Comments on Nathan Bransford - Literary Agent: This Week in Publishing

Here's my proposed solution: I believe that indepe...

2009-11-08T09:33:53.279-08:00

Here's my proposed solution: I believe that independent bookstores should become a publishing cooperative, and sign exclusive publishing contracts with "non 500" authors who are out of contract. Here's how it would work: The Indie-publisher would agree to exclusively sell, promote, and distribute an author's work through Indie bookstores for the duration of a contract. Those works would not be sold at Amazon, WalMart, or chain stores (except for used, private copies which can't be controlled). The Indie publisher and bookstore network would have to establish its own outlet for ebook downloads. So we'd wind up with an Indie publisher developing the "midlist" authors, leaving the established Big Boy/Girl Authors to the old publishers and WalMart. My thinking: eventually the "star" authors will burn out, and the Indie stores, with their exclusive distribution, will build new business at the edges of the market.

Had a chance meeting with an assistant working one...

2009-11-03T06:13:00.311-08:00

Had a chance meeting with an assistant working one of the lit desks at William Morris in LA. They don't measure the number of queries, but the pounds of queries. If the first sentence or two don't do the job, then the querie is tossed.

Ten Ring, by Joseph L Cooke, will be released as an audio book only; it won't be in print - or, that's the plan at present.

Nathan: Thanks for all you do in compiling and di...

2009-11-02T20:23:23.614-08:00

Nathan: Thanks for all you do in compiling and discussing so much of what goes on in publishing these days. A vast terrain of change is before us.

Doctor Query

This is a little piece from a treatise called "On ...

2009-11-02T18:24:00.993-08:00

This is a little piece from a treatise called "On the Soul" supposedly written by Themistius way back there in ancient Greece.

It is on the process of Initiation of the soul. There's an uncanny resemblance to the process a writer goes through from trying to get an agent to being published :0 (Hmmm...just wanted to share):

"At first one wanders and wearily hurries to and fro, and journeys with suspicion through the dark as one uninitiated: then come all the terrors before the final initiation, shuddering, trembling, sweating, amazement: then one is struck with a marvelous light(i think this is the getting a great agent part), one is received into pure regions and meadows, with voices and dances and the majesty of holy sounds and shapes: among these he who has fulfilled initiation wanders free, and released and bearing his crown (getting published?)joins in the divine communion, and consorts with pure and holy men."

Lol. Sheesh.

Marilyn, Thanks for sharing the link to the Libra...

2009-11-02T15:38:36.313-08:00

Marilyn,

Thanks for sharing the link to the Library Hotel. I might go to NY just to check out that hotel!

I just finished listening to the entire Sherman Al...

2009-11-02T13:20:26.865-08:00

I just finished listening to the entire Sherman Alexie interview. He has a fascinating point of view regarding e-books and the Internet. He touches on many of the topics recently discussed here on Nathan's blog. He refers to e-books as "elitist" and explains why he feels that way. He also talks about where the large corporations will most likely take the Internet, the lack of real Internet "community", how current trends will most likely increase the divide between pop culture and literary writing, and how it will most likely eventually become nearly impossible for most first-time writers to ever get published. He expresses what I’ve been thinking for some time now. Whether you agree with him or not, he offers an intelligent, thoughtful analysis of the marketplace.

I disagree that Kindle is going to completely take...

2009-11-02T13:03:55.750-08:00

I disagree that Kindle is going to completely take over novels, with novels only having a small cult following.

I'm going to compare this to photography. When the digital camera first came out, it was thought that it would take over the film camera. It hasn't. Despite how insanely advanced digital cameras have gotten, there are still loads of people out there who use film cameras--plus, photography minors like me have to use film before jumping to digital. And you have to wonder why as well, what with the convenience a digital camera offers and all. But I think the battle between digital and print is going to follow the same vein as digital versus film.

I could be wrong, but both sound very similar.

Also via Book Patrol, a fascinating interview with...

2009-11-02T12:34:01.734-08:00

Also via Book Patrol, a fascinating interview with Sherman Alexie about writing, writers, storytelling, the publishing world and more: here.

"Anyone who thinks they can write without ever rea...

2009-11-02T12:30:58.264-08:00

"Anyone who thinks they can write without ever reading a book is either delusional or making others think they are so gifted, and clever they can write a book without reading one."

This is so true. I know this might be different from the above stated quote, but I don't understand how you can love writing but not reading. Maybe you can love bad writing and hate reading, but if you're serious about writing, I don't see how you can dislike reading.

It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel...

2009-11-02T12:30:48.274-08:00

It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine--R.E.M

For those who love to read, check this out: the Li...

2009-11-02T12:21:10.307-08:00

For those who love to read, check this out: the Library Hotel, as described on the Book Patrol blog. A rather unique, luxurious and relaxing place for bibliophiles!

Anyone who thinks they can write without ever read...

2009-11-02T09:23:44.861-08:00

Anyone who thinks they can write without ever reading a book is either delusional or making others think they are so gifted, and clever they can write a book without reading one.

Not possible and arrogant. That's like a master chef who specializes in pastries saying he hasn't tasted or eaten a pastry in five years, yet continues to perfect his work?

If a writer hasn't picked up a book in even a year, I would bet their writing would reflect it and would think they are not published at all.

Also, I disagree that all writers are readers. Tot...

2009-11-02T08:03:33.487-08:00

Also, I disagree that all writers are readers. Totally disagree. I wrote for 5 years without even touching a novel, and I doubt I'm the only one.

This baffles me. One of the reasons I write (probably the main reason) is because I love to read so much. And whenever I read a great book, I'm re-inspired to work that much harder on my own fiction.

I do know writers who can't read fiction while they're working on their novel, but will read non-fiction. But to go for years without picking up a book? I'd go crazy and start reading the backs of cereal boxes. (Actually, I already do that.)

Anonymous 2:57 (and any other writer out there who's either not a big reader, or who has stopped reading for an extended period of time): what caused you to pull away from books?

Well, I'd say we're 50/50 in agreement. :) I don...

2009-11-01T20:37:24.159-08:00

Well, I'd say we're 50/50 in agreement. :)

I don't think it's 50/50 good/bad. I think it's in flux, but headed toward improvement. That's my belief, and I'm sticking to it.

But I'll agree that people who see and address problems, and shine a light on them, as you eloquently put it, can be visionaries: young, old and somewhere in between.

So we agree about that. :)

And I applaud the idealism and energy of the young. Go for it. We need you. :)

Mira, Exactly. My point is that the world is 50/...

2009-11-01T19:45:12.385-08:00

Mira,

Exactly. My point is that the world is 50/50, good and bad. My original point was simply that people who concentrate on serious problems in order to make the world a better place aren't necessarily pessimists or glass-half-full kind of people, and they aren't always from the older generation.

I over-think things. Anon 11:44 I think you are ...

2009-11-01T18:30:22.885-08:00

I over-think things.

Anon 11:44

I think you are a truly compassionate person, and it's wonderful that pointing out the suffering in the world. So, please understand I'm not negating that by disagreeing alittle....

I don't have much to add to what Nathan said, I thought he said it well.....but one thing I will say is that you can't measure progress only by looking at poverty levels. That's just one factor.

There are others. Human rights awareness; the number of people who live free lives, and can speak and think freely; the knowledge of the world around us, both within and without; the ability to address problems; the growing global community which attempts to heal global wounds; and so much more.

Please know that I am very personally aware that there is suffering in the world. I've been a social worker for a very long time, I see great depths of suffering on a daily basis. I am not naive or deluded.

But I feel as though making the world a better place is a chain of action that stems far into the past, and moves ahead of me into the future. I am just one link. I would like to add my contribution; I hope I will. But I acknowledge that those before me have made a difference, and those that live on after me (perhaps, you, for one) will continue to fight the good fight.

But where, where?! "...I used to take out a lovel...

2009-11-01T17:02:31.071-08:00

But where, where?!

"...I used to take out a lovely book on Russian costume that was published in 1804 and marvel at the quality of the paper and the beauty of the images."

What's the name of this book, and where is it?

"I just don't see how I can break this out in a bi...

2009-11-01T16:01:06.938-08:00

"I just don't see how I can break this out in a big way." Yes, this is exactly what my agent has been told about my two novels. Editors love the voice, characters, great polished novel submitted.....but...but....but --- it's not big enough, etc. etc. So we agonize over writing the best book we can to get an agent. We get a good agent and she faces this baffling conflict.

Does every single book have to be a blockbuster? Note to editors: Blockbusters are far and few between and some of them are just not good.

Nathan, Agreed. And I think an important job of ...

2009-11-01T15:17:43.807-08:00

Nathan,

Agreed. And I think an important job of writers is - and has always been - to shine a light on the dark places in the world. Not all writers want to take on the hard work of serious writing, but those who do take it on and do it well should be applauded. :)

Anon- I have done volunteer work in third world c...

2009-11-01T13:45:30.917-08:00

Anon-

I have done volunteer work in third world countries. Look - I agree. It's important to remember the work still to be done. No one living in a poverty-stricken or wartorn region thinks things are getting better. And maybe it's overly reductive to then look at the numbers and say hey, less of the world is in poverty than ever before. Still, overall people are living longer and better lives if you average across the globe. That's progress, even if there are pockets where things are getting worse.

One more post. I feel this is strongly related to...

2009-11-01T12:56:44.157-08:00

One more post. I feel this is strongly related to writing because many literary writers tackle these topics, and many of those books become best-sellers. If you look at this article, The Threat of Global Poverty, you can see that half of the world's population lives in poverty. Definitely, the world isn't clearly getting "better and better" or "worse and worse". It's about 50/50.

Nathan and Mira, I don't think anyone can accurat...

2009-11-01T11:44:31.780-08:00

Nathan and Mira,

I don't think anyone can accurately say that the world is getting "better and better" or "worse and worse". The world just is what it is, and now is one of those times in history when things could go either way. Worldwide poverty has decreased if you look at the world overall. However, if you look at individual countries, many (including the United States) have a widening gap between wealthy and poor with a shrinking or non-existent middle class. Check out this map of Global Wealth Distribution. If you live in or do volunteer work for any extended period of time within the slums of the third world or the tent cities in the United States, it is impossible to say that things are definitely getting "better and better".

Trying to re-brand self-publishing as "indie publi...

2009-11-01T00:56:22.326-07:00

Trying to re-brand self-publishing as "indie publishing" isn't going to work, mainly because most self-published authors have a difficult time understanding their desperate need for an editor.

@historywriter -- I used to work in a library that...

2009-10-31T23:18:27.426-07:00

@historywriter -- I used to work in a library that has a lot of archival materials and a lot of great old stuff - and it amazed me sometimes the number of people who would ask, "Why don't you just scan everything and get rid of all that stuff?" You try to explain that first, we don't have the staff or budget to scan "everything," and even though it does make sense to scan some things, getting rid of the originals is almost always a bad idea. Digital technology changes so quickly; no one knows what the life-span of any particular platform is.

But I used to take out a lovely book on Russian costume that was published in 1804 and marvel at the quality of the paper and the beauty of the images.

The big guys fighting over prices. It doesn't seem...

2009-10-31T19:42:51.066-07:00

The big guys fighting over prices. It doesn't seem that serious until you understand that indie stores that bring us such variety of things to read will be hurt and authors just won't get paid for their work. Everything is free, seems to the attitude of many. So why pay an author? The person who made the book? Edited it?

The biggest concern is exactly what you are getting with digital everything. You can't save it in a museum or archive. It's not real and every few years the technology to read changes. Only a few will control the written word.

I work at a museum and already the impact is being felt. What to save? I can read a 150 year old book but the digital picture scanned last week will have a shelf life of a couple of years.