Guest Post: Author Harper L. Jameson Keeps it Real

This week, fellow author Harper L. Jameson has graciously provided a guest post about the stigma of independent publishing. Harper discusses traditional vs. independent publishing and why one is not necessarily better than the other. Take it away, Harper!
I found myself in a situation recently that forced me to question the validity of independently published authors versus those who are traditionally published. My questioning lasted approximately 2 minutes.
I sat in a college hallway, curled over my laptop and agonizing over my current WIP when a woman sitting nearby asked what I was doing. Unashamed of my goals toward writing a novel, I answered that I was, indeed, a writer.
“Oh! Who are you published with?”“I’m not published yet, but I intend to go the independent route.”“Oh.”
Oh. That was all. Until she went on to explain that she was represented by an agent who was shopping her work to a number of publishers. You see, she is as yet unpublished just like me but, she holds up her agent like a crucifix against a room full of vampires. As the days that we have to sit in each other’s company go on, I think more and more about the way she snorts under her knows when another questions me about the world of the independent author. I think about the way she rabidly checks her email waiting to hear from her agent about her impending literary stardom. And what I came up with was simple. She’s not better than me. We’re both on the bottom rung of the ladder, working our way up to published and yet somehow, she feels that professional representation validates her. All it means is that there is another hand in her royalty jar when her book finally hits Amazon.
Having an agent doesn’t make her any more of a writer than owning a paint brush makes me Rembrandt. The independent route isn’t for everyone. You have to be able to do a lot of the leg work yourself. You have to learn formatting and marketing methods. You might have to make your own covers and promotional materials. It’s tedious but, at the end of the day, we have total autonomy over our work and the pride that comes from knowing we did it.. and we did it alone.
In the same respect, not everyone can go the traditional route. Great books are too often over looked and the time spent trying to gain exposure is time not spent writing in an industry that thrives on quantity over quality. Query letters are soul-sucking at best and useless at worst. The wait to hear back on your submission can drain the life right out of you.
Still, I clack away at the keys and she snorts in distaste, softly shaking her head and making it a point to laugh at some clever email she finally received from her agent. To her, I say, you are not better than me. You are not better than any of us. We work just as hard. We pour just as much of our hearts and souls into the words we put on the page and your writing is not legitimized by a name on a business card. You’re legitimate when your book is out there for the masses and no matter the path we took to get there, one day we will all be able to say proudly that we are both writers.
When your agent disappears, and your work is buried in her growing slush pile, never to be seen again, I won’t judge and I’ll wish you all the best in replacing her. I’ll still be right here. Curled over my laptop and formatting my ebook. But when you finally hit the threshold of your frustration with the traditional publishing world, come scoot your chair over by me and I’ll tell you all of the ins and outs of independent publishing. After all, we’re both writers.


Harper L. Jameson was born in southeastern Ohio and raised on stories and legends of her family seat at the base of the Appalachians. Her imagination ran wild, bringing the legends of times long past into our present. She currently lives in North Carolina with her husband and children but, she still calls those old mountains home. Look for her debut paranormal romance novel The Wind on Amazon.com in early 2016. Stay up to date on this and other upcoming releases at www.harperjameson.com.
www.harperjameson.comwww.facebook.com/HLJamesonwww.harperjameson.blogspot.com www.twitter.com/harperjameson


My apologies to Harper, who actually got this post to me a week ago. These days are just getting away from me like wildfire, I tell you! Thank you so much for sharing your insight, Harper! And thanks to all of you for reading, commenting and giving me someone to write to. Stay Classy, Blog-o-Sphere!
Best,
R