A funny thing happened on my way home from the bookstore...

For the last few years, since I started writing, I've been reading almost exclusively in the genre I'm writing, which would be YA. But, this winter, I decided to catch up on some of my favorite adult authors. I just realized something. My favorite author isn’t very good. I’ve been really disappointed in his last two novels. His stories are interesting, so I keep reading them, but the writing is really lacking.

All the things I struggle so hard to avoid in my own writing—using the same phrases over and over…and over and over; using too many dialogue tags (especially the character’s name) over and over…and over and over; putting my characters in the same situation over and over—okay, you get it, I know—he does, over and over…and over. And his attempts at suspense are kind of lame and very predictable—which is bad, since he writes thrillers.

I’ve decided that I need to go back and read the first book of his that really sucked me in. Then I can figure out if I was just a less discerning reader before I started writing or if his suckiness is more recent—maybe due to deadlines and being rushed. He’s a NYT bestseller and puts out at least two books a year, so he clearly knows more about writing than I do but…

But it’s really disappointing to realize that someone I looked up to (and recommended to a lot of other people) isn’t as great as I thought he was.

I know. You’re rolling your eyes and yelling at the screen that I need professional help. Hero worship and all that… And you’re probably right.

I’ll reread some of his earlier books and report back.

Self published titles readily available on Amazon

In all the uproar over Harlequin’s vanity publishing branch last week, one of the issues was distribution—which self-pubbed authors get no assistance with except a listing in some catalogue or another. This isn’t a great distribution model for a physical book. For and e-book, however, it’s a great model.

Especially if that catalogue is available through the worlds largest book distributors.

So I found it interesting that, through their premium catalogue, Smashwords, an e-self-publisher, has now formed distribution agreements with Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Sony. And Smashwords’ services are free! If you were going to self publish, why would you pay Harlequin, or any other vanity press, for a paper book with no chance of wide distribution when you can pay Smashwords nothing and be distributed through Amazon et al?

I know that e-books account for a small percentage of overall book sales but, seriously, how many copies of a self-published paper book do you really expect to sell? The reality is, unless it’s non-fiction in a subject where you have a HUGE platform, the correct answer to that question would be not many.

My understanding is that, even within the Amazon, B&N and Sony distribution channels, these catalogues will be clearly designated as “Smashwords” titles, and an educated reader will get that that means self-published. Which is important considering the following quote off Smashwords’ “how to publish” page:

“At Smashwords, we've always believed it's not our role to judge the quality of an author's work, and we expect this policy will remain in place with few exceptions. We think every author and publisher should have the right to publish and the most qualified arbiter of quality is your reader.”

Or, to paraphrase: “Yeah, you can get a 99 cent book off our site, and expect it to be worth exactly what you paid for it.”

I get what everyone’s issues are with traditional publishers getting in on the self-publishing money wagon but, truly, I think self-pubbed titles being readily available through all major e-book distributors is going to dilute the literary pool much more significantly—and longer term since, let's face it, e-books are the wave of the future.

So, if you’re going to self publish, and you actually want to make a little money, the choice seems clear. But remember another point that was made in the Harlequin uproar: Don’t self publish anything that you’re hoping to get through traditional channels ‘cause, for the most part, once it’s out there, no agent or editor will touch it.

Just my 2 cents. And you get what you pay for.

A funny thing happened on my way home from the bookstore...

I just realized that my favorite author isn’t very good. I’ve been really disappointed in his last two novels. His stories are interesting, so I keep reading them, but the writing really sucks.

I’m a relative newcomer, a mere novice, in the writing profession, so other than my status as a frequent book buyer and avid reader, I realize I’m in no way qualified to make judgments regarding someone else’s writing. But all the things I struggle so hard to avoid in my own writing—using the same phrases over and over…and over and over; using too many dialogue tags (especially the character’s name) over and over…and over and over; putting my characters in the same situation over and over—okay, you get it, I know—he does, over and over…and over. And his attempts at suspense are kind of lame and very predictable—which is bad, since he writes thrillers.

I’ve decided that I need to go back and read the first book of his that really sucked me in. Then I can figure out if I was just a less discerning reader before I started writing or if his suckiness is more recent—maybe due to deadlines and being rushed. He’s a NYT best seller and puts out at least two books a year, so he clearly knows more about writing than I do…

But it’s really disappointing to realize that someone I looked up to (and recommended to a lot of other people) isn’t as great as I thought he was.

I know. You’re rolling your eyes and yelling at the screen that I need professional help. Hero worship and all that… And you’re probably right.

I’ll reread some of his earlier books and report back.