Why Big Authors (Usually) Don't Self Publish

What if the biggest value of your book has nothing to do with book sales alone?

In this episode, Meghan Stevenson explains why a book is more than a product. It is intellectual property, and that changes the way entrepreneurs should think about publishing. She breaks down the hidden advantages of traditional publishing, especially for experts, creators, and business owners who want their book to reach more people and create more long-term opportunities.

One of the biggest takeaways is that traditional publishing offers wider distribution, which gives your book a better chance of landing in bookstores, airport shops, and places beyond Amazon. Megan also highlights subsidiary rights, like international editions, magazine excerpts, and even film or TV adaptations. These rights can create added income, more visibility, and a bigger platform for your message.

This episode is especially useful for anyone deciding between self-publishing, hybrid publishing, and traditional publishing. It gives listeners a clearer understanding of what they may gain or give up with each path, so they can make a smarter and more aligned decision.

Episode Highlights:
(0:00) Intro
(1:11) The Rich AF example and why it matters
(2:13) What entrepreneurs give up outside traditional publishing
(4:13) Two major reasons traditional publishing stands out
(4:25) Why distribution gives books a bigger reach
(5:19) What subsidiary rights actually mean
(5:43) International rights and how authors earn from them
(6:52) First and second serial rights explained
(7:49) TV and film rights and when they happen
(8:31) Why rights are only valuable if the book has reach
(9:16) Real example of world rights sold fast
(9:33) Final advice for choosing the right publishing path
(10:07) Outro

Have a great idea for a book but don't know where to start? MeghanStevenson.com/quiz


Traditional publishing expert Meghan Stevenson blasts open the gates of the “Big 5”—Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, HarperCollins, Hachette, and Macmillan—to share what every entrepreneur and expert needs to know about landing a book deal. 

In episodes released every Monday, Meghan shares wisdom and stories from 20+ years in publishing as well as interviews with authors, literary agents, and editors. She also answers questions from listeners like you. 

Whether you are an experienced entrepreneur with an empire, or are just starting out—this podcast will help you understand what you need to do in order to turn your dream of being a bestselling author into real life. 

Transcript

Your Book Is Intellectual Property

Meghan 0:00

Your book is a piece of your intellectual property. As part of that, you can sell related products and versions based on that original IP, your book. Hey everyone, Meghan here. I would love to hear what you like and don't like about the content I'm putting out, including the kind of a big book deal podcast. You can help me out by answering a few questions online. And when you submit your answers, you'll automatically be invited to an exclusive QA with me where you can ask me anything you want about traditional book publishing. To participate, all you need to do is visit Meghan Stevenson.com forward slash survey. That's M-E-G-H-A-N-S-T-E-V-E-N-S-O-N.com forward slash survey. And thank you. Cheers to your success. Rich AF is a rag to rich story that follows 23-year-old Leah, a billionaire's daughter and Wall Street rising star who has to start from scratch after exposing her father's white-collar crimes and losing everything she once held dear. She'll be pinned between her former glittering life and a new, scrappier one as she painstakingly builds a freelance career and learns that wealth isn't only measured in dollars. And Rich AF is also a New York Times bestselling book that equips readers with the ability to make the most out of their money by understanding personal finance and knowing how to grow wealth. Now, the first Rich AF is a scripted TV show that's being produced by my client, Vivian 2, otherwise known as your Rich BFF on socials. And the second is a how-to book that my team helped to collaborate on and bring in the world. I'm bringing this up because it's a perfect example of what you give up as an entrepreneur, as an expert, as a creator when you choose to self-publish your book, indie publish your book, or hybrid publish your book. Not TV shows necessarily, very few authors get those, but the ability to leverage the rights you have regarding your intellectual property. Now, I know what you might think, but Meghan, you say, what about Colleen Hoover and it ends with us? Or J.K. Rowling and the Harry Potter series. First, those are fiction authors. And second, both are outliers. And to be clear, Vivian is an outlier as well. She's my first and only client to land her own TV show in the nearly 15 years I've been running my own business as a professional collaborator and traditional publishing expert. And the reason I'm bringing this up is because if you have even whispered the dream of becoming an author around your phone or your computer, you have probably seen a shit ton of ads for self, indie, and hybrid publishers. I see these two, right? Many of them proclaim things like keep all your profits, retain all your rights, control your destiny in cap letters. And while that's true at a practical level, what those publishers leave out of the story is how powerful those rights can be. I believe traditional publishing is the better option for entrepreneurs, experts, and creators who want to make a big impact for many reasons. And those two reasons that you should traditionally publish as an entrepreneur, as an expert, as a creator, are distribution for your book and a little thing called subsidiary rights. I've touched on distribution before, but essentially, self-Indian hybrid books are often limited to Amazon. These books don't get sold in bookstores, including the ones you see at every airport. Contrast that to traditionally published titles, which do get distributed nationwide, both to independent bookstores and to chains like Barnes Noble. While every single traditionally published book doesn't make it to every single store, you have a much higher chance of your book appearing in that airport or in your neighborhood local indie if you traditionally publish than if you choose any other way. Which brings me to rights. Traditional publishers have a lot of work going on that no one outside the industry really sees. Like sales reps going to independent bookstores, often in person, to talk about your book. Or the entire departments of people at each publishing house dedicated to selling what's known as subsidiary rights. So I could get really into the weeds here of book deals, but to make it simple, your book is a piece of your intellectual property. As part of that, you can sell related products and versions based on that original IP, your book. Hence Rich AF, the TV show. Now, the most common rights you're gonna sell aren't gonna be TV rights or film rights, okay? Instead, the most common rights you can sell related to your book are international rights, which is where you sell another publisher the right to sell your book, usually either in English or in that country's native language within that country's borders. I'm gonna talk about international rights more in a future episode, but Publishers Marketplace lists over 70 countries where rights are sold, from Azerbaijan to Vietnam. The books I've worked on personally have been sold in at least 10 countries that I know of, and there's probably so many more. International rights are a big deal, and often publishers will make either world deals or world English deals in order to sell these rights in hell. And as an author, you still get a cut of all that. Alternatively, some literary agents like to retain international rights because they want to make the deals. They think they can get you more money or make a better deal or have more deals or whatever it is. Either way, whether the publisher sells it or the literary agent sells it, you as an author get a cut on every kind of subsidiary right, most often international rights. Another subsidiary right that's important but happens less often, especially these days, is first and second serial rights. First serial is when a chapter or an excerpt from a book gets published in a newspaper or a magazine before that book comes out. So this happened to a client of ours recently. A snippet of my client Iiko Bethia's book, Anchored Aligned Accountable, was published in People three months before her book came out. That's a great example of first serial. Second serial is the same thing, only that second serial happens after your book has been published, or, and this is important, or after the first serial ran in whatever outlet you placed it at. So serial rights are a lot less common, a lot less important now, mostly because newspapers and magazines aren't as relevant as they used to be even 10 years ago. That said, it can still be something media outlets pay for that promotes your book and you as an author. And last but not least, there are TV and film rights where your book is made into a TV show or a movie. A great example of this is How to Get Rich by Ramit Sethi, which was a huge bestseller for years before becoming a Netflix show. And here's another throwback: he's just not that into you, which was also a best-selling book on dating before becoming a movie. Now, how your book is adapted varies a lot, and it really only happens for huge bestsellers. But it's important for you as an author, as an entrepreneur, expert, or creator who wants to be an author to know that you have these rights and these rights exist. So that is a quick overview of the rights you have any way you publish. But what I want you to know is that these rights, and what's really important about this, is that these rights are only as valuable as the original intellectual property. So when you choose to self-publish, when you choose to hybrid publish, when you choose to indie publish, and you only sell a few hundred books as a result, the value of that original intellectual property is going to be super little. That's what self-hybrid and indie publishers never mention in their ads. However, when you decide to traditionally publish, those rights could be very valuable. And that irrespective of how your book sells. So here's an example of that. When my client Elaine Lynn Heron got her book deal with Penguin, her literary agent sold world rights, meaning that Penguin had the ability to sell international rights based on the proposal, which they did immediately in eight countries. And as I said before, I personally believe that traditional publishing is the best option for entrepreneurs, experts, and creators who want to have a big audience and make a big impact. Part of the reason for that is distribution, because it allows your book to be sold in more places. And partly it's because when you traditionally publish, the rights you have are more likely to be valuable. That said, I'm not going to tell you what to do. Only you know what's best for you. However, you publish, I hope that this podcast episode has helped you make an informed and aligned decision. I'll see you next time, and until then, cheers to your success. Thanks for tuning in to the Kind of Big Book Deal podcast. Want to see where you're at on your book journey? Check out my free quiz at MeghanStevenson.com forward slash quiz. That's M-E-G-H-A-N-S-T-E-V-E-N-S-O-N.com forward slash quiz. See you next time.