tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3692547621086235345.post8256644937901590470..comments2023-10-30T03:16:11.490-07:00Comments on The Populist Publisher: Fear Restricts Self-PublishingLynn Osterkamphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14710614789241804674noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3692547621086235345.post-1899332693290469382008-05-08T00:21:02.000-07:002008-05-08T00:21:02.000-07:00Lynn,What an excellent article! I've read so m...Lynn,What an excellent article! I've read so many opinions and viewpoints on this subject over the past year, but none have ever come so close to saying it as it is.It just seems traditional publishers behave in a very closed an elitist way. I respect that many of them are at base running a business and they need to survive and prosper in both good and bad economic times, faced with multiple challenges on all new technology fronts, but they really do behave like the guard at the gates of heaven.You could not have said a truer thing, "A good book is a good book regardless of how it’s published."Mick Rooneymick Rooneyhttp://mickrooney.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3692547621086235345.post-80637572798821982832008-05-08T03:06:15.000-07:002008-05-08T03:06:15.000-07:00Once I sat down and analyzed "getting publish...Once I sat down and analyzed "getting published" by a traditional publisher, what it entails in terms of investment of time and money, on a very real <i>business</i> basis, there was no question that continuing to attempt to "get published" or "become a REAL author" is simply a bad business decision.The only advantage is the <i>prestige</i> of "getting published." I finally decided I don't have enough time or money to spend on 90 days' worth of prestige. I want more ROI for my work, even if that means I take a loss, which I do not expect to do.MoJohttp://moriahjovan.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3692547621086235345.post-71198783443507377522008-05-08T08:54:29.000-07:002008-05-08T08:54:29.000-07:00Great post once again.One of my goals with my site...Great post once again.One of my goals with my site and forthcoming book is also to help writers understand that there are options in publishing, this is a good thing, and it's okay to be proud independents just like artists, fashion designers etc.Hopefully, if more and more of us support the idea of using whichever option fits your book/project best, the old influencers will soon fade away and take the fear with them.Glad to hear you're busy, hope it's in a good way. Look forward to hearing from you when the time is right.Cheryl Pickettpublishinganswers.comCheryl Picketthttp://www.publishinganswers.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3692547621086235345.post-38076428979558776652008-05-08T08:59:46.001-07:002008-05-08T08:59:46.001-07:00Everything is changing. Even getting published by ...Everything is changing. Even getting published by a traditional publisher. There are too many books so they don't get the attention they once might. More and more is being asked of the author so that they need to ask the question: What am I actually gaining getting a book deal? I read someone on-line suggest that it was really an act of vanity to seek out a traditional publisher these days, that they somehow provide validation, something you can say to your friends: "Oh, I'm being published by (so and so) – what does that say about me?"The other thing that I suspect has done a lot of damage is the policy of some companies (the Xlibris, Lulu and iUniverses) to print anything that lands in their inbox. So we have had an influx of badly written, poorly edited books with amateurish covers and suddenly there is a new whipping boy: POD = crap. It will take a while for that damage to be undone which is why a lot of people are marketing their books as 'self-published' emphasising that they are only utilising print on demand technology. Still they get tarred with the same brush despite the fact that many now famous authors have, for one reason or another, opted to self-publish.Jim Murdochhttp://jim-murdoch.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3692547621086235345.post-27188190014429231582008-05-09T09:15:15.000-07:002008-05-09T09:15:15.000-07:00Hear, hear! I've been doing everything I can ...Hear, hear! I've been doing everything I can to encourage writers to go indie, and in fact recently posted an entry to my blog entitled, "The Publisher Has No Clothes," in which I posit that there are now far more reasons for most authors *not* to sign with a mainstream publisher than there are *to* sign with one. I've also authored a series of free IndieAuthor how-to Guides, available at my website (click on my name above this post), covering topics like editing, promotion, and publishing for the Kindle.Most aspiring authors seem to be unaware that getting published by a major house no longer means any of the things it once did. For all but bestselling and prestige clients, advances are paltry, promo budgets are nonexistent, there's no guarantee the book will be shelved at brick-and-mortar stores, and on top of everything, if your book doesn't sell well enough to 'break through', you'll be dropped by your publisher and viewed as damaged goods by all the other majors---in terms of getting another book sold, you'll be worse off than if you'd never published at all! Having learned all this, for me the decision to go indie was a no-brainer.April L. Hamiltonhttp://www.aprillhamilton.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3692547621086235345.post-33129878886615663072008-05-11T11:26:36.000-07:002008-05-11T11:26:36.000-07:00I think those P&E criteria are only outdated f...I think those P&E criteria are only outdated for authors who don't want to sell over 5000 copies for some reason. Because most alternative model third party publishers who POD would be lying to suggest, or allow an author to assume, those sorts of sales within a couple of years. The are effectively scams if they are tryong to pass as equivalent to Dorchester or Kensington.Now if you have a niche product, fine, that's another story.veingloryhttp://www.erecsite.com/blog.htmlnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3692547621086235345.post-51109858992988162242008-07-31T18:35:38.000-07:002008-07-31T18:35:38.000-07:00A "real author" is any author who has &q...A "real author" is any author who has "real readers." When the only thing a traditional publisher offers you is the vanity of being able to say that name publisher is putting out your book, with they offer you literally nothing else (crap money, low level marketing) then it's questionable who the real "vanity" chasers are. It's certainly not "prestigious" to go the self-publishing route.But at some point in life, people have to grow up and live their own damn lives, instead of insisting on sucking on the mainstream acceptability teet.Zoe Wintershttp://zoewinters.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.com