1- The enigma and implied rockstardom of having an “OMG PRINTED BOOK PUBLISHED” needs to go away and die. We’re not going to advance as a literary culture otherwise.
2- The problem is, so many people print books and self publish books because they want that rock star “I’m a published writer” mojo. The only reason why they want this mojo is because in the past, getting a book published was a long and complicated process.
3- It still is if you go the traditional route. The interesting part here, is all these self published writers (who want to be known as rockstars) want the same magical glow around their name as someone published by Random House. Yet, they act like they’re fighting the status quo, since everyone can be published now and their book deserves to be published, and big publishers are evil money grubbing monkey man from the ninth dimension
4- Notice the inherit contradictions? Of course. As time goes on, publishing in a printed book will be less and less rockstar. This is a good thing ™. Having a book published should not be a goal, it should not be an end game. Having a successful career as an author is an end game. Publishing quirky books to a cult audience of rabid fans is an end game. Publishing something in a blog, for fun, for the sheer enjoyment of it is an end game.
5- Self published authors: the industry is not out to get you. You’re not getting respect because anyone can do what you did. You have to try much harder to prove your worth these days.
6- Thankfully, it’s a brilliant time to experiment. And a lot of authors are experimenting. Also? Your career isn’t over anymore if you don’t earn out an advance. You have options now. As a writer, this is a great thing.
7- Writers should experiment more. We don’t really have much to lose. Up front costs can pretty much be nil. Sure, there are some great things publishers are awesome at. Experimenting for fun isn’t one of them. This doesn’t reflect negatively on them. Why should they do it when you can?
8- I used to think having a million authors publishing books is a bad thing. OMG! I would think. How can I ever find a good book amongst all this? I realize now this is flawed thinking. Walk into any bookstore. Browse Amazon or B&N’s website. There are already millions upon millions of book published each month, and a ton of backlist. The deluge is already here, and it’s mainstream. Thanks to the internet.
9- Publishing is evolving. This is a great time to be an author. Especially one that approaches these things realistically. More and more professional authors are experimenting, and the stigma is slowly going away. Throw in e-readers reaching a saturation point this year (come on- it’s as single purpose as an iPod Nano. And the same price. It’s time to pick it up, pick it up, pick it up) then the necessity of print vanishes.
10- This means more experimenting, more interesting and fun projects. Can you imagine all the cool stuff? Of course, this hastens also the impermanence of things, of media. There will be more flash in the pans, quickly disappearing. Writing will no longer be seen as a blow against death, a notch up for immortality. Then again- was it ever? Look at any anthology for your favorite genre from the 80′s and the 90′s, and count how many names you recognize. Very very few, I’d imagine.
Great blog, Paul. But tell me, isn’t it still a rush to have that dead trees child of your mind appear in your hand? Good if you made it happen yourself–even better if a third party made it happen.
–Ken St. Andre
Not in a long, long time. For example, I love the werewolves book- but not just as a printed book. As a printed with awesome illustrations, I am more than excited. It looks beautiful.
But most books aren’t like that. Most books are simple affairs. Don’t get me wrong- it’s awesome that I’ve got three books out in print right now. But it’s so abstract to me. It’s something that happens to someone else, out there. It just…I don’t know.
It just doesn’t carry that OMG SQUEE LOOKIT ME. And I never really felt that way. Maybe because in all my audacity, I just assumed I was going to be printed, in a book, my whole life. And when it happened it wasn’t some exciting long term goal, it was just something I expected would happen.
Does that make sense?
Paul, it’s true–the real work, I’m beginning to understand, comes after the book contract, assuming one hopes to be a career writer. That said, it is a great time to a writer. Today there are more resources than ever to not only learn the tools of the trade–from plotting to querying and everything in between–but there’s also plenty of places to connect with other writers and readers and share ideas and, yes, find rules that are sometimes just begging to be broken when inspiration strikes.
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