So Exactly What Is Hybrid Publishing?

The publishing industry changes constantly which means that authors must now decide between  self- or traditional publishing and all the hybrid options between those two. I’ve often said there is no one right path for publishing but may be only one (or at least one best path) for any given book or author. Now, there is a book from Dianne Sagan that will help with that decision and she has graciously given me an excerpt from it for my SharingwithWriters readers to peruse:

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Chapter One from The Hybrid Author

 Overview

By Dianne G. Sagan 

 

Writers choose varied paths to publication and success in their literary careers, each path unique but all sharing a common goal: to express our thoughts, tell a story and find readers. Both of these publishing paths have been around for ages, but only recently has the industry given those writers who publish both ways a name. We are called “hybrid writers.”

 

On February 12, 2013 at the first Author (R)evolution Day in New York City, the O’Reilly’s Tools of Change 2013 event began. Co-sponsored by Publishers Weekly, the conference was a full day of breakout sessions and discussions for authors, agents and independent author (or “indie”) service providers. The opening keynote speaker, Cory Doctorow, brought up the idea of multiple publication paths using today’s technology and evolving market, and he first coined the term hybrid author. Since then the term has received both increasing attention and greater respect. While this term originally applied to an author who chooses from both the traditional publishing path and the self-publishing path, I personally believe that there is much more to it than that and that there are more options for publishing written work today than ever before.

 

Twenty years ago a writer could seek a traditional publishing house through either personal query or a literary agent. If he used an agent then the writer worked through that agent to find a publisher for his book. At that time the only real alternative to a traditional publisher was for an author to pay a printer to publish his book, usually in small quantities, store them in his garage and sell them out of his car. These companies who printed books in exchange for a fee became known as “vanity presses” because they printed anything that the client paid for, as opposed to the legitimate publishers who put the writer through an acceptance process and produced professionally-edited, (usually) high-quality products to the market.

 

We now live in a vastly different publishing world, one that is in constant flux – changing the way things work and the way the industry looks on a month-to-month basis. We live, write, publish and read in a 24/7 world. I, myself, am a product of this evolution. I’ve dedicated the past fourteen years to writing professionally and followed the paths of both traditional publishing and self-publishing successfully. Other authors may be better-known today, but the books I’ve ghostwritten have sold thousands of copies, and six of them have achieved “Best Seller” status. I am a hybrid author.

The Merriman-Webster dictionary defines hybrid as something or someone “whose background is a blend of two diverse cultures or traditions; something that is formed by combining two or more things; something (as a power plant, vehicle, or electronic circuit) that has two different types of components performing essentially the same function.” Simply said, a hybrid is considered a cross or combination of two different things. Since we are only considering the term as it applies to writers and the publishing industry, I think it’s fair to say that our hybrid is a an author who combines two or more modes of publication.

The reality is that writers today aren’t limited to just two paths to publication. Today’s technology has made viable at least four viable publishing choices, according to many in the publishing industry. When we add to these publishing choices those authors who are capable of taking advantage of all four paths, you have what the insurance industry calls cafeteria options. We can have one entrée or several, one side dish or many, one dessert or all of them. It depends on what we want and how much time we are willing to dedicate to other facets of our craft. I believe that writing professionally is much more than just following a dream. It is a matter of learning the business side of writing and making informed business decisions about where, when and how our work is published. 

The first step is knowing what publishing options exist and what differentiates them from each other.~Dianne G. Sagan

 

MORE ABOUT THE BOOK
The above is an excerpt from The Hybrid Author© by Dianne G. Sagan.

The newly released book includes interviews with C. J. Lyons, Joanna Penn, J. A. Konrath, Hugh C. Howey, Barbara Freethy, Marie Force, Barbara Morgenroth and Jennifer Archer

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dianne G. Sagan, author of 21 books, has been writing professionally for fourteen years and facilitating groups for 25 years. She’s authored ten nonfiction books as a ghostwriter, six of which are bestsellers. Her clientele includes writers from the United States, Canada, the UK, Austria, Oman, and Australia.

Ms. Sagan has traditionally published Christian fiction and women’s fiction. Her best known fiction works are her Women of the Bible series (published by Buoy Up Press, Denton, TX) and includes Rebekah Redeemed, The Fisherman’s Wife, Miriam’s Room and Mary’s Exile. She self-publishes nonfiction books on writing, including Tools and Tips for Writers and The Hybrid Author. Sagan’s works in progress include more Christian fiction with her traditional publisher and a new mystery series to debut soon. Dianne loves the hybrid author’s path and enjoys all its options.

Website/blog: http://diannesagan.wordpress.com

 

 

----- Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor .