Why Publish A Novel Online?
Reading is one of life's simplest pleasures and has been an essential part of human culture for thousands of years. However, with the rise of the digital age, reading has taken on a new form, with books now available in a variety of formats, including online.
There is still a certain stigma in the publishing world that says online publishing and/or self publishing is a less desirable or easy way out for an author to have his/her/their work made available to readers. Personally, I believe this is an old way of thinking that isn’t considering the power of the internet, social media, and the individual.
For those who are fans of reading and writing, and in my case, World War 2 fiction books or historical fiction, the benefits of publishing online are numerous and significant.
Advice for Readers: How to Get Free Books Online
Let’s start with the reader who wants to find stories that may be more daring or unique or easier on the pocket book. There are many online resources available that allow users to access these books for free. Some of the most popular options include websites like:
This list barely scratches the surface of websites and apps available, but personally, I have found these to provide the best user experience and selection.
Advice for Writers: Moving away from the dream of traditional publishing
Online publishing feels like the early days of online dating where people still have a weird reaction to it as not being ‘the right way’ to go about getting your book published. I’m here to tell you that nothing could be more incorrect.
I spent more time than I should have trying to get my novel published via the traditional method. I spent hours and hours searching for agents whose manuscript wish list (#mswl) included any keywords related to my story. I wrote hundreds of unique query letters based on all the recommendations given out to only receive an automated response like:
“I’m sorry. Your novel doesn’t fit what I’m passionate about and I must pass because I don’t think I can help you.”
Even the agents who requested the first chapter of my story or more would make me wait months before they responded and all I would receive is another form letter. The traditional publishing process is gut wrenching because a writer must face multiple gatekeepers and years of waiting before reaching the promised land.
I’m not writing all of this to express my frustration with the process, but to show that I’ve been there and had to extract my dream of being traditionally published away from my brain. It took a long time to do, but now that I’m here, I’ve never been happier.
Advice for Writers: Online Publishing has Never Been Easier
I provided numerous examples of online publishers earlier in the blog where writers can create accounts and publish their stories online. These platforms offer an established audience, publishing tools, and search engine optimization to help a writer get off the ground to tell their story. The key to these publishers is to read the fine print. Some publishers take ownership of your writing and prevent you from sharing it in other places.
The other option is to follow what I’ve done and create your own website that is created solely to tell your story. There are tons of available tools now that make website development easy for writers such as:
All these platforms offer easy to use tools, templates, and applications that allow a writer to create an online world just for their story.
Advice for Writers: Biggest Benefits to Publish Fiction Online
Publishing via a website model has significant benefits for certain genres. World War 2 fiction, historical fiction, fantasy fiction, and science fiction often offer a unique perspective on the human experience that can benefit from imagery, sounds, and more. Why limit the experience to just text?
A website offers the following:
Maps
Maps can illustrate the journey for your character(s). A website can create an interactive experience and provide greater detail at certain points.
Related Stories
Prequels, side quests, and world building stories can be added over time as pages to your website. Your website can grow with the story.
Character Studies
A website provides avenues to create character backstories that maintain story flow and also give the detail you want for each character.
Sounds
Some stories benefit richly with a soundtrack that has been specially curated by the author for each chapter. You can build pages dedicated to the sounds of your story.
Video
Videos can also enhance the experience by detailing how something works or providing an experience associated with the story. Short videos engage your audience more.
Discussion Board
Interacting with the reader creates a stronger bond and evangelizes the reader into a fan. You can add comments to sections of the story or build a discussion board to gain feedback.
Conclusion
The numerous ways to find new stories online is revolutionizing an industry that is still stuck in the 20th century. There has never been more content available for readers before as long as they know where to look.
Writers can leverage these existing platforms or build their own to create communities that expand beyond the reach of any hardcover book.
The only thing stopping you is the stigma that still exists around non-traditional publishing. Once a reader or writer can get over that hump, they’ll find an entirely new world where stories can expand beyond everyone’s wildest imagination.
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