Publishing, Same As It Ever Was

I started my career in traditional book publishing at Simon & Schuster in 2004. And over the years, I’ve heard the same complaint from authors.

The industry has changed. No one cares about the writing.

Instead, it’s all about followers/social media/author platform.

I shake my head even typing that because these statements simply aren’t true.

AND like every good conspiracy theory or misinformation — there are nuggets of truth in there.

Let’s explore.

The industry has changed.

This is true, in part. There’s definitely more options for authors — like self-publishing, hybrid publishers, and even startups operated by insiders that are trying to change the game.

But where this is false is in the perception many people have. What hasn’t changed is the reasons why a literary agent, editor and publisher choose to champion an author by offering to publish their work.

That brings me to the next point.

No one cares about the writing.

This is blatantly false. As an editor, I often turned down projects because the writing sucked.

And though the writing is generally less important in nonfiction — especially for the how-to…