L.G. Smith of Bards and Prophets posed an interesting question: "has self-publishing given you more confidence?" And the answer is a resounding "yes."
I have to confess that I had pretty much given up on my writing career before I got into self-publishing. I had been told so many times that my work was too different, or my work wasn't quite there yet. More so, I had been flooded with so many plain old form rejection letters that didn't tell me anything. I became paralyzed. It got to the point where I couldn't really write fiction anymore, because I kept thinking in the back of my mind, "What if no one buys it? Am I just wasting my time?"
Self-publishing has revitalized my enthusiasm for writing. I now know that, no matter what, my writing will be seen. I can write what I want without constantly worrying about whether it's marketable or not. I'm finishing novels that I started writing decades ago. I'm dusting off manuscripts that I never even bothered to submit to publishers, because I figured no one would buy them. I still want to be published by a major publishing company, but it's comforting to know that if no one buys it, I can publish the book myself.
What about you? Has self-publishing changed your writing? If you haven't done it, would you ever consider it? Let me know in the comments.
