No, your work is being read while someone goes to the
bathroom. Yup, I said it. Every day people read your work at every waking
moment. It is probably frequently read while someone is on the toilet or
bathing. Thank goodness for those folks. Otherwise, many of the lesser known
authors with less than ten published titles would be known by well…no one.
There would be no one to purchase, download, and blog about your books. This is
why there is no need to book shame. I am sure that there is room in the
bathroom library for your title as well.
The funny thing about the publishing industry is always the
authors. The culture could leave your head spinning. The shaming inside the
industry is far worse than the almost nonexistent shaming by those that sit
outside the industry. It becomes a game for authors that are losing sales to
new authors. It is perfectly common for a nonfiction author to comment on a fiction
author (even though they haven’t even read the person’s work). It is common for
a romance author to comment on an erotic author’s work. It is common for a most
authors that don’t even read the body of work in a genre to comment on another
authors work.
The biggest joke includes the authors that are classified
under the urban fiction market. In the past few years, there are authors taking
to blogs, doing blog interviews, and even spending time influencing major
review companies to trash other authors. It is possible the saddest thing
anyone can witness. The worst thing is that every author, blogger, and
publisher spending time trashing another person’s work has really missed the
mark. In the end, it is about a greater picture of literacy not your individual
book sales. Otherwise, you become no different than the authors that write
books to further their brand via a ghost author or the self-proclaimed
hustler/writers that ‘write to eat’. The fact of the matter is that an author
can have a well written book, edited, and proofread. It doesn’t mean that the
book is a decent read. The content of the book could be awful and not engaging
to the reader. It happens all the time. Any book critic will tell you this is
the case. There is a huge difference between a book critic and a book reviewer.
Please learn the difference. I would never tell someone not to get caught up in
syntax. However, I am one of the people in the industry that is concerned about
where these conversations are going.
When did authors begin behaving like rappers? Why are well
established authors starting beefs with new authors that are outselling them in
the publishing market? In the end, it is about the book and reader, right? It
is about the experience the reader walks away with after finishing a book. It
really is best to let the reader decide what they want to read.
Mistakes
It is as if people derive some pleasure from book shaming
authors, readers, and publishers for doing what they love. It is a practice
that doesn’t make any sense. The excuses are just a flimsy as a chiffon dress
in the rain and border hypocrisy. For example, I read several postings via
discussion boards on Facebook about authors that need editors. It was written
by an author that I have on my shelf currently. I could literally take a red
pen to this authors work and find at least fifty four mistakes in the first two
chapters. This means that before you throw stones at another writers work that
you should make sure that you are not living in a cheap, glass house.
Book covers
I have seen it all and it is sickening. Authors whether self-published
or not are talking about the book covers of books. Really? Perhaps you should
make sure that your own book cover actually matches the content you have inside
the book. I have seen some of the worst book covers on authors books that
complain about this issue. My problem with this complaint is that it goes
against everything that readers learned in school. How many times did your
teacher tell you, “Don’t ever judge a book by its cover”? Shame on you for
shaming authors that were probably not in control of this process anyway…Although,
this is humorous it doesn’t advance the field. Why? Those same authors/bloggers
are not including books with really great covers. Therefore, the conversations
go nowhere and we learn nothing…except that people are mean. I learned this in
Kindergarten. Therefore, as a director would say, “Next!”
Self-proclaimed
experts
The publishing industry is full of reviewers, authors,
bloggers, book critics, publishers, and so on that worked for years in this
industry. They have a formula for quality that includes many factors. Every
genre is different in terms of who gets deemed as offering something quality to
the industry. Indie authors, academic publishers, children’s publishers, and
the vanity press market all have their different sets of rules. I love how the
internet has created the self-proclaimed experts that have been in the industry
less than a minute deciding who will make it in the industry. Isn’t that funny?
I always thought it was the readers, marketing professionals, reviewers, and
publishers that made those decisions. Why are these folks shaming others again?
I will end this blog with offering some sage advice for
authors that have been in this industry for less than five years. As someone
that has been in this industry for seven years, I urge authors at all levels to
begin behaving like professionals. I started out doing research for three years
on the publishing industry prior to initiating the publishing process. During
that time, I researched the top twenty five publishing companies for my genre(s).
My decision for my writing career has to do with me being knowledgeable about
the industry and it dates back fifteen years. I knew that I would eventually
want to publish other authors. Therefore, I am both traditionally and self-published.
I found out that most people in the industry typically do both. You will find
it difficult to find an author in the industry that doesn’t write under at
least two pen names. I spent seven years writing prior to doing my three years
of research. I wanted to ensure that had a certain number of titles. During my
research, I read about authors being under pressure to produce work in a short
amount of time. I had my work professionally edited and protected. I am now on
my thirteenth book in seven years. I currently have eleven manuscripts on my
desk of work that are ready to go. I also have three authors that I will
publish in the next two years. It is so important to learn about this industry.
I have been in it for a while now and I learn something different every day. I
have great people in my network and a good circle of freelance professionals
that can do everything. Do you know how to read your book contracts? Do you
have a publicist? What is your marketing plan? How do you connect with your
readers? Can you readily identify fans of your work? Are your readers waiting
for your next book release? If you answered no to any of the previous
questions, it is important that you spend time working on these things. I
encourage authors to spend time learning the industry and less time shaming
authors, readers, and publishers. It doesn’t make you a great author to do this
type of thing. You look pathetic and thirsty at best. Please concentrate on
creating really good books for readers. In the end, we should all be
celebrating readers enjoying books period. This is why book shaming is a joke…right?
Sage Advice for the Indie Children’s Author by Tiffany A.
Flowers
The Not So Common Sense Guide for Authors by O. Keeys
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