If It’s Popular, It’s Not Real Art?

Elle Griffin of The Novelleist, sent out a newsletter last Sunday arguing that “high snobbery reigns among circles of critics who expect a certain pretention from their virtuoso violinists, their fine art painters, and their literary writers.” The post was titled, “The one where self-published books are not ‘real art’.” (Yes, Elle likes to title her newsletters like they’re episodes of Friends. And I love it!)

Anyone who’s been involved in the indie book industry—whether you’re someone who self...