Web of Fiction: A New Way to Self-Publish

After many months, or years of finally putting your heart and soul into your book, you want the world to have it. So where do you start? What should you do? Should you get an agent? Should you send out copies of your manuscript? Should you wait up to a year or longer to see if you get an acceptance, or worse a rejection letter? Are you patient enough to see if you are part of the marketable one percent of the writing population? Are you even willing to make changes to your pride and joy just to please, what the publishing company says is the masses?

If you are not too worried about becoming the next J.K. Rowling or Stephen King, and you just want to know that your work is available to the masses, maybe self-publishing is the way to go. But do you have the funding that is required when you self-publish? Do you have the right editor in place to show you the grammatical and spelling errors? Are you ready to put up the money for marketing that you would have to do yourself? What about the money that some of the self-publishing companies ask you to put up for editing, marketing, and graphic design? Will you even see a profit if a few of your books do sell?

There is another alternative within the self-publishing arena. It is called Web of Fiction, or WoF. WoFing was created by author V. Lucien Maier, who to date has over twenty-five WoFs published on his website ranging from poetry and short stories, to three novels about vampires and werewolves. What exactly is a WoF? A WoF, or Web of Fiction is in Lucien's own words, "A way of telling stories on the Internet." No one can tell your story better than you can. And with the technology that is available, it is easier than ever to cut out the middleman.

WoFing is easy. All you need is a microphone and a website. Any editing software that you do not already have can be downloaded for free from the Internet. Still confused? Essentially, a WoF is your work, your words, and your voice in MP3 format. So you do not think that it is anything new? Many authors have their books in audio format. What is the big deal you ask? First, those authors had to submit their work to publishing companies and wait for the acceptance letter. Second, their books had to be successful enough to make it to audio. Third, when you download their books, you are paying entirely too much money for it depending on where you are purchasing the book on audio. If you want your book available to the public, you record it as an MP3, add a few sound effects depending on the "mood" of your book, upload it to your website, and let everyone know about it. It really is a lot easier than you might be thinking.

You can purchase a decent external microphone from any electronics store. The external microphone helps with the clarity of your voice. If you are a Mac user, you can use Garage Band to record and edit your voice as well as adding the appropriate sound effects. (That is what I use.) PC users can download Audacity from the Internet for recording and editing. The web has countless downloadable sound effects that you can also use for free. Once you have completed your masterpiece, you add your sound effects and then edit. After your final edit, if necessary, convert your audio into MP3 format and you are ready for the world do hear your masterpiece, in your own voice. Set up a Pay Pal account, set the price of your WoF, and then let the world know that your book is available as an MP3 download. And there you have it.

I have mentioned before that I am not a patient person. I refused to wait a year or longer to be a part of the one percent that had a book accepted, or a part of the ninety-nine percent who got rejected. I did not want a publishing company telling me that what I had put my heart and soul into was not what the public wanted to read. I did not want to change anything about the story that I had viewed as my "baby" for over a year just to have the integrity of the piece compromised for marketability. The world has already missed out on far too many brilliant writers for those reasons.

I, (under my pen name) have completed three poetry WoFs and one full-length novel in WoF format. As I complete a new piece, I start the WoF process. I have gotten used to hearing my voice, and the editing software can change, delete, and add effects that I want. Will I continue to self-publish using good old-fashioned books? Maybe. But I am at a point in my writing career where I enjoy using my voice to power my masterpieces. Not to mention, the easy profitability, especially when you already have a fan base.

WoFing is an easy way to get your book out to the masses. And you do not have to sacrifice anything to do it. It is a method of self-publishing that is catching on with writers, and the possibilities are limitless.

As of the writing of this article, Lucien Maier is in the process of completing a video tutorial for WoFing. It will be a complete visual guide to the process, and will show writers how easy it really is to become a WoFer.