Murder Not Advised

I’m delighted to have joined ‘SEEN in Publishing’, a network of publishing professionals, authors, and creatives, who recognise the material reality of sex, and support free speech. I’m also thrilled that I’ve had the following article published on their website, which I hope you enjoy reading:

When I began writing, I never imagined that I might have to commit a crime in order to get published. Yet, there it was in black and white in a literary agent’s guidelines: ‘we’d be interested in hearing from you if you are [insert list of oppressed & marginalized groups] or are being rehabilitated after committing a crime.’ I wondered how serious my misdemeanor had to be, and whether only first-degree murder would cut it.

After briefly entertaining the idea of killing a literary agent, I abandoned my latest attempt to hook one since it was the same story across the traditional publishing industry. Literary agents whose bios scream that they’re non-binary with they/them pronouns, rainbows and BLM flags. Publishers only interested in ‘queer fiction stars of the future’ who identify as working class, writers of colour, D/deaf, neurodivergent and/or as LGBTQIA2S+. Apparently, readers aren’t interested in anything written by authors with cis-heteronormative white privilege.

And so, deterred by this discrimination, my self-publishing journey began. And what a journey it was. Learning to self-publish was like trying to ride a Penny-farthing up Ben Nevis—blindfolded, during a blizzard, with a pride of Scottish wildcats chasing me — that’s the kind of steep learning curve we’re talking about.

Basically, you have to do everything that a publisher would do for you (actually, they don’t, but that’s the expectation). It’s down to you to find an editor, a web designer, a cover designer, and beta readers. It’s also up to you to typeset your book, determine keywords and metadata, and configure Amazon’s KDP platform. And, once your book is ready for release, there’s the launch to plan and the endless book marketing. If you enjoy pain, you’ll take pleasure from crafting Amazon and Facebook ads.

However, as challenging as self-publishing is, especially at the beginning, you are in control. Unlike with a traditional publisher, you decide what readers see, not editors. You choose the cover, not the designer. You set the price, not the publisher. You determine the schedule, not the sales team. And, crucially, you retain your rights. But, perhaps most importantly of all, no one can censor what you write.

When I wrote The Twenty Murders, I knew from the outset it would have to be self-published. The novel surfaces the issues around transgenderideology, in particular its devastating impact on women and children. I doubt it would have stood a Scottish wildcat’s chance in hell of being promoted by a literary agent, or slinking past the wokerati gatekeepers at a traditional publisher.

And guess what? Readers don’t care who the publisher is — all they care about is whether you’ve written a good book or not. And they’ll soon tell you in the ratings and reviews. I take heart from the fact The Twenty Murders has a 4.6 out of 5-star rating, and over 50 positive reviews with comments such as “totally current, very brave of this author considering the abuse GC people have thrown at them”. So don’t worry about the ‘proper’ writers looking down their noses at the ‘indies’ — you’ll be earning 70% royalties, not them.

For any writer struggling with the same concerns, I encourage you to self-publish. It’s the only way to maintain control over your work and ensure your story is read, uncensored.