I’ve been contemplating the future of
the author in today’s high technology society. What will become of us and the
books we write? Will the paperback go the way of the compact disk and disappear
forever? Will publishing houses dissolve into nonexistence the way most record
labels have? Will a paperback book become a rare object of antique art? I don’t
know. But one thing I do know is that there will always be a segment of
humanity that has stories to tell.
What is uncertain is what medium will
distribute and sell those stories? Something we can all agree upon is that
ebooks will replace traditional books to a large degree. People will carry
libraries of their favorites in nearly weightless ereaders the size of a sheet
of paper or less. We all know how easy it is to pirate a book and place it for
free all over the internet. So, how will an author make money?
As I see it, the traditional book
industry of buying through a bookstore will soon become ancient history. An
author will become writer, publisher, and marketer of their works (a lot of us
already are). There will be no middleman between author and reader which opens
a whole new world of getting the author noticed. Blogs and websites will allow
fans direct access to their favorites which will generate a much closer bond
between storyteller and reader.
I see a new kind of literary relationship
evolving in which the populous will decide what they want to read by their own
selection and not just books pre-approved, stripped down, and ground out from
the corporate publishing paper mill. I find it exciting to think that any one
of my fans can literally reach out electronically and ask me a question or just
send a little note. I can read it and respond on a personal level as if we’d
known each other for years. It is this inter-connectivity that will sell books
in the future.
That
being said, I have two exciting new collections of my books that are now
available through Amazon. Please check them out and get a whole summer’s worth
of wild, scif-fi and suspense thrillers for one low price.
And to sweeten the opportunity for a great read my latest
sci-fi book is free right now until Saturday!
I know, I know, it’s a lot of info, but there’s a lot of
exciting things happening in the world of indie publishing.
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