Hi fellow readers, writers, and friends!
So I got totally hooked by this
authorspublish.com newsletter that promises weekly lists of publishers accepting unagented submissions. I mean, how could I NOT sign up for that? It's like fishing for publishers who actually want to hear from us regular humans.
Here's the thing about publishing—it's basically a choose-your-own-adventure where one path is a labyrinth of rejections and waiting, and the other is faster but costs actual money. Fun times.
The Traditional Publishing Maze (Spoiler: It's Brutal)
I read about this author who sent out 600 agent queries over three years before landing three offers. SIX HUNDRED. That's less than a 1% success rate, which makes my high school dating life look wildly successful by comparison.
The stats are sobering: Most Americans dream of writing a book someday. Like, we're talking the majority here. So let's crunch some numbers to paint the picture:
- 1,000 people say they'll write a book
- 30-100 actually finish that messy first draft (hey, that's me!)
- Of those, maybe 1-2 land a traditional deal
Those odds are rougher than swimming through a coral maze blindfolded.
But here's why I'm still trying: Traditional publishers know their shit. They've got the marketing muscle, the distribution networks, the secret sauce that turns books into bestsellers. The trick is timing—finding that perfect agent or publisher who's looking for exactly your book at exactly the right moment.
Have I sent out submissions? Hell yes. No luck yet, but I didn't write 122,000 words not to shoot my shot. And yeah, I'll say it—success in this game requires a massive dose of luck. You need the perfect query in the hands of someone who happens to be looking for underwater sci-fi romantasy on the exact Tuesday you hit send. They're drowning in thousands of submissions, searching for unicorns.
(Fun fact: When I was a kid and people asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I'd say "a unicorn." Thanks to
The Last Unicorn, I genuinely thought it was possible. So maybe there's hope for me yet.)
The Self-Publishing Speedboat
Then there's door number two: self-publishing. Going indie. The "you can't keep me down" path.
This route is faster, but your wallet's gonna feel it. After revising your draft until your eyes bleed, you're looking at:
- Developmental editor (the one who tells you your plot makes no sense)
- Copy editor (the grammar police)
- Proofreader (catches the typos)
- Cover designer (because we all judge books by their covers)
- Interior formatter (making it pretty inside too)
- Maybe some maps or illustrations if you're feeling fancy
- Then boom—Amazon KDP, which basically owns the ebook universe with something like 70-80% market share.
The self-publishing world is exploding. We're talking 264% growth in the last five years. In 2023 alone,
2.6 million self-published books hit the market compared to 563,000 traditionally published ones. That's a LOT of competition, but also proof that authors aren't waiting for permission anymore.
My Game Plan? Both Paths, Because I'm Stubborn
Do I want a publisher to fall in love with my underwater world and champion it? Absolutely. But I'm not putting all my eggs in that extremely selective basket.
Technology has given us options. Everyone has a story worth telling, and now there's more than one way to get it into readers' hands. So I'll keep swimming in both lanes—querying agents while also researching self-publishing options. If a traditional publisher wants to throw me a life preserver, amazing. If not, I've got my own boat ready to go.
This book will see the light of day either way. I'm too stubborn to let it live forever on my hard drive.
Stay creative, stay hyped, and remember—sometimes the best strategy is refusing to pick just one path.
Morgan
Debut author faking it till I make it ☕📚✨
Let's chat:
Which publishing path would you choose? Are you a "wait for the perfect deal" person or a "I'll do it myself" type? Drop your thoughts below!
