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Just returned from Winchester Writers Conference, I note a small revolution in attitudes towards self-publishing and self-published authors over the 3 years I have been attending this event.

I hope we can move on now to discuss as a community of creative people - writers, agents, publishers, editors, tutors and booksellers (and all those who support them) - how to more effectively manage the essential capitals of our business. By "the essential capitals" I mean:

- the money without which nothing can get done;
- the talent and creativity without which there is no product to sell;
- the communication without which there is no audience for our work
- the mechanics of production
- the distribution network.

One of the conclusions some of us came to is that the product - the value - we are promoting is not the book. It is the story.

Instead of throwing up its hands in despair at the size of the "slush pile" the industry at large should be considering how to nurture and coach the creators of stories.

Instead of running around trying to offload dross by celebrities it should be providing a dynamic support network which exploits all the ways and means of engaging with the audience and persuading them to part with their money for the entertainment provided.

It would be a good step towards solving the problems of the publishing industry if those of goodwill actually identified the problem they are seeking to solve.