The Book Party

Last night I went to a book party. My mother in law had invited me, it was an acquaintance of her's that had written the book. Initially, I was very excited. I couldn't wait to meet the author in question, even make a few connections in the publishing world. When I got there, however, I realized I was sorely mistaken. It was in a dark, nearly deserted basement of an obscure little hall. Confused, and a little embarrassed for the author, I sought her out in hopes of picking her brain. I wanted to hear all about her adventures in finding an agent, going through the editing process, selling the book to a publisher. As it turns out, I would hear none of it. She self published. Which of course immediately explained the deserted basement book party. Yikes.
I don't think I'll ever self publish. I think it takes away from the feeling of accomplishment. When you self publish, you only need your own approval. When you get published by an actual company, that means you passed inspection and actually warranted their investing their time and money in you. Even if you never become a best seller, at least you'd know that there were people who thought your book was worth publishing. Instead of, you know, just you. The whole night was an eye opener for me on how much harder I need to work, and how much it will all be worth it when I don't end up throwing myself a book party in a sparsely attended hall basement.