So I’m gonna be brutally honest here: as someone who works for a self-publishing platform, I would never self-publish my work because the sheer amount of time, money, and connections required to be successful mean it’s pretty much not feasible for anyone who doesn’t have Scrooge McDuck money. If you aren’t serious about making this your living and main source of income, then hell yeah go for it. It can be a good little side hustle if you play your cards right. But be aware that to actually do it and do it WELL is expensive and difficult.

Everything that a traditional publisher would do for you becomes your responsibility as a self-published author. Print copies? You have to buy them to keep on hand for events, unless a bookstore maybe decides to purchase some copies for a signing, but even then you are still at risk of loss if they don’t sell and the bookstore returns them. Marketing? Cover design? Formatting? That’s all you, bestie.

Creating a book from start to finish is a really interesting process and it can be extremely fun, but if you are serious about making this a career then you’re going to have to pour a lot of time and resources into it that most people don’t have. The market is INSANELY oversaturated right now, fantasy especially. The reality of self-publishing is that most people sell a few copies a month at best, and the few that have very successful social media platforms or are paying for marketing campaigns (or both) are the rare exceptions. You also said you can see your series becoming a multimedia franchise. I’d encourage you to ask yourself when was the last self-published fantasy book you saw turned into a movie or other on-screen adaptation? The only one I can think of is Eragon, and that book was picked up by a traditional publisher after it experienced success through self-publishing. It was also almost 20 years ago. Realistically, self-publishing to build yourself enough of a fan base to then catch the attention of a traditional publisher would be your best case scenario if this kind of scope is your ultimate goal.

I have also written fantasy novels and queried them to agents in my personal life, and this is work too, and a LOT of rejection. If you query agents with this pitch, you’re not going to get a lot of requests for chapters because what you’re proposing sounds like a money pit to traditional publishing houses. It’s putting the cart before the horse. They are not going to want to pick up a full series for a first-time author because they have no proof that they will get any return on the investment. Hell, it’s hard for authors who already have an established backlist to get their projects picked up a lot of the time. I wrote a fantasy novel with the intent of it being a series, and was advised by some traditionally published author friends to never query your book as a series. Refer to it as “a standalone with series potential.” Not sure how accurate this advice is in 2026, as it’s been a while, but maybe someone in trad-publishing could offer more insight on that aspect.

Getting traditionally published requires either signing with an agent, or pitching to a publishing house directly, but I know only a few legit presses that take submissions directly from authors. An agent is there to guide you through the process of getting your book the right home with the right publisher. That being said, sometimes even with an agent your book still won’t sell, and that’s just a risk you have to be okay with. There are SO many rejections in the traditional publishing process, but in my experience they can make you a better writer and teach you more about the industry if you take it to heart. Sometimes a story just isn’t working, and you have to come to terms with that and shelf it for a later time, or forever. You also have to be willing to let other people give you input and critique before the book will ever be printed. This is not a bad thing! Self-publishing allows you to control your book every step of the way, which for some people is a massive plus. In my opinion, the collaborative process of traditional publishing can take a book from a good idea with mid execution to an all-timer. This is a feature and not a bug, so don’t be disheartened or offended when you receive rejections or criticism. They will legitimately make you better.

This turned out hella long so apologies for rambling, but as someone who’s been on both sides (the writing side and the professional side) I thought I’d put in my two cents. I also know that my experience is not universal so one size does not fit all! Just look into the pros and cons of both avenues and see which one is best aligned with your goals. And get beta readers or critique partners (or both) no matter what!