I don't often do
this, but this essay is directed toward my fellow wordsmiths, those hard working
colleagues of mine who put (metaphorically) pen to paper in order to create
stories with a view to entertaining readers, and whose work is digitally
produced.
When I first got
published in 2007 this medium of "e-books" hadn't been around for very long. It
was a brand new way of producing books for readers to read. And like most brand
new ways of doing something that had been done basically the same way for a
very, very long time, [since the production of the Guttenberg Bible back
in the 1400s], as a medium, as a form of fiction, it was
derided.
Suddenly, they
said, anyone could be an author! And those of us who suddenly were
authors, were subjected to an attitude of exclusion and yes, disdain by print
publishers, professional authors' associations, and by some print authors,
themselves.
We weren't
professional, they said. We were less.
As a reaction to
that, e-published authors griped and complained about being treated as the
red-headed step-children of the writing world.
Do y'all
remember that?
At that time, I
suggested that if we wanted to be treated as professionals in this brave new
world and stand shoulder to shoulder with those writers who were published by
"New York publishers" then we needed to start out that way—that we needed to
behave as professionals.
The times have
changed, but not a whole lot. They have changed financially for the e-published
author, that's for certain. Here is a tiny bit of information from my
publisher's "About Us" page: "Over three dozen Siren-BookStrand
authors consistently receive a 5-figure royalty payment quarterly, with about a
dozen of these authors earning between $100K to $350K
annually."
If one is an
author who hopes to find readers, I would suggest to you that you can consider
yourself a success—and a professional—if you have sufficient readers to
earn that kind of an income. That should be the end of the
debate.
And
yet.
And yet there
are those who continue to cling to the belief that those authors who are
"e-published" are not as good as, and not as professional as, the traditionally
published writer. And there are, unfortunately, some e-published authors who are
more than happy to demonstrate that point.
How do we combat
that sort of intransigent attitude on both sides of the equation?
I don't think
the strategy has changed, really. If I want to be treated as a professional,
then I first have to behave like a professional. I need to adhere to
professional standards. What are these standards? Well, let's pull our old,
retired friend, Common Sense, out of the closet, dust him off, and with
him, think about that little thing for a moment.
If I want to
behave as a professional, then first I have to guard my words. I'm a writer,
remember, and if I want to be known for my words, I want to be known for the
ones in my essays and my novels—and no others.
I have to be
kind and courteous, and treat everyone with respect—especially those people who
are in "my sphere of influence". That would be my publisher, my readers, my
editors, and fellow authors—especially those authors who are published by the
same house as I. When do I do this? Always!
If I want to
have a rant, or a temper tantrum, I need to be careful. I do not want to earn
the reputation of being a "diva", or a "whiner" or worse. Therefore, when I feel
like having a rant, a temper tantrum or just "getting it all off my chest and
out there"…I go into my bathroom, shut the door, and scream.
When do I do this?
Always!
I say nothing, I
write nothing that at any time insults or slaps at the people in my sphere: not
in a blog, or in a Yahoo! loop, not in a book review, or on Face Book, or
Twitter…not anywhere. When do I behave according to this standard?
Always!
I take care that
every time I communicate with my readers that I do so in a kind, compassionate
and grammatically correct way. If I offer a prize, I award it; if I make a
mistake, or if it is perceived that I have made a mistake, I apologize
for it. And I conduct myself at all times as if God Himself was watching every
move I make—because, well, He is, and always!
I take to heart
the saying, "words of edification will never come back to bite me in the
butt."
And I do what I
can to support, promote and cheer on my fellow digitally produced
wordsmiths—just like a real professional would do.
Because I aim to
be one—always.
Love,
Morgan
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