Why not publish the old fashioned way?
Fair question. I’ve done the “real” writer thing, with publishers and editors and paper and such. The bottom line comes down to creative control and focus. Frustration plays a big part, too Ignoring the crappy pay rates — 5-10 cents per word for fiction, a couple thousand bucks advance for a paperback novel — consider this: When I was writing for big-name publishers, I’d have to fill out a questionaire for each book. At every publisher, two of the questions were: “How is this book unique?” and “Name other books just like yours that are selling well.” Uh… Oxymoronic marketing practices and low pay rates aren’t the only frustrations of “real” publishing. I’ve sold stories to magazines that went out of business before “my” issue saw print. I’ve received letters from editors saying how much they love my work, but that “we’re overstocked right now”. Then there’s the “Where’s my check?” issue, as in actually getting paid. Non-fiction has better pay-rates than fiction, but is not immune to
