It is estimated that around half of authors are experimenting with self-publishing their books. There are many routes to publication available, from print to ebook, and the stigma of vanity publishing has largely disappeared. A panel of experts discusses the phenomenon of self-publishing and the potential rewards for authors.

Jason Beacon is a writer, editor and traveller and has plied many trades, from motorcycle courier to hotel restorer. He has a passion for Central Asia and the former Soviet Union and once spent a year studying with a lost Sufi tribe (now found). He has run a copywriting business, edited a lifestyle magazine, and now oversees Guerilla Books – a tiny independent press committed to finding talented authors who would probably never make it past a mainstream publisher’s slush pile.  Martin Toseland is a former publisher (Penguin, HarperCollins) turned author, editor and agent. To date he has written and ghost-written 13 books. One of his current interests is helping authors make their work available across a number of platforms – including Kindle, other ebook formats and print – sold though their own websites.

The panel is chaired by Angus Phillips, director of the Oxford International Centre for Publishing Studies at Oxford Brookes University. He has been a judge for the Bookseller industry awards for the last three years.