Self Publication and its Many Intriguing Twists in India

Self Publication and its Many Intriguing Twists in India

There is no dearth of self publication at least in India and I too had toyed with this idea for some time recently. Self publications, for those who do not have any idea about it, are publication of a book, novel, novelette, book of poems or pamphlets in ones own name so as to get into the first stage of becoming a writer. Is this easy? Of course, it is quite easy for anyone to do as it costs you some amount of money initially and you know a local printer who would do this without much fuss. In fact, most printers with a workable printing press publish books, booklets, notices, school publications, pamphlets for payment of cash.

Now where is the catch? The whole thing to publish requires very little effort from your end and perhaps you need to write down something or copy something from somewhere that is readable if not of graded quality. It is the amount that you pay that actually counts. You will get hundreds of thousands of printers across the country and perhaps millions if you also count the brick mortar printing press to do the job for you.

Will it sell? Of course not, the vast majority and to be quite clear not less than 85% of these publications never see the light of the day within a few weeks except where the author or the writer resides. So what do you do? You simply give it off as free gift to others of your community, friends, relations and acquaintances so that you can show off that you are terrific writer.

Undoubtedly, this not only provides a big boost to your ego, if you had already been found to be in the bad books of your community or general public of your area, but also provides something to feed on to your newly adorned reputation of being a writer. The word ‘WRITER’ has an electrifying affect on the people especially in India, where writing, printing and publishing a book means something gifted from heavens.

Surely, this argument has a lot of takers for generally what you write from your mind comes something like a hunch or an idea that came about like a sudden flash and you call it ‘Eureka’. Hence, it is not wrong to say that writer enjoys a bigger and respectable following than the ordinary folks, but only when the writer has undergone that painful process of writing from his mind and not produced something to show off to the gullible public and the illiterate.

The Stunning first Impression

I recall an instance some years back that is quite analogous to writing but in somewhat different area of choice. I came to know of a person at a private function where there was quite a crowd. I overheard a person being accosted by another in a friendly way and was asked as to where he was working. Prompt came the reply (which was true indeed) that he was working at Bangalore and so saying this guy walked off with a beaming smile to converse with other people in the hall.

Undoubtedly, the first impression anyone there would have got is that he was working in some big or medium IT centers and being a Banglorean means that you are simply seeping full of information technology. People who had heard him looked in admiration and nodding wisely in acknowledgement of his brilliance. It later transpired on many of us that the guy was actually working as a mechanic at a die making center at Bangalore or call it Bangaluru and not employed at any IT industry.

So too the case with writers and just by publishing whatever stuff that you may land upon would ensure you the first stunning impression which would as quickly disappear as water drops in a dry land. However, if you have the wherewithal to hold on to the game by grouping people that are mildly knowing yet not knowing much then you may hold on to it for some weeks or months. This is because on rough estimates only about 5 to 10% are successful at self publishing and make their name as a full fledged writer or author. This is mainly because self publications by and large are not screened for either copyrights or plagiarizing. Again, most printing places do not have editorial staffs to ensure that whatever is being printed is checked for its standard, originality or correct grammar whether the same is in English or any one of India’s vernacular language. All that matters is the amount of money you pay to them.

So the net result is that you literally see hundreds of brick and mortar printing presses and presently the latest offset printing press bringing out writers by the hundreds and thousands. The age too is no barrier so long as you make a down payment and then with the copies you receive you distribute to as many people as you like. There is no marketing or price for you won’t get anything at all as most people would like a free copy which they would discard as soon as they get home.

My mother-in-law did something like this. A few years back seeing her popularity waning by playing family politics in and around family circles she suddenly found that she would need some other weapon to regain her lost ground and good name. She found that in publishing a booklet. A few days of scribbling on pieces of paper with some references here and there she at last brought out a few poems that extolled the virtue of the goddess of her village temple (Kavil Baghavati) all written in Malayalam. Some parts were written by her and some perhaps borrowed freely, but she got it published at some printing press and distributed it at her village and some women whom she knew.

Whether she became famous or regained her lost glory or not is another thing altogether, but for that extremely brief spell of time she was a writer and that was that. But there are others who do this quite diligently and perhaps see it as the only one of the easiest way to print what is there in their mind.

Some decades back when I used to work in Chennai I got into conversation with a person who thought I loved books showed me a book of one of his friends written in Tamil. This wasn’t a book to tell you the truth, but a tiny booklet and I couldn’t understand a word of Tamil then. However, what struck me was not the front cover which carried the title, but the name of the author and then a lot of abbreviation in English that indicated his false qualifications.

I don’t remember the abbreviation yet it went something bizarrely like this ITNE; KLHV; PPQR; and so on. What I wish to emphasize here is that self publication without a professional editorial board to screen and edit the work before going to printing is one of the worst scenario that book publishing and printing in India may be experiencing. In fact, all you need is some money and you may even have as many abbreviation depicting qualification as well authoritative posts too like IPS, DIG, Cabinet Secretary, Olympic Champion and what not.

Some people even print books freely by paying printing costs so as to attack the parties they dislike. This is quite common in India and may extend to even individuals and community. This is the pitfalls of such mediocre printing plans. You actually get no readable stuff but only skewed opinions. Otherwise, you get heavily borrowed or plagiarized stuff only.

You would hardly find yourself behind the bars in such cases as nobody in their sound senses would complain and so too the readers who have may never have read a book.

Self-Publishing professionally

There is yet another way to self publish and that too by making down payment or in installments or what publishers would state as each stage of your book gets published. You are of course at liberty to do the checking and also including your preference for the right kind of cover and color for your paperbacks. Here, unlike the other kind of loosely staged self publishing, your book goes through a thorough scrutiny of the editorial staffs employed by such professional printing and publishing.

Now here the stakes on the goodwill are too high and therefore these kind of publishing companies although accept money wouldn’t print or publish anything from anyone. This is because they do not want to concede on their hard earned goodwill. It is also here that most good self publishing authors pave their way for a glorious career in writing. However, not all get the chance and by a rough estimate this may be only less than 10% of the total number of authors in the list of that publishing company that make their way to the top of the bestsellers list.

However, one thing stands apart from this and the brick mortar style of printing. You need to have originality, grammar free, no plagiarizing and your own easy style of writing. I too had the chance of getting one of my novels published this way. But although I was selected and my book widely admired by the publishing staff it never got printed for I was short of funds. They wanted something like one lakh rupees then and I couldn’t manage that. So the program dropped.

They stated they would do the launching, marketing and spreading reviews, publicity through media and all that including foreign reviews as they had branch in other countries too. Nevertheless the matter ended there I didn’t feel like self publishing for a long time.

Then there are people especially the rich or the famous that publish by proxy or hiring a good writer or call them ghost writer to write their real life stories or autobiographies. I had written and helped in writing ghost stories online some years back for payment too yet if you ask me whether it is good I would answer that it is okay and definitely not inspiring.

Blogs and website writing

Now of course I am still toying with the idea of publishing a well written book although the process of writing hasn’t yet started. Of course, I do publish online both for my blogs and also for contents in other websites yet in my state I am still asked as to what I do for a living. Surprisingly this comes from my state and it is supposed to be the most literate state in India. Yet when I answer that I write online or blog often about serious topics like economics and other topics the prompt answer I get is that why don’t you write a book. Although I reiterate that I get payment in return for the articles I write online except for the blog posts and not the other way round they still disbelieve me.

This is quite surprising as Kerala has just been proclaimed as the first and fully digitalized state. Yet here too you find people who are well qualified on one side, but go for witchcraft and exorcism and other superstitious practices and beliefs as their second nature.

One person had the audacity to tell me mockingly that he has heard a lot about websites blogs, blah blow and all that. He even told me that his grandfather once owned an offset printer where in the past scores of writers produced books (by paying cash of course) and became famous in their neighborhood by distributing free copies. Yet another told me he too writes online and this is mainly in the Facebook. Now when you face with such kind of remarks you become helpless and simply keep your mouth shut as I had done.

Indeed they have a strong reason to say that for paperbacks in India means that your writing is at once seen by the public. For instance, way back when I was writing article online and was quite proud of it too I happened to have a guest in my house one day. I quickly told him about my articles and the types, range and the reach for each one of them. He too got excited to realize that I was a writer and quickly told me to show him some of them.

I got my computer switched on and soon enough there was a power cut and lo behold I had to convince them that I did them pretty well enough. He smiled obligingly and in half belief told me that he would read about them some time in the future. At that time I had no power back up so I let things pass off as I knew no amount of argument would convince him that I too was a writer, both academic and non-academic. There was no proof of a paperback cover that blazed in full bold the name of the book and the author that you can display in your drawing room.

Even to this day in many parts of Kerala, not to say much about the rest of the country, people hardly browse over the Internet except for social media purposes and emailing. For them the vast part of the digital ocean remains unexplored and daunting, a task that is more related to the very curious or the thoughtful people only and who are generally considered rare specimens.

Now when it comes to online technical articles or online books that require some basic understanding of the subject people often think these people are bizarre and non-descript and therefore at best to be avoided. You can never pass on by emphasizing that you are good at what you are doing unless you have a paperback publication in a subject that has been introduced as mandatory part of the state’s syllabus or especially notified for public references. The other online writing however researched it may be is relegated to the background as something not much worthy enough. This perhaps is the reason why we in India have few original researchers and more copycats.

However, the brighter side of the picture is emerging as online research is slowly becoming the mainstay in research institutes and universities and the day will not be far off when children wouldn’t carry their bags full of heavy notebooks, but a simple tablet or a PC.

Self publication costs

For the brick mortar printing press where a lot of manual work is needed you may get around 200 copies of booklets or 50 copies of a thin book for less than ten thousand rupees. This depends in the region where the press is situated. For offset printing the same copies may be slightly more although the rates may vary as it depends upon whether is a lot of unutilized capacity.

A relation of mine who printed booklets of another person who again is a related to his wife printed around 50 copies for around five thousand rupees at the nearby printing press. This press was situated very near to where I stay. Luckily I still got a copy of it. However, for other kind of presses the rates may go very high yet you do get fine standard printing from the latest offset and automatic presses. You need to hunt around for a suitable press that would give you quality and fine printing of the text for a bargain sum.

Years back an acquaintance told me that he had published a book of his brother for less than two thousand rupees and gave me a copy which is still with me. He said the obliging press owner printed 100 copies of it as the same looked like a booklet with length half the actual size of a book. Since he had numerous friends and relations the booklets got exhausted and he started taking photocopies of the same, cut it down into proper sizes, staplered it and then distributed it.

Some good quality printing companies with the latest imported automatic machines print 1000 copies and more for around 20,000 to 30,000 rupees. Some even charge higher.

Yet there are others who take things rather seriously even though they self publish their books. One of my wife’s relative wrote several books after retiring from High School and the same was researched after visiting various places where groups of our small community in Kerala were scattered about such that several past generations and their roots were rediscovered and meticulously charted out including the sudden shifting, journeys, pitfalls and tragedies that met these families. A copy of the book is there with my wife. These books were read only by our community and hardly by others. Yet they are full of good informative stuff even for future generation of families belonging to our community.

It is no great wonder that in Kerala where literacy is certainly much higher than the rest of the country there are more such self publishing than anywhere else. It is also no surprise that around 75% may be just not worth even a moment of your attention. The same would be even worse in other parts of the country although when considering the whole of India by and large quality of writing and editing have seen substantial improvement with astonishing rate of brilliant and original writers appearing on the scene. This is not just English writers, but writers from other vernacular languages too.

There is nothing wrong with an immediate boost to your ego when you show around your booklet or book as the same is also good for the printing industry and the press. Yet when you look at the quality then you feel a little depressed. It is even more disheartening to see people without even going through the pages and proclaiming a person as a great writer simply because he or she had printed something or the other. Is there still considerable hidden illiteracy that we need to root out from our society so that people grasp things with awareness and distinguish between a good and a bad book?

Researching and writing

I had been writing online for several years and offline too in the past having published some stories and poems. Like other writers and researchers I have a lot of materials jotted down in my diaries, notebooks and loose sheets of papers. Many of these may not be quite apt for publication yet some may stand out as really good. I now feel that some day I would like to go over them once again, as they have been lying idle on the shelf, and print them.

My blogs are now well read and so also my other online writing and I wish I could have them all together and print them as an e-book or paperback form. I haven’t as yet decided on it as right now I have very little time. Yet I hope to do some in the future without fail. The ones I had written for other websites are surely not my properties anymore yet the other independent writing is still there – 100% original stuff I would like to add.

It is while musing over the printing and publishing scenario in India that the thought struck me as the easiest way to get published offline is by paying downright cash. This prompted me to write this article. As for the printing press you get them anywhere and nearly everywhere readily enticing you to get anything printed there. In my case, however, the idea would be to get them across a group of professional editors and then get them ready for publishing. I think that is a better way.

There is yet another way which you may try out and is usually done by most of the good writers and that is to get your book marketed by an agent. Usually, an agent may get you good advances too from a publisher and to tell the truth nowadays the most reputed and professionally managed printing and publishing companies rely only on agents to print paper or hardbacks so as to reduce the risk of failure.

Hence, the next time I had resolved to go slowly with my publications than rush in and then choose a good publishing company that is professionally managed. Why pay your hard earned money for acrobatics that is actually of nobody’s concern?