I had the great fortune recently to receive the rights back to two of my out of print books, Necessary Madness and Letting the Body Lead. I’m absolutely thrilled to embark on a trial run of self-publishing, and here’s why.

1. Creative control

Don’t get me wrong: I have huge respect for folks who work in traditional publishing, and have had some fantastic collaborative experiences with editors. But it’s refreshing to have complete domain over my own work. Revisions, updated covers (which boy, do I need!) — the list goes on.

2. Flexibility in marketing

In a similar vein, I’ll have lots more options to try. Drop a book’s price temporarily to increase sales? I can do that. Publish an excerpt on a reading platform to drive interest? I can do that, too.

3. The ability to keep those books in print

This is perhaps the biggest benefit of self-publishing. Unlike in the traditional publishing universe, in which books have a few months at best to make their mark, self-published books can stay in the marketplace forever thanks to ebooks and print-on-demand technology.

As I said before, I’m not anti-traditional publishing by any means. In fact, my latest novel is making the rounds in NYC as I type this. But I am grateful and excited for the opportunity to breathe new life into some older books.

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