I came across a guest blog post today by
John Yeoman
on Write It Sideways. It was mostly about how to use a conference to get an
agent, but in the process Yeoman made an interesting observation:
Today, only a handful of mainstream publishers will accept an unsolicited ms directly from an author. Agents guard the doors. And they’re overwhelmed by newbies. In fact, a whole new industry is about to emerge – the agent’s agent. First, you’ll have to impress a literary ‘scout’ who knows an agent, who might recommend you to their friend.
The agent's agent. I saw this earlier this week with a firm that called themselves a "publishing accelerator." They will publish your book electronically, get it on Amazon, and sell copies. The goal, however, is to get it noticed by an agent. They were a little spotty on exactly how they would do that and make a profit, but that is their model. I know writers that are more knowledgeable than I am with lots of contacts in the industry and they are pursuing this option. I confess, I am looking at it.
My point is that the traditional route of publishing is becoming increasingly complex with more and more levels.
Is it no wonder that self-publishing and selling direct to the reader and other distribution sources is becoming more and more of a viable option?
A good friend points out that traditional publishing offers editors and readers that eliminate everything from the embarrassing typo to the gaping hole in your plot. It is hard to find an equivalent in self-publishing.
I agree. The cleanest self-published novel I read--free of typos and grammatical errors--had a weak plot and mechanical problems. The most riveting self-published novel I read was rife with typos and errors (the gun went from an automatic to a revolver in the same scene), but the plot was tight and well-paced and the style was crisp and contemporary. I read it in a day, which is not something my distraction-filled life allows for very often.
I've been to agent seminars where they warn against the evils of self-publishing. "It will ruin your career," they say. "It's the mark of an amateur." I have to think, however, that when these folks go home at night they pull the blanket over their heads, less they have visions of Amanda Hocking or David Mamet or J.A. Konrath.
I am not looking at self-publishing right now, but I have not ruled it out. I’m not sure my novel has a home in the current self-published market. I see a lot of folks opting with this do-it-yourself path. Many will sell a few books and get discouraged and quit. There will also be more and more success stories. Anyone with a cell phone and a basic knowledge of social media can become a news station. There are lots of frustrated, good writers. Someone will come up with a model that works and the rest of us can steal it, add to it and make it better and more successful. We have already seen a few.
Do not misunderstand me. I don't think that the various levels of the publishing industry are filled with snooty people who feel it is their job to keep the masses out. I don't think their goal was to build a moat. It just happened that way and no one paid attention. It is the system they know and they resist the change. Sooner or later, though, those at the bottom look for short cuts. Many of those shortcuts lead to disasters and cautionary tales. Some, however, lead to wild success.
Does this scare the traditional publishing industry? They say no, but I think it does. This story is a long way from being finished.
See ya’ later.
WhatIfYouCouldNotFail.com by Tim Sunderland is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
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