Whether you are a beginning writer or a seasoned pro, the idea of publishing your book might be a source of stress, especially since the publishing world is changing quickly.

Even though the choices seem endless, there are predominantly four publishing paths:
1. Traditional
2. Small Press
3. Hybrid
4. Self-Publishing.

Here’s What You Need to Know:

The Traditional Path: Includes the Big Five publishing houses (Penguin Random House, HarperCollins, Hachette, Simon & Schuster, & Macmillan). If you are selected to publish with one of these companies, they take on all the risk. You’ll get an advance for the first-run printing of your book, but there’s no guarantee that you will make more than that advance; however, if the advance earns out and the book continues to sell, you will earn royalties. 

The Pros:

✅ Low Risk: The publishing house assumes all the risk.

✅ Distribution & Sales Assistance: They ensure all major retailers, wholesalers, and libraries get copies of your book.

✅ Improved Status: Getting published by a Big Five company elevates your status as an author.

The Cons:

🚫 Barriers to Entry: You can’t simply submit your book to them unless you have mainstream appeal, celebrity status, or a significant platform. 

🚫 Representation Required: You must first find an agent.

🚫 Limited Control: You will have limited control over your book once you sign with them, and it often takes up to two years before your book is published.

The Small-Press Path:
A small publishing house that presents as a traditional path but on a much smaller budget. For example, Tiny Fox Press, Big Lucks Books, Coffeehouse Press, and others are legitimate small and indie publishers that carefully select their projects and work closely with their authors. Most of these publishers run contests or ask for donations to keep the press in business, so, unsurprisingly, small presses offer little to no advance, take on little to no risk, and mostly avoid print runs. However, there are some horror stories about small independent presses, so research before signing with one. 

The Pros:

✅ Experience: This type of company has experience with publishing.

✅ More Control: You get more say in what happens to your book.

✅ No Representation Required: You don’t need an agent to submit your book to them.

✅ Increased Level of Service: They are often friendlier to lesser-known authors.

✅ Cost Effective: You don’t have to pay for any publishing services. 

The Cons:

🚫 Minimal Support & Services: Their services may be minimal: little-to-no editing, basic cover designs, mediocre print quality, only initial marketing, and usually no distribution to major retailers. 

🚫 Difficult to Obtain Financial Success: Royalty percentages may be higher, but it’s less likely that you will earn a lot unless you do a ton of marketing yourself.

The Hybrid Path:
Often confused for self-publishing, except you pay one company for all their publishing services. Hybrid publishers often work like traditional publishers in that they put their name on your book and they provide the ISBN. Still, you will get a higher percentage of the royalties than what a traditional publisher gives. Hybrid publishing varies from company to company, so pay attention to the services you are paying for. Ask many questions and ensure you feel comfortable with the people you’ll be working with.

The Pros:

✅ Complete Control: You have complete control over the final product.

✅ Author Support & Guidance: You don’t have to figure out how to do all the publishing steps yourself.

✅ Experience: Hybrids are typically run by people with professional publishing experience, which means the final product is a higher quality. 

The Cons:

🚫 Overcharging & Lack of Execution or Effectiveness: Some hybrid publishers charge for services that look good on paper but are really just empty promises or services you don’t actually need. 

🚫 Little-to-No Marketing Support: Some hybrid publishers are only involved in the initial marketing of your book and then forget about you. No matter what, you’ll have to do much of the marketing yourself.

The Self-Publishing Path:
Where you decide on your book’s final copy, design, publishing, and distribution yourself or hire professionals to help you along the way. This is like hybrid publishing, except you must find all the publishing services yourself or do it all yourself, which can be a heavy burden. 

The Pros:

✅ Complete Control: You have complete control over the final product. You decide the price and production quality of your book.

✅ Complete Ownership: You can even create your own publishing company (for a fee) and buy your own ISBN.

The Cons:

🚫 Lack of Experience: There are a lot of things to consider when publishing a book, and authors might not have the experience to know what to do, so they may not spend their money effectively. 

🚫 Lack of Support & Guidance: New authors/new books need to get noticed by the mainstream to increase sales, but self-publishers rarely have access to professional reviews, media outlets, and bookstores.

So which path is right for you?

First, you need to answer a few questions. 

Do you want total creative control, or are you okay with a collaborative effort once you sign a contract? 

Do you want to publish your book quickly, or are you willing to wait a few years before the book comes out? 

Do you have money to invest in the process, or do you have the time to look for an agent (with no guarantees that you’ll find one willing to take you on)? 

If your answer is that you want to control the process, you want your book published quickly, and have money to invest in the process, then self-publishing and the hybrid paths are the best options for you to consider. 

At Dream That Big Publishing, we offer a variety of writing and publishing services that will help you every step of the way on your self-publishing journey. Enroll in Write that Book Masterclasses, sign up to work one-on-one with a writing coach, read our blog, and listen to our podcasts. We want to empower you to write the book you’ve always dreamed of sharing with the world. Join us for networking and empowerment events that are designed to help you prosper as an author and entrepreneur, AKA “authorpreneur.” We also have publishing packages that offer everything you will need from editing to formatting to marketing your book, so you don’t have to do it all yourself!

Dream That Big published authors keep 100% of their royalties, have a book they are proud of, and have joined a nurturing community that is invested in their success. If you feel that our complete nurturing system is the right fit for your authorpreneur journey, please click here to get started!