There have always been creative people, but the rapid advancement of mass communication and information technology means that opportunities now exist to announce our creativity to the world like never before. Whether you are a musician or still life artist, composer or graphic designer, there is a vehicle through which you can share your work with your target audience at the click of a button on a search engine.
Probably no area of creative expression has been more revolutionized by recent technology than that of the written word. Writers, even some very good ones, have long been held hostage to the whim of the traditional publisher, whose instinct to discard the blood and sweat of those who seek to make a living by printing their life’s work for someone, somewhere, to may have the opportunity to appreciate it sometimes seems almost free. The list of important works, some of them even classics, that were initially rejected by publishers is long and would continue to grow, were it not for the timely arrival of Print on Demand or self-publishing on the scene.
There is no minimum requirement
Self-publishing is pretty much what it says on the tin. First you write a book, then you upload it, then it appears on a publishing platform like Amazon for anyone to buy and read. Some platforms, like Amazon’s CreateSpace, provide templates to help with the formatting process or with things like cover design, but, for better or worse, the finished product is yours. Modern print technology allows the publishing platform to make a profit on a single sale, which is printed only if an order arrives, so there is no minimum number of orders required before the project is viable.
Better yet, we now have the eBook. Many self-published authors record the majority of their eBook sales. Because it’s not paper or physical printing, the writer’s royalty is higher when a buyer downloads your book to read on their laptop or Kindle.
You are the Proofreader and Promoter
By way of managing expectations, creative writing is not, for most people, the realization of all their financial dreams. It’s an income stream, like freelancing, bonus reselling with sportsbooks, or answering online surveys. No more. However, it is also a unique opportunity to announce your creativity to the world, to put your talents on display for others to see and appreciate.
There is a downside, of course, as there usually is. With no publisher involved and no one else with a financial interest in your efforts, no one will help or advise you unless it’s someone you know or someone you’re paying. If your book contains misspellings or punctuation errors, this is how it will appear to the unwitting reader. And, of course, it falls to the writer to promote the work in the face of competition from literally millions of people around the world who will have followed the same path.
However, with careful planning and faith in your creative abilities, you can finally realize your dream of writing a book with full knowledge that it will end up in print, and then use your contacts and social media portfolio to advertise and sell. he. Working from home as a writer is now, finally, a totally realistic option.