That Steinbeck line is a paraphrase of what he said about writing and horse racing, but the original is a bit cumbersome to quote, and it's SO apt.

The problem with the phrase "independently published" is that in the industry it was originally (and still is) used by small presses that aren't part of the big conglomerates. So it can confuse people: i.e., make them wonder which one you mean, and I avoid it unless I can otherwise make clear what I'm talking about.

In a cynical mood I can convince myself that this is exactly what the most egregious of the vanity presses want you to think: that they're the equal to the great independent firms like Norton. NOT.