This is a fascinating read for anyone who is involved in the publishing industry on any level. I have my own views which I have expounded upon many times but it is great to get (and share) a fresh bit of perspective now and again from people whom’s opinions I value.
She is of course entirely incorrect in thinking books don’t just sell by magic, but then she doesn’t weave suggestion spells that make people buy books into their covers. That’s Tom’s department…
Electronic publishing began in earnest long before social media really existed and when many people weren’t online. Twenty years ago we relied heavily on egroups – mostly Yahoo groups to find each other and share books. Tiny publishing houses proliferated, and sold books directly to readers. Some of those houses grew enough to be able to afford artists for book covers, which is how Tom and I met.
When Amazon got into the ebook market, it was because that market already existed. Their early policies made it hard through to impossible for small houses to keep publishing via their own websites. Of necessity, we had to all sell through them, accepting a loss of control and lower income on each book in the hopes of reaching a wider audience, and of not being made obsolete.
Many of the more successful ebook houses at that time were selling smut, and the…
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The Passing Place 