109. Should You Self-Publish? One Novelist's Journey from Traditional to Indie with Annie Cathryn

What happens when traditional publishing stalls your career — and you decide to take matters into your own hands?In this episode, Nicole sits down with award-winning novelist Annie Cathryn (The Friendship Breakup, Eat the Cake) to talk candidly about her journey from querying 125 literary agents, landing a traditional publishing deal, and ultimately making the leap to self-publishing her latest novel.Whether you're a fiction writer wondering how to self-publish your first novel, or a traditionally published author weighing a move to indie publishing, Annie's story is full of hard-won wisdom and practical insight.They cover:What it really takes to query literary agents — and why 125 rejections isn't failureWhy traditional publishing didn't work for Annie's sophomore novel (and why it had nothing to do with her writing)How she launched an indie publishing business in a single day — LLC, website, pub date and allThe honest learning curve of self-publishing: book formatting, cover design, IngramSpark vs. Amazon, and what she'd do differentlyThe real benefits of being an indie author: creative control, real-time sales data, and choosing your own pub dateHow to decide whether traditional or self-publishing is the right fit for your author careerAnnie's debut novel Eat the Cake — a story of grief, unexpected hope, and a scavenger hunt through Florence — releases July 21st. Find her on Instagram @msanniecathryn and pre-order at bookstoread.com/anniecatherine.For more on Nicole Meier, visit nicolemeier.com