The End of Publishing as we Know it?

Most everyone knows that the publishing industry is changing--even struggling. Certainly this is known by everyone who writes or publishes.

There are many signs.

Independent and corporate bookstores are closing. Publishers are consolidating. Amazon is growing. ebooks and self-publishing are quickly taking over the market.

Everywhere you see the publishing industry (publishers, editors and agents) condemning the indie market, railing against the "unchecked" movement, decrying a "gateless" freedom where anyone wanting to can now publish a book. Such prattling is a sure sign of fear on their part as cash flow continues to dwindle.

The tendency certainly begs the question: "Is this good or bad?"

That depends.

On the one hand publishers have always served as "gatekeepers," regulating the quality of grammar and "worthiness" of what the public reads. In so doing they have stifled voices and thought, but kept the "standard." They have offered a sort of "badgeing" or approval service to the public. But they have also taken the lion's share of the profits and also the brunt of the risk. The bulk of authors either get rejected or, if published, see very little of the profits (royalties rarely pay more than 12%).

On the other hand, when there are no gatekeepers, anyone can have a voice. Today people are less trusting of corporate authority than in the past. They don't want authority figures telling them what they can and cannot do. They are reticent of accepting fed information. Fewer and fewer people trust the media industry and many feel it is biased. Citizen journalism, by way of the web, is on the rise as it has been since the 90s. Most people trust what their friends say before they trust the media.

This also reflects on the publishing industry. People are now saying "you can't decide for me what is worthy of reading," and they take their friend's advice over what marketing campaigns push at them. In fact, publishers are trending toward throwing their hands up when it comes to marketing--offering less and less to new authors. Often what efforts they do make do little to boost their bottom line.

You heard it said that you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink. The same is true for readers: You can lead a person to a book, but you can't make them read it. No amount of marketing is going to get people to read. Word of mouth is the most effective means of advertising.

So, on the one hand you have publishers touting their "filtering" philosophy, and, on the other, you've got a public saying we don't need you.

The industry hates the indies.

At first they said it wouldn't fly and now mock it, hoping it will go away. But it won't. It grows. And most indie books aren't nearly as bad as they say they are. Some are, but many are quite good.

Authors are wising up, too. They know they don't need to face endless rejection, that they can earn more in royalties, and that they can get books to market when they want (not wait years for the corporate wheels to turn).

Furthermore, it would be wise for the publishing industry to take the initiative to reinvent themselves to embrace the movement rather than buck it. But they won't, because, even though the trend may see their demise, they are greedy. Before you know it, it will be too late.

Publishing is no longer for the elite few, but for everyone with a voice.

http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/feb/28/waterstones-james-daunt-interview-books-bookshops-ebooks

SHARKNADO The Misery State of Publishing

Really? No, really? They are NOT kidding. Seriously?! *shakes head* And publishers/agents have a hard time believing in "The Amish vs. The Zombies." There is hope for any manuscript, I'm sure.

On Finding a Literary Agent and Getting Published

You have a killer manuscript written. It’s fresh, it’s edgy, and it’s never been done before. And it’s sure to sell well—IF it ever hits the shelves—but finding an agent to represent the work isn’t panning out. In fact, the rejection letters just seem to keep pouring in. You’re so frustrated you’re going bald from pulling out your hair.

So in lies the problem. Agents don’t want to mess with anything so fresh and edgy and original. They want an easy sell. In fact, they might be lazy. Hours of footwork trying convince a publisher to take a chance on such a work just isn’t (or might not be) worth their effort.

They are afraid, too. Afraid of harming their reputation, afraid of wasting time, and afraid of failure. Why take the chance when they have easy, sure-fire sells? After all, making money at what they do (just like every other business) is a big part of why they do it.

Madeleine Le’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time was just such a book—rejected twenty-six of times. Finally accepted, it went on to sell millions of copies and garner many awards including a Newberry. 

More recently, Wm. Paul Young couldn’t find a publisher for his debut novel either. It was rejected over and over again—also twenty-six times—and he finally set up his own ‘publishing company’ on the Internet where sales took off. Only then did a publisher take notice and seek distribution rights. The Shack is now an all-time best seller.

You might ask: “What do publishers or agents know?” Well, they know every book is a gamble. Most do not sell past their original printing, but the few that do pay for the flops. It’s all about risk-management. Who can blame them, really? 

Someone took a risk on the shoddy Twilight series and look how they did? That was fresh, and edgy and hadn’t been done before. Why take a risk there? How did it happen? We’re talking “crap shoot” and that’s all there is to it. Someone took a chance.

Okay, so what do you do? You keep trying, that’s what you. As frustrating as that is, you do your own footwork. You keep approaching agents and now publishers (those that take unagented proposals) on your own. (Of course you could give up and self-publish. That is, after all, now a legit option.)

It takes time and footwork, which is hard to deal with when you want to get your book ‘out there.’ But someone has to do it; if not an agent, then you. You aren’t lazy are you? If you don’t believe in yourself who will? Is it worth the effort? 

If it is, just suck it up and do it!

Authors to Take Another Hit

"Authors practice one of the few professions directly protected in the Constitution, which instructs Congress 'to promote the progress of Science and the useful Arts by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries.'"

In an article appearing in the New York Times we learn that there are many blows hitting the publishing industry and authors are taking the brunt of the hit. It's not just e-books and a glut of bad work in the self-publishing market, nor only the demise of the brick-n-mortar book store in favor of an online Amazon conglomerate. 

No, now the Supreme Court is allowing a "pirate" market to undercut book profits and cut authors off from deserved royalties. To learn more read the article by clicking the link below.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/08/opinion/the-slow-death-of-the-american-author.html?_r=0