For the Writer's Business Arsenal

Just wanted to forward a link to another great post by James Scott Bell.

As all writers know, the landscape is in great flux for writers right now.  The rise of digital books, indie publishing, and the continuing transformation and expansion of how traditional publishers do business.  It's a lot to keep on top of.

James Scott Bell is a great writer and always strives to pay it forward with helpful posts on the industry such as this one.  You can read this latest Kill Zone post here:

http://killzoneauthors.blogspot.com/2013/03/field-report-from-e-book-revolution-3_10.html

More on Publishing Industry's Growing Pains

Unless you've been shipwrecked on some far distant island without access to radio, books, or internet, you're well aware of the revolution occurring in the publishing industry. 

As authors, we are hard at it daily not only trying to write and edit our books (along with the other many aspects of preparing a book for publication) but we also have to stay abreast of industry news.  And there is a LOT of industry news to stay on top of.

For that reason, I'm pasting some links below.

Scott Turow, President of The Authors Guild, posted an article decrying the fact that the Department of Justice may be taking a look at whether Apple and the Big 6 (well 5 of the 6) Publishers violated anti-trust laws to fix prices of books (known as the Agency Model).

His post is here:

http://blog.authorsguild.org/2012/03/09/letter-from-scott-turow-grim-news/

Next, I am posting a link to a response article by Joe Konrath and Barry Eisler, which you can find here:

http://jakonrath.blogspot.com/2012/03/barry-joe-scott-turow.html

Be warned, Konrath and Eisler at times use some colorful language, but when it comes to laying it all on the line, they are usually excellent sources of information on publishing, particularly when it come to championing innovation in an industry that has usually not favored innovation or authors.

Last but not least, I'd like to provide you with a third and final post by James Scott Bell which ends up the whole discussion on an encouraging note.  You can find that here:

http://killzoneauthors.blogspot.com/2012/03/jockeying-for-position-in-muddy.html

I'm not going to rehash the substance of these articles here.  That is for each reader to delve into for themselves.  I will simply make a few observations:

-  While I am not familiar with The Authors Guild, by its very name I would expect that it has the best interests of authors at heart, yet the post in question at The Authors Guild reads as more pro-publisher establishment, not pro-author.

-  I am completely mystified that anyone would stand by this statement in the present age:  "bookstores are critical to modern bookselling."  Huh?  I'm not against bookstores--I don't know anyone who doesn't like to go browse a bookstore.  But facts speak louder--I haven't purchased a book in a bookstore in a long time.  Why?  $$$$.  Lousy economy.  No raises.  Very little discretionary income to use on books.  So I go to Amazon, where they actually offer books at affordable prices.  Likewise, Amazon offers a vastly greater selection than even the largest brick and mortar bookstore.

-  Aside from any of the issues and arguments addressed in these articles, my biggest gripe about the old publishing establishment was that it prevented books that are different from being published.  Make no mistake--I absolutely DO understand why.  Any business is going to market those products it knows it can sell the most of.  In their shoes, I would do the same thing.  But with the digital book and indie publishing revolution, people who write books that are not part of the same beaten path have more opportunities to get their work out there.  Do these indie authors run the risk of modest or even very poor sales?  Of course they do.  But at least they are given the opportunity to try.  That alone is worth the digital revolution.

I'm very sorry that innovation causes suffering.  Advances in technology have a long history of displacing employees.  And the digital revolution has forced the down-sizing of some publishing companies and bookstores (some going under) and they probably have more painful changes yet to come, but they won't disappear.  But though loss of jobs is painful, those displaced typically find alternate ways to make a living and perhaps even become innovators themselves in other fields.

But despite what The Authors Guild suggests is a black day for authors with a challenge to the agency model, I say it's nice to have the odds a little more in favor of authors and consumers.

Interesting how different authors react differently to the changes.  Just because I feel a certain way about the direction of publishing doesn't mean someone else should feel the same way.  We each have to make our own decisions about our writing careers.  In fact, traditional publishing and indie publishing are not mutually exclusive terms.  Authors can and do both.

I'm just thankful for the industry players who keep the issues out in front of us so we can reach our own conclusions and respond accordingly.

The Madness of The DIY Writer

There has never been a more exciting time to be a fiction writer.  And while writers from different eras may disagree with me, I think this is also the most headache-inducing time for writers.

Assuming you've made the first choice, ie. whether you write as a hobby or write for the ultimate goal of publication, then you must decide if you desire to be traditionally published or publish your own work (I prefer to use the term indie publish, as too many people are still stuck on old "self publishing" stigmas).  There's no right or wrong answer, it's your choice as an author.

While I am not at all opposed to traditional publishing, I lean more and more every day toward the indie route (my reasoning is that there isn't a whole lot of difference between the amount of work an author has to do whether traditionally or self-published, so if I'm going to put in the work, I might as well be my own gatekeeper).

But let's talk about that work business.  And I do mean WORK.  Here's just a sample of what you can expect to have to pour into the process:

-  Research the novel.  Yes, even contemporaries require some research.  And research could take months or years and is a blog post all on its own.)
-  Write the novel
-  Re-write the novel (you may have to do this one to even a dozen times depending on your writing style and your skills and abilities)
-  Hire an editor to go over your book (you don't want to sling sloppy garbage up for sale--it will haunt you for a long time to come).
-  Cover design
-  E-book conversion (assuming you are not just doing print)
-  Website design
- Media outlets
- Marketing (the big evil "M" word)
- And oh yeah--write MORE books and start this process over again.

Can you see why it's enough to give you a headache?  And there's one added component I didn't mention above.  The majority of writers have to do all this IN ADDITION TO their day job.

So for the writer who desires to indie publish, the main issues are how to manage your time and resources.  Obviously the ideal is to hire someone to do all the extraneous stuff so that you can concentrate on your writing.  But ideal is often NOT reality.

I'm a secretary by day. Secretaries make survival money and that's it.  You know--cover the rent, car payment, electric, groceries sort of money.  They do not earn thousands of extra dollars to hire graphic artists, web designers, publicists, and so on.

Why do I tell you this?  Because my goal these last four years at Arizona Inspiration has been to share the writer's journey from one traveller's perspective. I tell you this because there are a lot of people who sit back and think "I'd like to write a book someday."  But those who do actively pursue that goal know there's a lot of work, a lot of sacrifice, and a lot of cost to chasing the dream.  People who haven't begun their writing journey have a lot of misconceptions--and idealized notions--about the writers life. It is not glamorous, we don't turn in a book, get it published, and sit back and rake in our millions.

Instead, each writer represents one guppy in an ocean with a bazillion fish, swimming toward publication, recognition, and hopefully, a modest extra income.

In order to accomplish that, you've got to want it.  And want it bad.

I'm at the point in my writing journey where I have to make some decisions.  I have to look at my time and my money and decide which services I will hire, and which I will provide for myself.  On the next post, I'll talk more about my decision on that journey, and the side road it is causing me to travel.

The Konrath/Eisler Discussion

Unless you've been vacationing on a remote island with no communications links of any sort, you know the digital publishing age keeps turning the publishing world on its ear.  As an offshoot of digital publishing, authors who want to indie publish their work have more opportunities than ever.

Below is a conversation between indie-publisher JA Konrath and Barry Eisler, who made a splash this month when he turned down a $500K offer to go the indie-publishing route.  Here's the link:

http://jakonrath.blogspot.com/2011/03/ebooks-and-self-publishing-dialog.html

If you're the least bit interested in publishing your stories, this article is a must read.  Two warnings.  First, this is a LONG post--you'll need probably a good hour and a half to set aside and digest all it contains, but is well worth the time investment.  Also, fair warning, there are a couple occurrences of swear words but just a few.

Much food for thought here, no matter your opinion of the current market.