True. And peace. The other thing I tend not to be clear enough about...when I think of self-publishing, I think entirely in the realm of ebooks, as that's where the changes have occurred. Print in my opinion is still a non-starter as far as self publishing is concerned, and the margins on print-on-demand are probably way too thin for that to be very viable in most cases as well. POD would probably just serve as an at-cost/near-give-away in support of one's ebook efforts with little to no actual profit on its own. As far as paying someone to print a batch of books because you feel you have too much extra space in your garage...well, I think Cogito and I are in complete sync on that point. And anyone offering to take your money with the promise of self-publishing success is scamming you. So Cogito and I probably in sync on that, too. My difference is that I think the Amazon model is offering some interesting possibilities and that the 70% return allows one to do some viable stuff, even at lower volumes. But, no, it won't happen by itself. And no, just because you're on Amazon will not mean that anyone will give a flip.
It's all good. Back to the OP, you mentioned you can't afford professional editing. Have you had a beta reader give it a look over at least to see how the story flows?
Agree 100% with this. A good critique group can be a goldmine of all sorts of information. I've been with mine for four and a half years and don't think I would have kept writing my novel if not for them. However, it's also a good idea to get a beta reader or two, preferably people who are not writers, to read over your MS as if they were just a casual reader who picked your book off of a shelf at Barnes and Noble. Writers read differently than do people who just read. Each group will pick up on something different, and it can be wildly helpful. I'm also a little concerned about your admitted lack of drive. You don't think self-publishing is easier, do you? It's easier on your ego, sure, because you won't get rejected. But without a publishing house backing you up, all - and I mean ALL - of the marketing and selling is up to you. You can't just publish a book, sit back and expect people to find it and buy it. If you don't have the drive to send out a couple of query letters, you might be in for a rude awakening if you do go the self-publishing route. I mean that in the most helpful way possible - I've not finished my book yet, but my crit partners have, and they've been working their butts off just to make people aware that they exist. ETA: I realize that, after reading the rest of the thread, that my point was already explained (and much more clearly, too!) But I still stand by the first part. Get a good critique partner (at the very least) or a group. And line up some beta readers. It helps. I promise
My personal opinion is that paid-for reviews are less than savory. Will you pay for someone to rake your novel over the coals? Seriously? Or instead, as with Kirkus Indie, bury the bad reviews and only have the good ones published? That's just lying to the readers, and no better than using sockpuppets. That kind of thing has been happening and is know being publicized - and people don't like it.
