The idea of pitching and being rejected for years to allow a publisher to publish your book and take most of the money, if you are lucky. And then hearing that it is “normal” has seemed ridiculous to me ever since self-publishing made publishing a book on your own fairly easy.
I knew my quirky novel would not appeal to traditional publishers who are looking for formulaic blockbusters. So I published it myself. Total cost. $30 for the cover images. It has only sold about 100 copies in a year, but that is better than zero.
And the primary goal for me was to have people read it and say they enjoyed it. And they have.
Good for you. Now the hard part begins. Marketing. Yuck. 🤣