A well-established author with a bestselling track record, Mark McCrum decided to self-publish his novel. Here's why...
I've written nine books under my own name, seven under other people's. Now I'm publishing another one - Fest, a murder mystery set at a literary festival. Getting it ready for pub day - today, 3 July - is the same old process: check proofs, send them off, wait for finished copies, then get ready to put modesty on the back burner and promote the damn thing. Only this time it isn't quite the same, because I'm self-publishing.
I've set up a small imprint, Prospero Press (named after the street where I live). I also like the fact that it sounds established. "Prospero, ah yes," people say to me, until I point out that this particular firm hasn't published a book before. Then their expressions change. "Ah yes," they repeat, in a slightly different tone. "Self-publishing, I see." Later they may tell me I'm brave.
