Sometimes Self-Publishers get carried away when we feel that self-empowerment. We march in our own parade, throw up picket signs of how digital is overcoming print. We scream how the Big 6 is goin’ DOWN, man! We tell our stories of the long months of waiting, and how we now have taken back our own power and WAIT NO MORE! We take pride of our power that we have over our own creativity–no one to answer to but ourselves. We can “DO IT YOURSELF” (DIY)!!
So, sometimes, we get a bit carried away and forget… forget that there are two sides to a story; two sides of a coin.
No one can really talk about someone, or something, else unless one has personally been involved in it. To say that such companies are going down without knowing someone, or being personally involved, in that business…well, one gets a bit carried away.
Now what a Self-Publisher can say is what they see as fact online. Yes, the top lists on Amazon are self-publishers…but there’s still an ENTIRE WORLD…Offline. Take note of the people around you: in your office, your friends, the neighbors, the parents you see when you pick you child up from school, the people next to you at the restaurant, at the dry cleaners, at the amusement park, at a concert, on the freeway, overseas…people everywhere. There are many, many people still not connected to the digital book. And they are reading…print.
Not everyone wants to read on a digital device, or on the small screen of their mobile phone, or can afford an eReader, or sit looking at a screen of a laptop or desktop…to read. And just like there was a change from tape cassettes, to CDs, to iPods, SD Card…there are some who still just use CDs.
Now, there is a change heading towards digital reading…but one must not think that the big companies WILL NOT be a part of that. They WILL be a part…as they have always been.
One company will fall, if they don’t change, and be replaced with another. It’s just the scheme of things. We’ll see how it goes. And we’ll see what part Self-Publishing will take.
Have a thoughtful mind about the other side, so one won’t have to regret words later.
Just sit back, and wait and see what happens. Then one can honestly form an opinion.
BE THANKFUL, especially during this special time of year, that there is now more options for those writers who want to SHOUT TO THE WORLD and share their stories!
For now…I’m just enjoying the Self-Publishing progress and what it has done for me. I’m excited about every sale, and do my happy dance whenever I complete another VERY BIG learning curve in this technical software stuff, and I’m optimistic of the future. It’s a wonderful journey! A path well taken. A self-realization of the fulfillment of my personal capacities.
I Enjoy it! I’m amazed by it! I’m Thankful.
Again another thoughtful and informative post, and I do so agree about how many people are still reading print. I have taken notice the last couple of times I’ve flown that a lot of people were reading, and they were reading print. I did not see one e reader on the planes.
Also this same thing in the airports while I waited. Some folks had iphones or other small gadgets but they looked to be interacting with another person, not reading a book. Many waited while they read but they were again reading print.
I’ve been trying to count how many people in airports use print versus eReaders. It’s been about even in some areas, and then there were all eReaders, and then some mostly print. It’s still a mixture of both depending on where I was. Plus, when I speak to people about my book, the first thing I still hear is, “Where can I get it?” When I tell them it’s online buy only, they’re like, “Oh” and that means, “Nevermind…not for me.” I then tell them they can order the print version from online too. I see their face lift for a moment, but I still get that feeling like, “Oh..I don’t do that much internet shopping.” LOL!!
I had to change my mindset about digital taking over print…and it will, but it still will take some time. And there will still be corporations running most of that business, because, let’s face it, most authors want to WRITE, not be a technical guru. They want to leave all that stuff to someone else…and they will pay for someone else to do it for them. Those who can do both, or most of it for themselves, have a few steps up on saving money, and more knowledge on how to get ahead in marketing a bit.
But we all still have to promote ourselves no matter what route we take.
Thanks for posting! 🙂