We're so vain? Why self-publish?

Self-publishing is often referred to as Vanity press - a rather pejorative term which implies the only reason the work is published is because the author was so vain that they paid to get published even though their work was "not good enough" for a traditional publishing house.

Granted, in some cases this is true.  There's some pretty crappy self-published work out there.  But there's also some very great work out there was self-published for one reason or another, and vanity is usually not on the top of that list.  So what are those reasons?

I can't speak for all Indy authors - I'll leave that for the comments section - but I can certainly speak for myself about some of the reasons I chose to go this route.

1.  Traditional publishers turned it down.  Whoah - wait a minute - didn't I just say it wasn't because of not being good enough?  Yes, I did.  Getting turned down by publishers has little to do with the quality of a work.  I can think of dozens of extremely popular books - many even classics of particular genres - that were rejected by numerous publishers before being accepted.  Ever hear of Harry Potter?  Yeah, I thought so.
You see, there are thousands of publishers.  Each one gets thousands of submissions - they call it a slush pile - and they can only accept a few each year.  These have to not only be good quality, but also have to fit what the publisher is looking for at that time.  So, even if you have a good book, finding the right publisher at the right time  is a difficult task and involved a great deal of chance.  It can take years and a lot of work - not to mention a lot of postage!  You send in your manuscript with a carefully crafted cover letter or a query letter - then wait months for a reply that may or may not come.
I got some very positive feedback on my manuscripts - handwritten comments on the manuscript from editors -not just form letters. But it just wasn't the right book at the right time.  It's a tiring game with no guarantee of any pay-off for the effort you put in.  I grew tired of that game rather quickly and decided to take control of the process instead.

2.  Artistic control.  Indy music and films often cite this as a reason for what they do.   The artist wants to control the creative process - not hand it over to marketers who will change it and take control of it.  In kid's picture books this is especially true since he author doesn't get to choose the illustrator.  In my case, I not only chose my illustrator, but I gave her direction on what I wanted the pictures to look like, where to make changes, etc.

3.  Experience.  In the print on demand format that I'm using, I am responsible for creating the PDF, uploading it, marketing it etc.  I have learned so much in the process that I wouldn't have otherwise.  I took my illustrator's pictures, sequenced and arranged them, added the text, created different size formats etc.  Now I'm responsible for marketing the book to retailers, libraries and direct to individuals.  The experience I've gained is huge deal.  I really do feel independent.  I'm not dependent on anyone else to hold my hand or do things for me.  I'm in control.

4.  Money.  I didn't know it before-hand, but you can make a lot more money self-publishing in most cases.  Granted, a large publisher can put your book into lots of stores, but if you're only getting $1 a book or less, and you still have to pay to promote it, it's something of a losing proposition unless you happen to be a best-seller already.  I don't get a big advance, but I invested some money in ordering enough copies of my book to get significant bulk discount on the printing costs, which means that my royalties per unit are quite high.  Also, I'm rewarded for my work.  The more effort I put into marketing the book, etc, the more results I see.
I recently read this Yahoo answers post.  Someone asked "How much do authors make?" and an author replied.  I found the answer rather scary - what a lot of work for such a little reward!  It made me feel happy about my decision to self-publish.  Interestingly this author says you should "run fast" from a self-publishing company.  Given how she describes her experience trying to make it with a traditional publisher, I completely disagree.  All her hard work made a lot of money for editors, agents, publishers and retailers and almost nothing for her!  See How much do authors make?

5.  Getting noticed.  Self-publishing a book that sees some success can be a good way to get an author to stand out in the slush pile the next time they submit a manuscript to a traditional publisher.  If you're a proven author with a fan base, have shown your books can sell, and have experience promoting your books, then a publisher will be much more willing to take a chance on you.  This is a business after all, and new unproven authors are a risky investment.  Proven authors, not so much.  Self-publishing can be used as a spring-board.

There are many other reasons to self-publish - especially depending on the kind of book you're publishing.  Some works are intended for smaller niche markets or need frequent revisions like text-books, and for these print-on-demand publishing is simply the best route. 

Are you an Indy author? Why did you choose the SP route?