3 subtle ways we don’t hire a publisher (even when it was the right move)

 Sometimes, no one needs to say no to your book dreams.

You do it yourself. Quietly. Efficiently.

Here are 3 sneaky ways people end up not working with a publisher — even when the offer was solid, honest, and totally doable:

1. “It’s too affordable. That’s suspicious.”

They send you a clear, fair quote. Editing, design, ISBN — all included. But because it doesn’t cost the same as a used car, you assume it can’t be real.

You trust your fear over the facts.

Meanwhile, overpriced vanity presses are out there charging triple — and offering less.

2. “I’ll just do it all myself.”

Spoiler: you probably won’t. Or you’ll try, get overwhelmed, burn out halfway through, and shelve the whole thing.

Yes, you could DIY your book. But do you really want to juggle editing, layout, metadata, distribution… alone?

3. “I’ll think about it.”

You had the meeting. Loved the offer. Everything felt right.
But then life happened. You got busy. You ghosted the email. You hesitated too long.

Now it’s six months later, and your book’s still sitting in a folder called final_final_draft_revised2.docx.

👉 So yeah…

Sometimes your book doesn’t need a gatekeeper. It just needs you to stop getting in your own way.

Did one of these hit home?