article: Within a few years it had achieved domination on a global scale, spawning a series that has sold more than 125 million copies. E. L. James's personal story has become a tantalising fantasy for aspiring authors. But one that technology and social media are making increasingly realisable. "There was a time when self-publishing was equated with vanity," explains John Bond, co-founder of Whitefox, one of several new companies helping 'amateur' authors publish professionally on platforms like Amazon Kindle, Google Play, Apple's iBook Store or Kobo. "Because of the digital revolution, democratisation has happened. It's almost as if the writer has become his own entrepreneur around the publication process." In their competition to get noticed, self-publishers are proving willing to take risks. Andy Weir's The Martian eventually went on to become a Hollywood blockbuster. But the story was originally published chapter by chapter on the author's blog for free. This turned out to be great exposure and it became a huge hit as an audiobook, e-book and physical book. "There was an adversarial attitude between mainstream publishing houses and self publishers a few years ago," says Mr Bond, "but I think that's changed dramatically." He attributes this to traditional publishers' new-found admiration for the self publishers' social media skills, which have helped them find new readers without the benefit of expensive marketing campaigns. Lawyer-turned-author Mark Dawson, for example, uses his website and Facebook page to give out free copies of his thrillers and curates 'Readers' Groups'. Online conversations help him establish a closer relationship with his readers encouraging them to come back for subsequent publications. Another thriller writer Joanna Penn has bolstered her following by helping others to self-publish through her website which explains how to go about self publishing. She also hosts a popular podcast interview series. So-called "Instapoets" like New Zealander Lang Leav have built up huge followings on Instagram and Tumblr, publishing their work on these platforms, before securing traditional publishing deals. Douglas Wight has just completed his first self-published book and has a more cautionary tale to tell. The former News of the World tabloid journalist set up his own company to self-publish a biography of pop diva Rita Ora, in the run up to Christmas. He and his co-author opted to sell the e-book version on Amazon, but also took the added risk of organising their own hardback print-run. Self-publishing wasn't as straight-forward as he had hoped. "You have control of what you are doing, but it's not for everyone," warns Mr Wight. "It's a lot of work and a huge learning curve." That work includes satisfying all the different formatting requirements of the various e-book outlets, organising cover illustrations and marketing, all while bearing the financial risk of the whole enterprise, explains Mr Wight. That said, he feels his gamble paid off. The hardback version has sold more than 3,000 copies and performed better than expected on Kindle. He has covered his costs and is now hoping to begin a new chapter of profitability. But what if it is not just readers you are after, but cash
summary: Erotic novel Fifty Shades of Grey began life as a humble, self-published e-book, unable to satisfy the tastes of traditional publishers.