tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post6853694623749167483..comments2023-09-29T05:32:04.308-07:00Comments on StrangePegs: The Wrong Answer To The Right QuestionAndrew Leonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13964775673414653644noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-497631141085245642011-08-31T13:44:35.576-07:002011-08-31T13:44:35.576-07:00Rusty: Yeah, I know there are plenty of people out...Rusty: Yeah, I know there are plenty of people out there making a living as a writer, but the ratio of those that do to those that want to is very small and, I think, growing smaller. I'll have to look him up, though, when I have the time.<br /><br />Shannon: Yeah, I'm gonna have a post coming up about that, but it's probably still weeks away.Andrew Leonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13964775673414653644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-47584999108122053872011-08-31T12:23:06.323-07:002011-08-31T12:23:06.323-07:00As much as it makes my heart stutter to think abou...As much as it makes my heart stutter to think about it, storytelling has changed a lot over the centuries and will continue to do so, I'm sure.Shannon Lawrencehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00934641808195675935noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-3781232762984034622011-08-30T19:48:41.028-07:002011-08-30T19:48:41.028-07:00Have you read Dean Wesley Smith's blog much? H...Have you read Dean Wesley Smith's blog much? He's a full time writer who says that there are way more people making not just a living, but a comfortable one, writing full time, than you probably think. <br /><br />The guy posts like a machine gun, and I'm too tired to hunt through his stuff to find what I'm referring to, but he repeats it often enough. I encourage you, and anyone really, to spend several hours going over his posts for the past year or two. What he says rings true, at least for me.<br /><br />But your point is still valid. If I were to get a typical publishing contract for a debut author today, I wouldn't get an advance big enough to pay two months mortgage most likely, living off the advance just isn't possible.Rusty Carlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09887821877521181811noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-37490174557093741422011-08-30T16:04:10.630-07:002011-08-30T16:04:10.630-07:00Alyssia: Well, I think once the pressure is off an...Alyssia: Well, I think once the pressure is off an author to get published, to prove him/herself, the tendency is to quit pushing to be better. After all, there is no more need. <br />The other possibility is that you've outgrown the author. That happened with me and my favorite author when I was in high school. Suddenly, I couldn't figure out why his books were crap. It took me a while to realize that his books were, actually, just the same as they always had been, I had just outgrown him.<br /><br />Michael: I can't argue the point of greed. More specifically, corporate greed and the greed of the "entitled" that run the corporations (no pun intended).<br /><br />I also don't disagree about the aesthetics of books. What I fear, though, is that owning actual books will be like owning actual art for your walls. They will become a status symbol.Andrew Leonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13964775673414653644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-16853014766041135322011-08-30T15:28:57.437-07:002011-08-30T15:28:57.437-07:00I think what is at issue here has little to do wit...I think what is at issue here has little to do with publishing and everything to do with greed. Publishing companies want to maintain their billions of dollars in the bank and all their luxuries. How do they do this? They destroy the midlist. What is left is superstars and debut authors. Debut authors if they don't become superstars are kicked to the curb. They also get little to no advance. Superstars are catered to hand and foot. This will never change. George W. Bush, Sarah Palin, Michelle Bachman (guaranteed superstars) will always get a hefty advance for their drivel. Debut authors can get it to if they are of the likes of Casey Anthony and Bristol Palin.<br /><br />For the rest of us...the midlist goes the way of the middle class. The rise of the e-book gives us an opportunity to at least make a go of something on our own as the establishment only hates us. Paper is becoming an ever shrinking market. Will it go the way of the buggy whip? I have no idea. My impulse is to say no. There are too many traditionalists that like the aesthetic look of books on a shelf. But ebooks will be bought by true readers. Regular books will be bought by ppl that want to decorate their house.Michael Offutt, Phantom Readerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10557969104886174930noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-35977075017712545062011-08-30T13:52:02.071-07:002011-08-30T13:52:02.071-07:00I really don't have anything else to add to th...I really don't have anything else to add to this, Andrew, it's such a wonderful post. Well done. I will say this: In reading mass market paperback romances, my CP and I have come across well established authors who have, as of late, put out rather crappy excuses for stories/novels/books/take your pick. It's almost as if they didn't have anything ready for the publisher and so, since they're a big name, they just dug something out from under their bed, said, "Eh, this'll work," and sent it in.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16514163880053470414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-50414560137953945352011-08-30T12:54:32.057-07:002011-08-30T12:54:32.057-07:00L.: I'm not saying books don't have their ...L.: I'm not saying books don't have their uses; I love books. I do agree, though, that they are going to become impractically expensive as the demand for them decreases and the cost of materials to make them go up.<br /><br />As for what I would pay, well, that's immaterial. I'm not talking about me; I'm talking about people in general. The prevailing thought on ebooks is that since it is transmitted digitally (i.e. there is nothing physical that is being purchased), it shouldn't cost anything. Or very much, at any rate.Andrew Leonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13964775673414653644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-64328911357536736372011-08-30T12:32:04.049-07:002011-08-30T12:32:04.049-07:00Just a couple little thoughts:
1. Until we have ...Just a couple little thoughts: <br /><br />1. Until we have 24/7 internet access and electricity under all weather conditions, books will still have their uses.<br /><br />2. Would you pay $0.99 for a pile of crappy writing? What would you pay? <br /><br />What would you pay for something good?blankenship.louisehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05541461775158369620noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-46228181725190556122011-08-30T10:49:17.010-07:002011-08-30T10:49:17.010-07:00Sarah McCabe: Ooh... two Sarahs! I'll have to ...Sarah McCabe: Ooh... two Sarahs! I'll have to watch that.<br /><br />And, yes, I agree entirely. As I was just saying to Barbara. hehAndrew Leonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13964775673414653644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-21335318301429717162011-08-30T10:48:01.142-07:002011-08-30T10:48:01.142-07:00Amanda: I agree with you, and I don't. Some pe...Amanda: I agree with you, and I don't. Some people who "need" to do it just can't. There are too many other things they have to do, or they just don't know how to sit down and really do it. I don't think the desire (the "need") is enough to cause it to happen. There will always be people making stories, though.<br /><br />I don't think we're losing bookshops; I just think they're changing. Yes, we're losing them as we know them, but, then, we're losing books as we know them, too. Everything changes. Will I miss, do I already miss, walking into a book store and just browsing around? Yes. I spent my teenage years doing that, after all. But, then, I don't have time to ever do that anymore anyway what with kids and all. >sigh<<br /><br />Mr. Mutt: I don't know if that's really true or not. It's so hard to tell. I mean, when has anyone ever been able to live as a professional writer? There are always a few that do, but have those numbers really changed over time? Granted, the percentages have surely gone down, but have the actual numbers changed? And, if you look back at some of the people that we think of as great authors, many of them never really survived by -being- a writer. They had some other sort of income, because, during their own time, they never made it. Were never really appreciated. Or were to some extent, but still not to the point where they could live off of it. Those people have always been the great exceptions.<br /><br />Bonnie: Thank you! I'll give you the same response I gave Amanda, but you'll have to look back up to her's to read it. :P<br /><br />Sarah: Yeah, it's horrible. If a publisher doesn't have you that must mean you're no good. So Rowling was no good before her book got picked up even though it was the same book? Exactly.<br /><br />Barbara: Yeah, people like to stick their heads in the sand and pretend it's not happening or just cling to what they know to try to prevent change. It's... upsetting. The truth just is that traditional publishing can not survive. That's not to say that publishing won't survive, but it won't be traditional. As soon as they acknowledge that and start making some changes, the better off everyone will be.<br /><br />And, yeah, it would be really nice if people in general would acknowledge the right of the artist to make a living off of the entertainment they provide to others. It's kind of sad.Andrew Leonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13964775673414653644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-80018280192779561452011-08-30T10:36:44.945-07:002011-08-30T10:36:44.945-07:00Some people are afraid of change and choose to rem...Some people are afraid of change and choose to remain invincibly ignorant. I feel sorry for them.Sarah McCabehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10985261436020635823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-74255379800077785732011-08-30T10:25:43.060-07:002011-08-30T10:25:43.060-07:00This was a great post, and you very accurately sum...This was a great post, and you very accurately summarized! While I understand the literary community "banding together", that's sort of what has led to this predicament in the first place. A failure to acknowledge what is really happening.<br /><br />I think you hit the nail on the head, though, saying the real dilemma is "can writers survive in a world of valueless art?" I'm hopeful people will step up and support others.Bklosshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15445205221951596010noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-14301246314174561342011-08-30T10:14:16.899-07:002011-08-30T10:14:16.899-07:00Thoughtful post. It does annoy me when people assu...Thoughtful post. It does annoy me when people assume that people who aren't paid for it can't write some damn good stuff. Where does that leave the thousands and thousands of us tapping away, as yet unpaid? We can't all be rubbish, surely?Sarah Tokeleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13273148070092101085noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-15378798002305409852011-08-30T09:34:29.030-07:002011-08-30T09:34:29.030-07:00I agree with Amanda!
Good post!I agree with Amanda!<br /><br />Good post!Bonniehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01265154793887852606noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-55824190905434621882011-08-30T09:25:19.378-07:002011-08-30T09:25:19.378-07:00Really I hear it all the time that hardly anyone c...Really I hear it all the time that hardly anyone can live as a professional writer anymore. Most have a sideline career (usually teaching) or else have a spouse to help share the bills.<br /><br />Recently I was watching the movie "Limitless" where the Bradley Cooper character is a writer who's having a case of writer's block with the deadline looming. And I'm like, "Come on, no publisher gives a nobody a huge advance anymore!"<br /><br />I'm not going to say the traditional publisher is going to die just like the big record companies haven't died, but there's going to be a new business model.PT Dillowayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09394481476862013009noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-81252981155865442352011-08-30T08:44:25.187-07:002011-08-30T08:44:25.187-07:00I think there are only two people who are importan...I think there are only two people who are important in the story process - the writer and the reader. People who 'need' to write stories, will always write stories, regardless of how much they earn.<br /><br />But the real tragedy to come out of the publishing shake-up is the demise of bookshops...Amanda Leigh Cowleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14473578405020011393noreply@blogger.com