Resources for Indie Novelists: The Future is in The News
As an indie novelists, and book coach and editor, I’m always trawling the ‘net for news on anything that affects authors and anything that can hint at which way the wind is blowing.
The future is in the news…
Here are a few things I’ve found recently that can help us understand how the industry is changing, and hints at ways we indie novelists can be ready for the coming changes.
- Martyn Daniels at Brave New World shares that the publishing industry’s ‘napster’ moment is now.
“The Book Business is now experiencing its ‘Napster’ moment. It is not about file sharing and digital distribution, but about an industry facing significant digital disruption. It is a wake up call and although books face similar issues to other media industries, ‘books are different.’ ” Read the rest here. - A recent article in Publishing Perspectives asks : Does 2011 herald the beginning of an E-book revolution in Europe?
“Distribution issues and high prices slowed e-book adoption rates in Europe, but new platforms and product launches across the Continent are spurring sales.” Read the rest here.
What does this mean? In my opinion, it means that we as indie novelists and indie nonfiction authors are well positioned to get our books out there in the digital form.
I’m in action on this. I just got my cover art back for my nonfiction titles. What steps are you taking today to be ready for digital publication of your work?
Hi Beth,
My first step is to recognize that it will be necessary for me to publish through ebooks too. But first I need to finish that rewrite.
Hi Robin, We’ll be looking forward to your ebook! Good luck finishing that rewrite.
Beth
Thanks for the inclusion in your piece.
I believe that it is really a new dawn of writing and expression and we are at the point of the democratition of writing. Some will still refer to the indie writers as the slush pile and the literary quality will vary as with the published pile. The point is the glass is half full and the opportunities huge.
The issues now are not so much about manufacturing and distribution, or even marketing but more about reward and recognition. The publishing machine will still be the place of the limelight and big money. Just as in music the indies can’t easily break through that glass ceiling today but that is today. Amazon, Google and a host of new players offer the distribution, virtual shelf but the author now has to do more themselves to market and promote the work. They have to adopt the skills of an indie publisher.
Authors need to co-operate and not compete
Martyn, I agree that we need to co-operate and not compete, though I think healthy competition is also a spur to action. We can all help each other. Rising water lifts all boats! Thanks for chiming in and for the work you do!