Online Publishing vs. TraditionalPublishing - A Personal Experience

Online Publishing vs. TraditionalPublishing -- A Personal Experience

Publishing a science fiction novel via the internet is a sure thing. No agent or editor can turn you down, and no one will demand you change your manuscript. In fact, there are numerous website publishers who will gladly shepherd your book every step of the way, from submission, cover design, and publicity to monitoring sales. However, the author's going to have to pay for these services out of pocket -- no advance money. And once your book is available online and/or in print, it's going to be primarily up to you to see that it's continually publicized.

Publishing a book the traditional way is at best difficult and at worst impossible. However, if accomplished, traditional publishing is certainly more prestigious and perhaps more profitable than internet publishing (note I say "perhaps"). And one can't deny there's also an air of legitimacy to traditional publishing that online publication has yet to achieve. However, submitting a manuscript to agents and publishers is not for the faint of heart -- a steady stream of rejection letters in the mailbox can frustrate even the most confident author.

I've traveled both roads -- traditional and online publishing -- and found that each method has pros and cons.

Finding a literary agent and submitting your manuscript to one of the large publishing houses used to be the only way an author would ever see a book in print. I began my publishing odyssey in 1996, shortly after completing my science fiction novel "Araroon." Internet publishing seemed to me to be mere vanity press and I was determined to go the "legitimate" route. I therefore dutifully purchased the latest issues of "Writers Market" and "Guide to Literary Agents" and began sending out packets of material, confident "Araroon" was good enough to attract the attention of an agent. I could have tried going "over the transom," submitting directly to publishers. However, everything I'dread advised this was not wise, that having an agent represent your work greatly increased the chance of publication.

The rejection letters came quickly, a plethora of them beginning approximately two weeks after sending out my introduction letters and synopsis. Most agents gave no reason for turning down "Araroon," a few had vague excuses such as the subject matter not being what they were currently looking for.

I waited patiently, every day crossing name after name off my list, holding onto the hope that one of those last few agents would actually be interested in reading my entire manuscript. Rejections come fast, I'd been told. Acceptances took a lot longer.

It was three months before I received a letter from a small literary agent who asked to read my entire book. He said he saw something in my writing and story, and felt I would be a good potential client. I was ecstatic. My first success! Then, a couple of days later, I received another acceptance letter from a large New York literary agency. They, too, wanted to read "Araroon." In fact, the head of the agency had expressed an interestin it. My ego knew no bounds. I was going to be a published author! I even had a choice of agents!

I chose to send my book to the larger agency, writing a polite refusal to the small agent. Then I sat back to wait for a contract in the mail.

I was naive. Months passed and I heard nothing from the large literary agency. I occasionally called them and was always told "Araroon" was in the process of being evaluated. Then one day I called and was told no one had any record of my novel being submitted! They couldn't even find the manuscript.There had been a personnel change and someone had messed up the filingsystem. A week later I received a rejection letter with no reason given.