Sometimes great ideas and trends start with a wave so big, they are hard to
ignore. For others they begin almost unnoticed and go by for years, virtually
undetected until suddenly they are not only part of our lives, but part of our
culture. Back in 1999 I saw an article, a tiny piece in the New York Times about
a company called Fat Brain out of Campbell, California. The article talked about
their digital publishing, at the time referred to as Print-on-Demand, printing
books as they are needed. I was just noodling with the idea of starting my own
company back then, an idea which didn't fully come into being until 2000. But
the article intrigued me. If books could be printed one at a time, instead of in
lots of several thousand, what could this do for publishing?
At some point, Fat Brain was folded into iUniverse.com and so, the revolution
was born. It was still a whisper at the time, not many were really talking about
it but I remember watching with rabid anticipation. A publishing company at that
level, doing for authors what they in years past had to do on their own, could
really change the industry. And change it did. Problem was, it wasn't always
great. Sadly, much of what was being published (at least in the very early days)
was not really reader-worthy. Also, at the time, it seemed that the stigma was
almost a death sentence to most of these books. There were a few, however, who
understood the game and knew how to navigate the minefield of self-publishing.
Those authors we now revere and celebrate, as it should be.
I remember once someone compared self-publishing to indie films; at the time
I was at a trade show surrounded by legions of New York editors, one or two of
whom snickered at that comment. Self-publishing was not to be respected, it was
to be mocked. It was, as most in publishing felt, a last-ditch effort to see
your work in print. Hence the term "vanity publishing" was born. But anyone who
has actually worked it, meaning gotten a good book out, taking the time to find
the exact right cover and then putting their heart and soul into marketing knows
that there's nothing vain about this process.
Over the years, as publishing evolved, so did the self-publishing market.
Authors got better, took the time to educate themselves, books became more
sophisticated and success stories started emerging. For those of us who have
been in the self-publishing trenches for years, these success stories are not a
new thing; neither are the stories of authors, once turned down by traditional
publishing, who gain some really exceptional success when they take the
self-publishing route. Such was the case back in 2005 when we had the pleasure
of working with a book called Cookin' for Love by Sharon Boorstin. Sharon,
previously published by a traditional house, was turned down for Cookin' because
the lead characters were too old (ah-hem, they were only fifty). So, Sharon went
to iUniverse where the then head of this publishing house, Susan Driscoll, who
came from traditional publishing, was savvy enough to see what a talent Sharon
was and put some muscle behind this book. Cookin' did great things for Sharon,
even grabbing a feature story in MORE Magazine which was unheard of then. A
self-published book in a national magazine? Perish the thought.
Success,
in various forms, has always been a part of this industry but the reality was
that there was so much to slough through, it was often hard to tell the good
from the bad. I spoke with Ms. Driscoll on many occasions and she often said,
"Only 1% of what's published with us is really worth a review or a second look."
Certainly, that's what happens when you put a lot of books through a channel.
Not all of it is vetted, not all of it is readable. And I don't think that
because self-publishing is suddenly "acceptable" that that statistic has
changed; in fact, I'm fairly certain that it's higher, thanks to the flood of
eBooks that are hitting the market as well as the many national media stories
touting the success of a handful of authors making millions and making it seem
like it's the norm, rather than the exception.
More recently we have Hugh Howey, who is breaking through all barriers. His
agent, Kristin Nelson, was at Digital Book World recently and said, "This was a
whole new deal." On his own, Howey was making $50,000 a month on his books.
Clearly this wasn't a case where a publisher was going to come in and do
something this guy wasn't already doing.
Still, the traditional publishing industry likes to say how they are
"surprised" when good books come out of this market. I'd like to say that I'm
surprised it's taken them this long to notice. Case in point, a few years back I
attended a publishing round-up in New York. It was an interview with the head of
a large publishing house. I asked this person if their team paid any attention
to the then bourgeoning eBook market and watched any of the lists. The response
was, "No, I mean why would we?" So, I say again, no one who has actually spent
time in this industry is surprised that good titles emerge here. What's
surprising to us is that it took the traditional publishers so long to notice.
Now there's a lot of talk of the "hybrid" author, the writer who has a
traditional publisher but also self-publishes mostly because of speed to market
and creative control.
What has all of this taught us? Well, a lesson most of us (hopefully) learned
when we were young: don't judge. Though there again, many of us do. I'm guilty
of this as well. If I see a self-published book with a shoddy cover, I probably
won't bother to open it. And though a lot of people like to tout the secrets of
success in self-publishing there really are no secrets and in the end, it comes
down to just two things:
Put out a good product, then do a lot of pretty obvious stuff to promote. Oh,
and as much as we think your three-year-old is darling his or her finger
painting should not be on your book cover. While the revolution is here and it's
transforming publishing, the truth is the stakes are even higher. Yes, Hugh
Howey is making a fortune publishing his books, but he did all the right stuff.
He published great books that had great covers and he published a lot of
content, because readers are hungry and if you don't feed them, someone else
will.
The revolution of self-publishing is like any hard-fought battle. Any movie
maker who once languished in obscurity and is now one of the most known voices
in cinema didn't just arrive at the Oscar's ready to accept his award. He worked
at it day after day after day. Taking the gigs or assignments he perhaps never
thought he would and sucking up to people he never thought he'd have to suck up
to. Which brings me to my next point. If you're going to be part of this amazing
revolution remember that letting your ego drive your decisions can be the
biggest and most deadliest thing you'll ever do. We once had an author who hated
a reviewer's perspective on his book and pitched a fit demanding that we contact
the reviewer and insist she rewrite the review. Needless to say, we didn't and
it wasn't the first time we fired a client.
Being a part of a revolution is an amazing experience, and my hat off to
everyone who's been in the trenches, as we have, who over the years helped mold
and shape this amazing industry. To those who fought tirelessly against the
stigma and to the people who helped teach the authors right from wrong when it
comes to publishing a book. New York has caught on, we knew that eventually
they'd see that those of us in the indie world aren't all that bad. Yes, there
are still some crazies out there. Did I ever mention the time I got a call from
someone who said aliens landed in his back yard and wanted him to tell their
story? (Fox Mulder, is that you?) But most of the indie folks are just out there
to tell a story, their story, someone else's story. They're trying to engage,
inspire and enlighten and we love them for that, and now that New York is
dipping their toe into this arena we see all the publishers opening their doors
to self-publishing. Some because they genuinely believe in the revolution and
others because they know there's money to be made. I can't fault them for that.
Just remember, behind every book is an author with his or her own hopes and
dreams.
In the end, it's really just about options. In the future, I see a publishing
world much different than the one we see today. One where the author is lauded
for going it alone, where going with the big guns isn't the general goal, though
it's always an option. Going it alone, like signing with that private record
label, not held by one of the big guys, is the creative dream of any artist. I
also see a world where more and more readers are taking a stand and supporting
the titles they love. They're reviewing more books and realizing that their
voices can make a difference. Love a book, tell the world, thought the book
could be better? That's okay, too. Bottom line is in the end, while some are
doing this for fame and fortune, most of us are in this to entertain and
educate. We want a happy reader, that's all, and if there are legions of happy
readers even better.
Welcome to the revolution. If you're just showing up to the battle we welcome
you, if you've been here for a while we're grateful that you're still here and
for those of you still uncertain, still thinking that you'll wait it out and see
if you can get a big name interested I wish you all the best. Just remember,
while patience is a virtue there's nothing in the world like seeing your work in
print, your words on a page bound and ready to find readers. And ask yourself:
are you waiting because you really want a big name behind your book? Or are you
waiting because you're not sure your book is good enough? There's only one way
to find out.
Reprinted from "The Book Marketing Expert newsletter," a free ezine offering
book promotion and publicity tips and techniques. http://www.amarketingexpert.com
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