Making choices self-publishing choices can feel like throwing darts blindfolded. With all the changes to publishing in the last decade or so it gets even more confusing. For instance, now there are opportunities with hybrid publishers which can open more doors for authors and leave them more perplexed than ever.

When indie-publishing really took off, the options were traditional publishing or self-publishing either through a vanity publisher or using Createspace and other such options. Now, Ingram and other distributors offer the opportunity for availability in their catalogs but that doesn’t get you to bookstore shelves. True distribution to bookstores is usually not available for indie authors even if you choose to make the book returnable and offer the standard 55% wholesale discount. Looking at it that way, making a book non-returnable and only offering 30% discount is much more profitable and allows authors to price print books competitively.

And then…