hybrid publishing

by Kimberly A. Cook             (Twitter@ WarriorTales)

Sometimes there are just too many choices. Last month when my family life was crazy, Spec Ops Cat decided to get in on the act and he got very sick. Long story short he is much better, but not before I opened 22 cans of cat food, baby food, tuna and spent big bucks at the veterinarian on my favorite pussy cat.

My vet had me try many different kinds and brands of food to get him to eat. I cooked up everything from poached fresh chicken breast to Fancy Feast blue can Chicken Primavera; which when I popped off the can top I would have eaten it. Cat? No. In the end, when Spec Ops Cat finally decided to eat one of his regular brands, Friskies salmon shreds with gravy, I of course did my happy dance out of his sight so as not to scare him.

Now a wad of cash and happy cat later, the varieties of cat food reminds me of today’s publishing environment. (How’s that for a transition?) You can go from poached fresh chicken – Smashwords, to baby food – independent print on demand, or choose basic cat food – CreateSpace, or move on up to traditional publishing with Fancy Feast. Pretty much the choices can make your head explode.

Reminds me of an episode from the book “Mig Pilot: The Final Escape of Lt. Belenko,” by John Barron – a defecting Mig pilot who was taken to an American store thought they had made it just for him. He’d never seen so many choices of toothpaste! We Americans do like our choices.

So while I’m trying to figure out what to be and write when I grow up and all the publishing choices overwhelm me, luckily author/former Green Beret Bob Mayer writes a great blog post about what he sees coming in hybrid publishing. Bob reminded me that in the end it all doesn’t matter if you don’t actually FINISH a book or poem or short story.

There’s the rub of it. So my action plan is to finish the manuscripts and then worry about what choice of cat food/book publishing option I will take from the menu; which will probably have more choices by then. First things first as author Stephen Covey would say.

And that is why when it comes to which publishing option is best for any author, I can refer people to the cat food aisle. Pick what is best for you and your book. Or ask a cat for advice, but remember; cats don’t shop, they have staff.

Bob Mayer’s Blog Post here: http://writeitforward.wordpress.com/2014/01/23/the-illusions-of-traditionalself-publishing-the-reality-of-hybrid-publishing/