TRUE!
James Redfield – The Celestine Prophecy
Redfield certainly did self-publish. He gave away the first 1500 copies to promote the book and his self published edition sold well into the 10’s of thousands before he sold the second print rights to Warner Books.
FALSE!
L. Frank Baum – The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
Another one that is pedaled out continously by some of the big 'Dream Lade' author solution companies as a self-publishing success - though, I am not sure why. It was first published by George M. Hill Publishing in 1900. Baum did self-publish a book, but it was a manual about chicken farming - major genre then!
FALSE!
John Grisham - A Time to Kill
First published by Wynwood Press. Publisher went belly up and Grisham bought the remainder of stock and sold them out of his car boot. Selling the remainder of your own publisher's books, I'm afraid, doesn't count as a self-publishing success.
FALSE!
Robert James Waller - The Bridges of Madison
First Published by Warner Books. Complete self publishing myth. Pops up in many lists of self-publishing success for some bizare reason.
FALSE!
Christopher Paolini - Eragon
Published by his parent’s small press Paolini International, first print run 10,000 copies. One of the most recent 'claimed' modern self-publishing successes, but I'm afraid not. It's not so much that mammy and daddy went doing the bank-rolling, but that they provided all the where-with-all an independent publisher provides.
FALSE!
Tom Clancy – The Hunt for Red October
Published and financed by an unusual publisher, the Naval Institute Press. Nevertheless, certainly not a self published book. No matter how unusual the publisher, it was still traditionally published.
TRUE!
GP Taylor – Shadowmancer
Published by Taylor with a print run of 2000 before it was later picked up by Faber UK. Taylor himself went on to become involved in Grosvenor House Publishing, a UK based author solutions company as a promotional figurehead.
TRUE!
Beatrix Potter - The Tale of Peter Rabbit
Self-published in a limited edition of 250 copies in 1901. OK, yes, but this was at a time when publishing was a very different business and at a time when the ordinary common man and woman couldn't write their own name.
TRUE!
Dan Poynter - Self-Publishing Manual
Self published by Poynter in 1979 selling 130,000. Poynter described it as “the book that launched a thousand books.” Don't F**k with the Poynter! He may be an extraordinary business man and entrepreneur with skills beyond most of us, but he did self publish with his own companies.
TRUE!
Michael Baisden - The Maintenance Man
The author uniquely self-publishes his hardcover print novels and then sells the paperback rights to Simon & Schuster's Touchstone imprint. Very novel, but if he can get away with it - what the hell!
TRUE!
Jonathan Bayliss – Gloucesterman
Self publisher of a series of novels since 1992. Local and niche, but highly successful.
TRUE!
David Brody - Unlawful Deeds
Using iUniverse, Brody may only have sold 3000 copies, but it was one of the first significant successes for a print on demand book. A man after every POD publishing author's heart!
Perhaps a few more next time...
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