Some people are putting J A Konrath forward as the face of Indie Publishing. I don't really buy that. Yes, he earns enough from publishing his own stuff to survive at it, but that's all he does. Yes, he has a blog, but he doesn't crop up all over the place declaring Indie publishing as the future and fighting our corner. Yes, he sells a lot, but he comes from a NY published background, and brought a platform with him.
I don't really agree that we need a face of Indie Publishing, but if we have to, should it really come down to sales? That's a very NY way of looking at things.
Surely, the poster boy of Indie fiction should be someone so passionate about it that they can't keep their big mouth shut (in the nicest possible way of course). Someone who is everywhere on this silly internet thing, speaking up about Indie, pointing out that it's worthwhile, corrupting those who were on the fence to trying our way of thinking.
Surely the poster boy of Indie fiction is already out there, somewhere, being all over cheerleader for the indies.
Everywhere I go, everything I read, a name comes back to me. I'm yet to find a single Indie resource, anywhere on the web, that doesn't have a certain name attached to it. Surely that name, that person, has made themself the face of Indie fiction?
Zoe Winters is everywhere across the net, on every site I come to. I first discovered her on Nathan Bransford's blog, leaving comments about self-publishing. She is on Indie Reader, and on Publishing Renaissance, and anywhere else I seem to look. She was one of the first people to join my Guild (link at the top, please join) and she blogs and tweets about Indie all the time.
If someone has to be the face of Indie Publishing, it should be someone like Zoe.
You can read Zoe's blog here.
I feel this has probably been a debate for a very long time and, depending on why a writer writes to begin with, will always be debated.
ReplyDeleteI write because I love to write. But, I'd also like to be paid for what I write.
I do think the publishing world is going to have to change - and soon. It'll be much easier for writers to epub in the near future. JA Konrath has been posting some interesting stuff about what he makes epubbing. While he's a known author, it'll be interesting to hear stories on newbies.
By the time I got to the third or fourth sentence I was thinking, nah, it should be someone like Zoe Winters. :) Great minds and all that.
ReplyDeleteAwwww, thank you! I don't think we need a face of indie publishing either. And while I think J.A. Konrath is a smart business man, I don't really see him as an "indie." Maybe it's a little snobby, but even if he went TOTALLY indie and never looked back, he didn't start out indie. I think there is a fundamental difference in those who started out indie and those who later dip their toe in the indie pond after being trad published for awhile.
ReplyDeleteI'm not saying one is better or worse (which is more than has been afforded to us by those who are NY pubbed and have acted as if this somehow made them "better"), but yeah.
I've said it before, I do not think someone putting their rights reverted work up on the Kindle is a revolutionary. At all. I DO think it's a smart business move, but it's a move EVERY author with a backlist and rights reverted should have the freaking common sense to make.
The fact that Konrath is hailed as some sort of revolutionary for doing what is just common sense makes me once again glad I'm not a trad published author. Not exactly a lot of brilliant business minds in that circle.
I'm glad to be *a* face of indie publishing but I certainly wouldn't want to be *the* face. When you are *the* face of anything, you have something to lose and the fear someone cooler, savvier, or who talks more and louder than you will usurp your throne. And I don't have time to deal with that.
I do kind of get around though, yeah. :P
It's funny...I suggested the same thing to Zoe last month...but she refused the crown! Nevertheless, she does have some great things to say and great info to share....and we're happy that she's doing some of that at IndieReader (and thx for including the link!).
ReplyDeletebtw, Chris... this new blog layout is GREAT. Nice and clean and keeps the focus on the words. And bonus, I can actually SEE the words. So YAY!
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