Ebooks and Big Publishing Houses: A Blip on the Book Publishing Radar
by Mac Glenn (Guest Post)
The Self-Published Ebook Explosion was unthinkable just a few years ago. In 2007 when the first Kindle hit the market readers were unsure about paying $399 for something they could already read on their computers. The device, the first Kindle, was a blip on most writer’s radar. We were busy with other things, writing mainly. In 2009 we were still asking questions about the impact these devices would have on the industry. Soon after Amazon introduced Kindle direct and the Nook lost its ground and Borders closed its doors. This all happened by the end of 2011. All of these events flew across our screens so quickly that the first reports of millionaires made through direct publishing shocked everyone.
Writers rushed to get their work on this new platform. Then we started hearing reports of Self-Published Ebooks making the bestsellers list, and the masses rushed onto the platform. By the end of 2013 about 25 out of the top-selling ebooks were author published. Millions of self published titles are now being listing on Amazon.
Where does this leave us? This all happened so quickly, and is still in the process of happening that no one can say with certainty what the state of the publishing industry is. We know that Amazon is doing really well. We know that some writers are doing well by publishing with Amazon, and we know that the big six are having trouble and complaining. In April of 2013 James Patterson ran the now notorious ad, a call for a bail out of bookstores and book publishers. He pointed out that ebooks are coming on faster than people thought they would, and that governments in Europe protect their bookstores and book publishers. He made some good points, even though the way he did it was lampooned by many. It does show that people were caught off guard in the explosion of self-publishing.
We are so used to saying in 10 years in 20 years this will happen or that will happen. “They will cure cancer in 50 years.” “In 20 years people will be able to make phone calls thought their televisions.” “In 5 years people will read books on…” The time for saying “in 20 years” is over for publishing. This is the apocalypse the evolution, the giant leap forward. It’s here. We feel disjointed. We are disjointed. We watched a 1000 years of publishing change in about 5 years. We went from everyone reading physical books to a large percentage of people reading books in electronic format in 5 years. The child who was born at the beginning of this revolution is may still not be in kindergarten. That’s quick. That’s fast for any advancement. This didn’t only happen to books. Magazine and newspapers shifted about that quickly too. The Kindle for books, the Ipad for everything else.
So, lets look at February of 2014, where are we? You can buy a book at the click of a button. You can publish a book at the click of a button, but it still takes talent and tears to write a great manuscript. We don’t know how this will all shake out, but there are some truths that we hope will remain.
Writing a book is difficult work. We know that you have to devote yourself to it. Some of the gatekeepers have been knocked down, and others have taken flight. They are the blip on our green screens. The yes/no men who used to tell authors they were worth something are slowly fading. We know this. Now the market tells authors if the are worth something. That’s good right? We don’t want some old stuffy person taking the advice of his intern telling us what book to read, right? We want books that are tested and tried. Other readers telling us how great the work is. That’s the way to decide if you want to read.
The explosion of ebooks is an historic event. We as writers are seeing the evolution of the next generation in publishing. If you have a manuscript that hasn’t been pick up by a publishing house, publish it. Publish it right now. Getting your work out there means something different today than it meant 5 years ago. Now it means, maybe, maybe, you can be successful as early as tomorrow, if you try. Put your work on everyone’s radar, and see what happens.
