‘m interrupting my usually scheduled post because I recently read that author Sue Grafton said of self published authors that we were quote: “…Too lazy to do the hard work” and that it is “…disrespectful to think that this is so easy…” and it got me thinking… see while she may have been the first to really say so publicly, she’s probably not the only one in the publishing industry (or really anywhere who thinks this), which leads to a bigger problem entirely, people have a very wrong perception of how self publishing works.
So… I decided to write her an open letter (which I suspect she will never see but I’m writing nonetheless).
Dear Ms. Grafton,
While I appreciate that everyone is entitled to their own opinions and that self publishing has in the past had a rather colorful history I suggest you do a little more research on what it is we actually have to do in order to get our books out there. For authors like myself who are truly serious about this, and who have in fact done the “hard work” of which you speak in trying to break into the publishing industry only to find it clogged by already big name authors such as yourself, self publishing has provided us with an opportunity to have our work seen and heard by potentially millions of readers as opposed to none. Furthermore there is a great deal of work that goes into self publishing a book, more than you might realize. We as self published authors must wear many hats, we are our own designers, we are the marketing, the advertising, the sales representatives, P.R., editorial, cover designer, interior book designer, web designer, ebook designer, and of course let’s not forget still the author on top of all of that. I confess there are many in this industry who do not put forth the same amount of effort as others, though I feel you should also concede that many on your side of the publishing industry are often lax as well. Some of the biggest names in the traditional publishing world are those that the self publishing side is rather grateful not to have produced. Arguably it is easier to get into traditional publishing because all you have to do is be moderately well known, regardless of talent.
Sincerely,
A.J.Race
To read her full statement check out this article about her statements on the Guardian.
She has since of course back peddled a bit on her stance, but I don’t think that should really excuse it, do you?
Makes you wonder why she said it. Generate controversy? Publicity?
Truthfully I think she believes it. And that’s part of the problem because she isn’t really alone in this opinion. It’s unfair to say the least but this stereotypical belief that self published authors are somehow lazy because we didn’t stick it out and go the traditional route like she did is something we’ve dealt with forever. Her comments unfortunately point to an even greater problem that with all the acceptance self publishing has largely gotten in the last few years we still have a long way to go.
She just did another interview saying she never meant to cause an uproar or basically piss everyone off. She said she didn’t know enough about self publishing or some crap like that.
This woman makes me mad because she just thinks she’s better than indie authors because her books are on the NYT best sellers list. Well, big whoop. Just because she can write doesn’t me she ain’t an idiot.
I would like to say that if she didn’t know enough about self publishing she shouldn’t be making comments like this because they are unfair however a lot of people are guilty of saying things when they don’t really understand them so… I mean I’m sure she didn’t expect to make such an uproar but she did and I think an apology would be a start.
I completely agree.
Frankly with the way books sales have been going this really shouldn’t be about us versus them. It should be about uniting writers across the spectrum to get people back into reading regardless of whether or not it’s an indie novel or a traditionally published novel.
I also agree with this. Anything we can do to get people reading again and not sitting mindlessly in front of the TV is a win. Books are books, it shouldn’t matter if they are from a major publishing house or for .99 cents on amazon.
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Personally, I avoided thinking about the route of self-publishing until very recently. I do think there are some cases out there that give it a bad name, but the truth is I never researched enough to have a solid view either way, I just didn’t think it was for me. But I think more people are paying attention to it thanks to EBook readers. I decided to work towards self-publishing on Kindle because it seems like a good choice. Going a traditional route is hard without having being published already – it’s like going for a job. You’re unlikely to get anything decent unless you have the experience. I’m doing this cautiously, as it could fail, but if I can sell just a few copies…
Self-published authors are hard-working, you’re right. And reading your blog has really, really made me understand more of that. The truth is, I would love to be published traditionally at some point, but the Kindle has opened up, for me, the idea that people out there may just read my work. I’m doing this for love, not money, and I feel you can say that more about self-published authors than people who have a whole team behind them. Some ‘traditional’ authors really need to get their head out of their arses.
Exactly. Truthfully I wouldn’t mind being published traditionally either, but sometimes you gotta get your name out there first and build a platform. And that takes time. But there’s nothing quite as addictive as knowing you have readers, believe me.
I can imagine a lot of these authors would dismiss places like Fictionpress, too. In all honesty, FP has helped me realise there are people out there interested in my stuff and, yeah, I know what you mean about addictive. And building a platform is, I’d argue, more important now than ever before, especially with so much choice out there and quicker access to books. I do think more people are accepting of self-published books now, mainly because of EBooks. One of the writing magazines I sometimes read had a whole issue discussing the pros of EBook self-publishing (mainly Kindle) and had articles with advice for authors on how to get their name out, not just from self-published authors but comments from people in the industry, too. It is becoming more acceptable, and I personally think that may scare people like Sue Grafton.
It is gaining a lot of traction and maybe that is scary to some authors and that’s really sad. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I think it’s imperative that indie authors and traditionally published authors work together. It doesn’t matter how you were published what matters is the readers. At the end of the day we’re all working towards the same goal. I’ll have to check out Fictionpress as I’m not sure I’ve heard of it.