is the wrong place to post, feel free to point me in the right direction!
My situation is that a small digital-only imprint (not Big 5, but reputable) is interested in my first novel. I haven't seen a contract, but I believe that they don't front advances, and royalties would be split between myself and the publisher. They do heavy-duty editing, cover design (their other books have beautiful covers) and some publicity work—for instance, a blog tour. The rights revert to the author after several years. Although I'm not crazy about the idea of no advance, I understand that's standard for e-publishers.
My ambivalence stems from the feeling that my book could be traditionally published someday. It seems like e-publishers' main focus is books that, for whatever reason, wouldn't be suited for print—for instance, they're shorter than a typical print novel, or they're hard erotica or something. My MS is none of those things: it's a YA fantasy, 80,000 words, and a subgenre that's fairly "in" at the moment. I've been putting off querying—it's intimidating!—but I do think that with enough time and effort, I could find an agent and proceed down the traditional publishing path.
Has anyone here faced a similar situation? Part of me thinks that as a young author with no experience, I'd be crazy to turn down a publishing deal, even if it's not everything I've ever dreamed of. But my MS is my baby; I've poured years of my life into it. I don't want to sell myself short.
I think most authors dream of that big print deal, but we also know how difficult the market is. Would you hold out for a the deal of your dreams, or would you jump at the chance to publish digitally with an established imprint?
I'm struggling with a dilemma right now and am hoping for input from other writers. I don't have an agent or any published work, and I'd love to hear opinions from people with more experience. If this is the wrong place to post, feel free to point me in the right direction!
My situation is that a small digital-only imprint (not Big 5, but reputable) is interested in my first novel. I haven't seen a contract, but I believe that they don't front advances, and royalties would be split between myself and the publisher. They do heavy-duty editing, cover design (their other books have beautiful covers) and some publicity work—for instance, a blog tour. The rights revert to the author after several years. Although I'm not crazy about the idea of no advance, I understand that's standard for e-publishers.
My ambivalence stems from the feeling that my book could be traditionally published someday. It seems like e-publishers' main focus is books that, for whatever reason, wouldn't be suited for print—for instance, they're shorter than a typical print novel, or they're hard erotica or something. My MS is none of those things: it's a YA fantasy, 80,000 words, and a subgenre that's fairly "in" at the moment. I've been putting off querying—it's intimidating!—but I do think that with enough time and effort, I could find an agent and proceed down the traditional publishing path.
Has anyone here faced a similar situation? Part of me thinks that as a young author with no experience, I'd be crazy to turn down a publishing deal, even if it's not everything I've ever dreamed of. But my MS is my baby; I've poured years of my life into it. I don't want to sell myself short.
I think most authors dream of that big print deal, but we also know how difficult the market is. Would you hold out for a the deal of your dreams, or would you jump at the chance to publish digitally with an established imprint?
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