Why not self-publish, using the technologies of print-on-demand or e-publishing?
It goes back to the idea of being well published. A well-published book is edited. It’s the rare writer who doesn’t need the pen laid on by at least one good editor. A professionally published book is often looked at by two a manuscript or line editor, and a copy editor. It’s not impossible, of course, for a self-published book to be well-published. But those who contemplate self-publication should realize that there’s a stigma attached, especially for fiction. Right or wrong, the prevailing attitude is that a self-published novel is an exercise in self-indulgence and a dumb move for anyone wanting their work to be taken seriously. A commercial firm that chooses to publish a book in hopes of making money from it bestows on the book and its author a “legitimacy” that’s lacking in self-publishing. On a purely practical, financial level, the self-publishing author must do it all. POD has made the actual production of a book a far cheaper and easier matter than hiring a printer to make hun
