The Association of Independent Authors (AiA) is a membership organization representing, advancing, supporting and encouraging self-published (independent) authors. Our membership spans five continents, with Directors based in the USA, Asia, Australia, and South Africa.

 

In 2008, for the first time in history, more books were self-published than those published traditionally. In 2009, 76% of all books released were self-published, while publishing houses reduced the number of books they produced. This growth continued in 2010 with well-known, best-selling authors moving away from their publishing house to self-publish, for example Barry Eisler.  In 2011, J.K. Rowling announced she would self-publish the Harry Potter series as e-books and sell directly to readers via her website, Pottermore.

This growth will continue enabled as it has been by advancing technologies, a transfer of the power to determine who should be read to the reader, and a rejection by authors of the traditional path. Authors now choose to self-publish as a first option rather than settling for this as an only option. The advantages of self-publishing now outweigh the disadvantages .

The role of the AiA is to guide, educate, support, encourage and unite authors who have chosen to self-publish. Our online community provides a comprehensive resource on all aspects of (self) publishing and running a small business—today’s authors are authorpreneurs and must understand the business side of publishing and how to sell a book in a global marketplace. We are able to represent authors from across the globe as the process and issues facing independent authors are the same everywhere.

 

Our vision is that independent publishing will be the preferred, first choice, for all authors.

 

Our mission is to create a culture of excellence, teamwork and professionalism in a community environment where sharing and collaboration benefits each individual member and independent authors as a whole.