It’s a tough decision for a writer to make. All your life you’ve fantasized about a big-shot publisher buying your book and its subsequent astronomical launch into the stratosphere. But it hasn’t happened yet despite of the craft of writing for years.
While the non-responses come in, and the polite rejections clog your mailbox, the option of self-publishing hangs out there like a flag unfurling in the corner of your eye, waiting for you to take notice and give it some attention.
So, are you up the fence?
When do you decide that it’s time to pursue self-publishing? There is no easy answer to this question, but if you take the time to consider the following, you’ll come that much closer to deciding.

• Agents do not respond with feedback or questions!

It is not uncommon, as agents sort through piles of queries every day, and the large majority of submissions receive form rejections. Maybe you’ve sent out a significant amount of queries for a significant amount of time, and you’re frustrated with the lack of response. A few agents may have requested chapters, but later, they replied with a “no.” Or, you’ve had some luck, enough to keep you motivated, but editors all say the same thing in the end—the hook just didn’t grab them enough or your platform needs work.

• Take your manuscript through the whole editing process

From beta reading to professional editing and the manuscript sparkles. When you read your book, you’re not tempted to make edits. It feels finished.

• Contribute to contests

You certainly have considered the criticism the judges have posed and made changes when that feedback made sense to you. You sure have high scores and enthusiastic feedback.

• Have a blog or YouTube channel or newsletter

You’re excited about the prospect of growing your platform by offering helpful content to others.

• Quote on Social Media

Though you may not love social media, you do like to quote or recommend your favourite authors on occasion, and you’ve started posting and sharing.
Either way, you start commenting on the posts of others and building some relationships with people who have similar interests.

• Moving Ahead

You won’t take no for an answer. Or, maybe you’re not this passionate in every aspect of your life, but when it comes to your book, you’re ready to do what needs to be done.
You want your dream of publishing to happen. You’ve been saving money for a possible “self-publishing venture.”
You believe your book is worthy and that it will find a readership.
So, here you are—all fired up and ready to move ahead.

• Satisfied Feel of a good book

Does it have to be a bestseller for you to be happy with it? Does it need to make a million dollars?
Your goal may not have anything to do with money. It might be something simple like impressing your family and friends with your literary prowess, or even simpler, holding a finished book in your hands.
What are your goals, and can self-publishing satisfy them?
Believe that there is a market for your book—work on your query with a freelance editor and send it out.
The point is, it’s a crowded market, and failure to land an agent is not a determination of your book’s worth or its potential success. That is why you must believe in your book.