The Journey through Darkness Blog

by Kandake Brockington
(California)

The Journey is Long is my weekly editorial on the self-publishing process from start to finish for Journey through Darkness my debut novel. So if you're looking for a good laugh, a good cry, or maybe some useful information to help you along your own writing journey, check it out and let me know what you think.

The Journey is Long

I started this process back in December 2008 when I first started shopping around for a self-publisher. There were quite a few to choose from, all offering different features, but most were expensive and I had a limited income to work with. I settled on Xlibris because at the time I didn't know how many other companies were available offering the same services.

Why did I choose to self-publish rather than attempt traditional publishing you may ask?

I wrote Journey through Darkness in 1999 when I was 23 years old, so fast forward to today and I am faced with the issue of time constraints. I can wait to get a master's degree in English (my original plan), submit query letters to all the publishing houses I can think of, or take my chances marketing and selling my own book.

But isn't self-publishing sort of taboo in the literary world?

Some articles and books I've read completely bash the idea of self-publishing because it is not the "preferred" method. According to these critics, a self-published writer is not a real writer. I completely disagree. I've been writing consistently since I was a child. I didn't wake up one morning and say, "You know what" Today I'll wash the dishes, take out the trash, and oh yeah I'll become a novelist.

I struggled with the decision to publish for many years. I wrote this book for myself and was completely fine with keeping it within the safety of my closet until I realized that if I didn't tell this story, eventually someone else would. Maybe my discarded drafts would make it into someone's else's ambitious hands or by fate another writer would come along with the same vision.

Now all of a sudden it is a race against time.

I can't really afford to wait for agents and publishers to love my book. I have the option to go for it and take a chance, so that is what I'm doing.

Doesn't self-publishing encourage sloppy, inexperienced writing?

Sure, almost anybody with enough money can see their book in print these days but if no one buys it then you have your answer. There is an audience for just about everything. Somewhere in the world people are going to love your book. Write for those people.


Read more of the Journey is Long.