Anyone Can Be a Gatekeeper
Another great post by the amazing Mrs. Drammeh. I think EVERYONE should read this.
Originally posted on Tricia Drammeh:
Today, I read an article titled
“Self-Publishers Should Not Be Called Authors”
by Michael Kozlowski. In the article, the blogger states: “Just because its easy to upload your written word, so that it can be downloaded to another machine does not make you an author, any more than me buying a stethoscope allows me to be called a doctor.” This attitude is not uncommon in the publishing world. As more and more self-published authors emerge, there are some in the industry who scoff and say, “Anyone can be an author these days.”
Well, as it turns out, anyone can be a gatekeeper–or, at least they can try. In the past, agents and traditional publishers acted as gatekeepers to the literary world. Now that self-publishing is a viable option for thousands of authors, a few authors and bloggers have decided to be unofficial gatekeepers to the industry. They can’t prevent authors from publishing, so instead they use snobbery and disdain to try to discredit self-published authors. They aren’t the only gatekeepers. Certain professional organizations have rules about who can and cannot join, and most of these rules come down to money. How much of an advance did the author receive? How much money did they make in royalties?
Yes, there are still gatekeepers. It’s still difficult for authors to make their way in the world. And when a blogger writes, “Indie authors and self-published authors who claim they are real authors makes me laugh,” it can be very disheartening to be a self-published author.
