Good morning, all. I just thought I’d use “free-for-all Monday” to point out some sobering facts concerning those of us who write without contract or publishing house behind us. A few points for readers to consider about those who toil in our spare time to create something of value as entertainment…
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One response to “Plight of the Indie”
Jack, it is indeed a plight – made worse by these figures being ‘best case’ scenarios. 70-100 hours to write 50,000 words? Double that for me, plus my full-length novels range from 85,000 – 140,000 words (so double it again). As for editing, when I do it for writer friends, I charge a penny per word for copy editing and light developmental editing (if needed) – which is cheap; most editors (competent ones, that is) charge double and triple that. As for covers – yes, you can get covers made for under $100, unless you want original non-AI artwork, which can cost a lot more. And don’t forget e-book and print book formatting, which will also cost you something if you can’t do it yourself. And then of course there would need to be some kind of book promotion, which can also cost money; otherwise, all that will happen upon the book’s release will be a slight increase in the chirping of the crickets, if even that. So yes, indie writing and publishing is basically a ‘labor of love’ in many cases; and for most of us, we’re lucky if it feeds the dog, never mind ourselves.
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