Guest post with Murees Dupe: Why I chose to self-publish

Morning everyone! I've got a real treat for you all today - I'm handing my blog over into Murees Dupé capable hands (which is great for me, as it means I can sit and relax get going on my writing that I've been putting off for far too long). She's here to talk about her self-publishing journey so far - take it away, Murees!

Why I chose to self-publish

Hello Rachel. Thank you so much for allowing me to guest post on your blog. You're amazing
by the way:)

When I decided to publish my first book, naturally I was sure I wanted to do it the traditional
way. I wasn't even thinking of self-publishing. I thought it was too much work and that I would
have to market my own books, not to mention deal with all the details of publishing my book. It
would be so much easier to get a publishing company to do all that for me. Well, then entered
my agent. I'm not going to go into detail, but I'm going to say that it was a bad experience and
that I wouldn't wish that experience on any other person.

After feeling dejected, and as if my world was falling apart, I noticed that many of my blogger
friends were self-publishing and doing a fantastic job of it, in fact. So, I went onto Amazon,
downloaded a few free books about self-publishing and devoured them all in one night. When I
finished reading, I knew I wanted to self-publish. Why wouldn't I? I get to keep most of my
profits. I get to control every aspect of material made available for publication. Most of all, I
would be in charge of my own destiny. I didn't need to depend on others to make my dream, of
being published, come true. I would be free to do what I wanted.

As I did more research on self-publishing, and talking to a few fellow bloggers (by email), I
knew I was making the right choice. Self-publishing offered me everything I thought I wanted
from a traditional publisher. I'm not saying traditional publishing is bad. It just wasn't right for
me. Self-publishing offers me creative freedom and my independence, which is more important
to me. It also helped that I got over the idea that being traditionally published would give me
some kind of validation as a writer. If someone is willing to pay to read your book, that is all the
validation one needs. Your readers are what's important, not the opinion, or validation of your
peers.

I'm still in the process of self-publishing my first book, but I was and am still surprised how
many great people are out there, who have offered to help me every step of the way. Thank you.

Once again, Thank You for having me, Rachel.

About Murees

Murees Dupé was born, and still lives in South Africa. When she is not thinking up new stories,
she is spending time with her family, playing with her three dogs, and cat, watching TV, or
overindulging on desserts. To learn more about Murees, visit her website www.mureesdupe.com.