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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/q/26641
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

We all have read about the huge successes of self published authors.[http://www.forbes.com/sites/jaymcgregor/2015/04/17/mark-dawson-made-750000-from-self-published-amazon-books/#611bdb2a35e3](http://www.forbes.com/sites/jaymcgregor/2015/04/17/mark-dawson-made-750000-from-self-published-amazon-books/#611bdb2a35e3)[http://www.forbes.com/sites/jeremygreenfield/2013/03/20/the-fast-track-to-making-a-million-dollars-from-writing-books/#45bcb4641709](http://www.forbes.com/sites/jeremygreenfield/2013/03/20/the-fast-track-to-making-a-million-dollars-from-writing-books/#45bcb4641709)

Most writers seem to quietly slave away at their manuscripts hoping to hone their skills to create the next blockbuster or Pulitzer. I do wonder about the quality of most self-published works I have read but frankly, I have also read a lot of drivel published by reputable agencies.[http://goodereader.com/blog/commentary/self-published-authors-are-destroying-literature](http://goodereader.com/blog/commentary/self-published-authors-are-destroying-literature)[https://www.reddit.com/r/writing/comments/306zia/is\_selfpublished\_fiction\_really\_that\_bad/](https://www.reddit.com/r/writing/comments/306zia/is_selfpublished_fiction_really_that_bad/)

One blog by a reputable journalist succinctly sums up the entire mood: _Probably the single most readily identifiable, potentially crippling difficulty the entire self-publishing community has faced is the fact that much of its output — not all but a lot — is rife with poor quality._[http://thoughtcatalog.com/porter-anderson/2014/12/self-publishing-and-the-quality-question-its-called-rigor/](http://thoughtcatalog.com/porter-anderson/2014/12/self-publishing-and-the-quality-question-its-called-rigor/)

My question is: Is an author's time best spent on revising drafts and studying the trade to improve their skills or simply say 'good enough' and risk the stigma of self-publishing?

Original score: 2