Some Things Need To Change

Okay, I'm stepping up onto my soapbox for a moment. There is a place for all forms of publishing in this world - Indie (small pubs), big pubs, self-publishing...they all serve a purpose. Of these three self-publishing is consider the black sheep and rightfully so. The industry of self-publishing has done very little to fix this perception and, in fact, has gone to great lengths to confirm it. I truly believe there are strong writers out there with really good books who decide to try self-publishing for any number of reasons only to be ridiculed because of the path they're following.



A great number of companies that operate in this part of the industry are committing a major injustice to these authors and many other new authors every day. It starts with the less than efficient editing services offered then carries over to the generic cover handed out with little thought. If those two are not bad enough this next part is almost criminal. Authors pay for these "packages" and the end result is not only a poorly edited book with a lackluster cover but these authors are given a "website" in which to help market and promote their book. On the surface that may sound like a great deal but, as they say, the devil is in the details.



Why do I mention this? A friend of mine asked me for help with her site. She wanted to add a Twitter button to her website so readers can follow her on Twitter. That is a reasonable request and good idea. I go to her site and check it out. I will say it is very nice to look at but lacking in a great deal of information. For example, there are no links to Twitter, Facebook, or buy links other then the publishers bookstore. Even her 'About the Author' page is very limited with information. No, this is not a 'bash the author's site' moment because it is not her fault. She already told me that working with sites and things like this made her uncomfortable as it does many people. Anyway, I logged in to see what I could do and discovered that not only did the publisher design the site they also secured the code and widgets to prevent modification of the site. That's right, she paid for the site but she is not allowed to update, add to, or modify her own site. This is simply not right!



I mentioned the buy link for a reason too. She paid for a publishing package and on top of that the company is also taking a percentage of each purchase. You know they are. I consider this to be double dipping.



If self -publishing companies and the authors that venture down this road want to step out of the shadows and the bad reputation surrounding self-publishing these practices must change. Authors need to be very careful when dealing with self-publishing companies and really study these "packages" before purchasing them. If anything, make sure you have full access to your website and understand how they set it up. Even if my friend had access to her site I'm not confident she could modify it because of the complex nature of the code structure. Authors deserve better than this. Be careful out there.



Stepping down from my soapbox.