The Guardian recently showcased research demonstrating that women are leading the self-publishing wave, at least in the UK. And while The Guardian linked this to E.L. James and the Fifty Shades of Grey effect, the underlying data shows that female prominence in self-publishing is a broad and sustained trend.
Dr. Alison Baverstock, , an associate professor in publishing at Kingston University in Surrey, whose research has featured before in Teleread, co authored the research study, “Who are the self-publishers?” with Jackie Steinitz, published in mid-2013 in the journal Learned Publishing, which demonstrated that ” relative to their share of the national population the sample suggests that self-publishing authors are skewed towards females,” as well as “to those aged 41–70, and to the highly educated.” The research found that 65 percent of its sample of self-published authors were women. And although based on a fairly limited but well-targeted survey with some 120 respondents, targeting the membership of the Alliance of Independent Authors among others, the survey has found ample confirmation elsewhere.
“It has been really interesting conducting academic research into self-publishing just as it is being noticed more widely for the hugely significant trend it is,” Dr. Baverstock told Teleread. “When I began, in 2009, quite a lot of people (both within the publishing industry and academia) thought I was wasting my time, as the trend would be a passing one. I did not think so and just kept going, and as a result now have highly relevant data.”
The survey also found, very encouragingly, that “the outcomes from self-publishing according to the respondents are extremely positive across the board.” And there are plenty of other indicators that female authors are going to need the extra control and self-promotional options of self-publishing for quite some time to come.
Dr. Baverstock added: “Pleasingly, both the outcomes and our conclusions have been confirmed by many of those actively involved in self-publishing, in representing them and in servicing their requirements.”
It’s not surprising at all.
Female writers have been at the forefront of publishing changes for the last thirty years since the rise in the romance market. Almost every major change, from the rise of self-promotion to e-publishers to this, has been led by female writers.