Self-Publishing, a Necessary Phenomenon, not a Fad.

The Way Things Were

Once upon a time there were Gatekeepers for the publishing industry. They were the "Publishers." Some were big, some were moderate in size, some were dinky. All of them had the same basic flaw: they could only do so much, only publish so many books by so many authors. The assumption was that those who got publishing contracts (the Holy Grail of the publishing world) had "made it," and were the best of the best.

In reality, that wasn't always true. Many published authors from these Publishing companies were in fact, quite good. But there were others who were just okay, and others who were no good at all. There were some who were no better (perhaps even way worse!) than some of the undiscovered, un-published authors. As time ran forward this became the accepted reality, flaws and all.

During this period of publishing, those who were on the outside of the gates of the publishing industry didn't have much choice. They could either pay a substantial sum of money to a "vanity press" (a company that would format/print your book for you but at a sizeable cost and only if you placed a large order for copies of your own book), or the author could just forget about it and go do something else.

Things Change

When digital technology took over the civilzed world it brought with it an unprecedented opportunity: Authors could side-step the gatekeepers and use a Print-On-Demand company. They'd pay a fee and have their book put together and available for orders of any size at any time. Hence "on demand."

Then there was the e-reader. Kindle, Nook, Kobo, etc.

With this new piece of technology, authors didn't have to even print their books to sell them. Upload them onto Amazon or Smashwords or where ever else, and "TA-DA"! The gatekeepers were side-stepped yet again.

Fad? Hardly.

Some called Self-Publishing a fad, something that would eventually pass off into the night like a dream, never to return and hardly to be remembered. but this has not been the case. More and more of us have discovered this beautiful process as a way to at last vent our creative energies and share our stories and ideas with the wider world around us.

Anything that truly hands the reins of creative power over to the creative person is going to propel the industries of creativity forward. This is what Self-Publishing has granted to us. This is why I love it and will continue to do it as long as the creative process continues to surge through my being.

And this is why I will help others to do it as well. I started Fresh Page Consulting because I know what it is like to try to figure out the world of Self-Publinng all by myself. For a long time I wished I had someone to help guide me in the process. Now there is somebody.

Me.

I've been down that road. I've been on it for almost seven years now.

I can help you.

I can walk with you from manuscript to printed and digitally downloadable Book.

I'm not one of the Gatekeepers.

I'm a Gate Opener.

For more infor mation go to the Fresh Page website. Or, e-mail me at freshpagepub@gmail.com.

I hope to hear from you soon.

Sam.

Turning a "Fresh Page."

Hey everyone,

Well it's official! I've started my own Self-Publishing business, called Fresh Page Consulting. I provide consulting, coaching, and I put books together for people. Trade Paperbacks and e-books are the name of the game at Fresh Page. We can do one, the other, or both at the same time. I can also provide basic or advanced cover design, and proofreading.

If you or someone you know has written a book but don't know what to do next, I can help you get your book into print and available for Kindle, NOOK, or other ebook readers. Maybe you've been rejected or ignored by Publishers and agents. That's not really a problem for me.

I've been writing and Self-Publishing since 2005. I've had to navigate the confusing world of Self-Publishing and thankfully came out the other side relatively unscathed. But I've also come out the other side armed with an arsenal of know-how and I won't charge you an arm and a leg.

I'd love to help you make your publishing dreams a reality. I'll be watching for you.

Here's the Website.

Here's the Facebook.

P.S. Here are some books I've put together.

Mindin' My Own Bidness

Okay, so I'm thinking about something.

Shocker, I know.

The thing which currently occupies my thoughts is starting up a small side business. Specifically, I'm thinking of starting up a small company that will offer services to authors in order to help them self-publish their books -- a Self-Publishing Consulting & Services business.

I just got thinking about how much I love putting my own books together for publication and then I thought about how there are many others out there who are just starting out and haven't a clue as to how to get their books out on the market aside from spending big bucks...and I won't charge big bucks. Little-to-medium bucks, yes, but not big ones.

So if you're looking for a Self-Publishing Consultant, I could be your man. I'm putting together service packages right now which include formatting, converting files, cover creation, etc.

The more I think about this, the more excited I get. This could be good, I think.

I'll keep you posted on developments.