Let me start by saying that as a small publisher and
long time writer, I believe as a whole they are. Sure, there are good
experienced published authors whose work is edited and publish-ready and
there's the occasional unpublished prodigy author who's honed their skill to
perfection and are as good as most published authors. To them I say welcome to
the world of publishing, but let's be real. Isn't indie publishing an opening
for those not near or quite good enough, for those not willing to learn their
adopted trade, for those who, however long they write, would never have been
good enough, and for those out to scam a quick buck?
Having been published gives an indie, and rightfully
so, a measure of accomplishment. Somewhere, sometime, somebody deemed this
author's work good enough to do what publishers do, invest in him or her—invest
in cover art, editing, proofing, even an ISBN number. And it carries over into
their self-published work, though I have seen some who skipped or self-edited
and it showed. But let's say for the sake of argument that the published author
is the best, the top banana, the top of the tier of self-publishing and the
prodigy is next. That leaves a ton books written by inexperienced or untalented
authors out there. I have read parts of some of them. (these are the kind of books you don't finish) I liken the experience to someone
scratching his or her fingernails on a blackboard. Yuck!
However, that's nothing compared to the scammers. They
mostly deal in smut because it doesn't have to be a story. It only needs to be
as long as a scene. And in their case it's as short as four pages, poorly
written, poorly punctuated, lacking proper grammar and full of headhops. Some
of them even steal free erotica from the internet and band it into short
anthologies. Many of them write or steal taboo subjects with titles like Daddy
does it to me while others blatantly use words like cock, pussy, cunt and fuck
in their titles. Yes they sometimes get poor reviews, but they write their own
reviews to confuse the issue. Some get weeded out by the host seller, but the stories are so short
they can write a new story and publish it every day or two.
Yet the demand for this smut seems as unending as the
supply and there's enough decent material around to keep the aficionados coming
back for more, even though they occasionally write a review complaining about
how they were ripped off.
So am I right? Are readers shaking their heads and cutting
self-publishers slack, they wouldn't with publisher's books?
Let me know what you think.
I won't bore you with excerpts of my latest books.
Just covers.
WIP
22 comments:
A very interesting take on the self-published. More published authors--self- and otherwise--should take note.
Dee Brice
As with anything, I suppose there will always be gradations of expertise that will show up on every forum. I've certainly run across traditionally published and small press e-published books that I've said "How the heck did that ever get into print?"
But there's going to be a lot more of it in self-publishing because anyone--talented, untalented, scamm artist--can do it now for very little cost. With no checks and balances (like an editor), the reader is going to have to become a little more savvy in their selection process to avoid especially the scammers you mentioned.
Readers who get burned enough might revert to print only books or only books from e-publishers, penalizing those who have talent but who desire the control that self-publishing gives them over traditional venues.
Thought-provoking post, Dee. :)
As said, an interesting and thoughtful look at the self-publishing game, and an honest take on why so many traditional publishers still refuse to acknowledge it as any kind of worthwhile credit on an author resume.
I've read a few self-pubbed books that were ok, but would have benefited greatly by editing and insight. I rarely pay attention now to anything self-pubbed.
Another interesting insight, Dee.
Always,
Denyse
I've seen my share of really good self-pubbed works right there with the crap. I've also seen crap jobs by professional publishers. Personally I'll give any author a chance, but I also tell it like it is and if you're work isn't good then I'll let you know.
As for your question no I don't think readers are giving them slack many won't even read self-pubbed books due to all the things you mentioned.
As for the scammer yes there are many out there but they'll do anything for a quick buck. Usually authors and reviewers/book bloggers are quick on the uptake and let everyone know.
Hi Dee, (Snicker) It's like saying hi to myself. Thanks for reading and commenting
Ciao, You know who
Hi Jenna, Yes there's no black and whites only shades of grey. Just because a book comes from an publisher doesn't mean it's error free and maybe it hasn't even been edited. Some publishers take editing very lightly. I've read one or two that were chuck full of errors. Submission, published by New Concepts comes to mind.
Thanks for reading and commenting.
Dee
Hi Denyse, Glad you liked my Blog. The publishing industry has yet to sort itself out. It'll be interesting to see what it looks like when it does.
Ciao, Dee
Dee,
There’s crap out there, no doubt about it. But readers will let you know if they do or do not like your book. If a reader is predisposed to giving their opinion, they will. So, I don’t think they’re cutting us any slack because we self-pub.
Consumers appreciate a decent product, but too frequently aren't willing to pay for it. Cheap consumers often get what they pay for, and they usually know it and give it a pass, which is why you have such a proliferation of subpar crap on the market. If there was no market for it you wouldn't see it.
Good post, Dee.
Hi, Sandy Jo, Thoughtful comments.
Thank you
Hi Maggie, Well at least everybody agrees there is crap out there.
Thanks for your thoughts.
Dee
Hey Patricia, Seems like I just talked with you. Everybody agrees there's crap out there. Nobody wants to do anything about it, but I do. Take Amazon, where so much of it is. One of the smut buyers major complaints is shortness. Apparently even too short for a decent sex scene. Honest to God you can put a hundred word book up and who's going to stop you. Nobody, but Amazon or any host seller could. They have minimum lengths for reviews, why not stories. Make 2500 words the minimum for 99cent stories and 6000 words the minimum for $2.99. Believe me that would clear at least a few thousand junk books from the rolls.
Thanks for reading and commenting.
I read constantly both self published and publishing houses and I've gotten crap from both as well as some wonderfully edited, wonderfully written books from both. I cut no-one slack. Though I do not insut anyone I tell them what I liked and what I thought was wrong and I've only ever had one author blast me for my opinion and ironically enough it wasn't a self published author who did it. I must say that I think that it's very insulting to call people "cheap consumers" just because they are thrifty with their budget. In this economy everyone has to really watch their budget. I persoanlly have a problem with spending more than $5.00 for a book that lasts me only an hour or so. I hate seeing anyone bash people who are trying to make their dream come true just because they are self publishing. The sammers on the other hand should be shut down!
Pati
An interesting post. Please don't tar all indie authors with the same brush. There are some out there that go through getting their work edited and making it look as perfect as they can before publishing. Then there are others that crank it out, type "The End" then slap it up for sale because they have to get the next great 1500 word piece done.
Lately there are a lot of cringe worthy work out there both indie and trad published. If you're going to try a new author its a risk. What makes me sad with some of the trad publishers is as an author writes more for them they edit less of the book before sending it out. It shows. I personally don't think a book should be published without having a good editor go over it. That doesn't mean your best friend, unless they happen to be an English teacher and don't mind hurting your feelings.
As for readers giving indies a free pass...look at some of the reviews of the book, see what they say. A lot of reviewers crucify indies that put out a poor book. If a book has been out more than a month or so and doesn't have any reviews, people are trying to be nice and not say something bad about it. Don't buy it. That's my opinion.
I agree to a point. However, one of the best writers I ever knew was a Yale-educated minister who wrote several books, but couldn't sell a one. He finally Indie pubbed shortly before his death. A shame he didn't become well-known before it was too late.
Great post as usual Dee.
Awesome covers too.
Hello Pati, Of course there are conscientious indie author who take pride their work, including some who even have their pubs edited and there are a couple pubs I know of who do little of no editing. But if I were to venture they are both in the minority.
Thanks for your thoughts
Hello A M, Thanks for commenting. I know there are serious indie authors out there, Read my response above. As for reviews that's a whole new problem, at least on Amazon and B&N where anyone can review. If you see a recently published book, say two months, with a dozen or even five mostly five star reviews, there's a problem. Reviews don't naturally come that fast to a book, especially an er or erotic book, unless it's a mega seller.
And having no reviews is not bad. I have two books, Angel Love and April Showers which I pubbed in 2009. Both have sold well north of a thousand copies, but until recently, never received a review. Finally a couple months ago, April Showers got a review. Yet the books kept selling w/o reviews.
Hi D'Ann, Long time. That is too bad about your friend. Yes that's where indie pubbing is good. Everybody gets to pub their baby. If it's bad it'll sink into oblivion. If it's good, who knows it might sell a zillion. Unfortunately it's an opening for the scammers too.
Hi Daryl, Glad you liked the post and covers.
Thanks for reading and comnenting.
Dee
Dee, I guess I'm not your typical reader because I'm an author, too. But I can tell you that if a book is shot through with grammatical errors and typos, I'm too annoyed to finish it and you can bet I won't be buying another of their books. That's not to be unkind, I do admire people for pursuing their dream, but I have too much respect for the art of writing to see it abused. JMO.
Hello Miriam, I have to agree with you. Whether published by a publisher or an indie author, continuous writing errors are annoying enough to make me quit reading.
Thanks for commenting.
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