Sharon's Muse.... Let's chat over coffee while I ponder some things
|
Sharon's Muse.... Let's chat over coffee while I ponder some things |
About Me
Name::Sharon Cullars
From::
My Meez 
Recent Entries
Archives
Personal
Interesting Sites
RAINE'S BLUES 
Now available at Loose-Id Watch trailer for Raine's Blues
GOLD MOUNTAIN 
Available at Loose-Id
AGAIN
Need Flashplayer to view. Give time to load.
TOOL & BAD BOYS Short, Short Ebooks My Artwork
My Merchandise Freelance Projects
blog posts, articles, web content, resumes, copywriting, proofreading
Read my business guides at Work.com
Read my profile on Air Station Savannah's pivotal Katrina rescues
Read my article on the Fair Trade system
Credits |
Friday, November 17, 2006 Mat Johnson preaches on self-publishing...  ...and how it is ruining a generation of black writers. He discusses the subject at his blog Niggerati Manor with the subtitle: Why I Am a Much Better Writer Than Omar Tyree. And Why Omar Tyree Is a Much Better Business Man Than I Am.The author of the acclaimed Drop tells of his initial attempt to write a first novel and the subsequent, painful realization that he had skills enough "to write shitty commercial pulp" but not a "serious work of literature." His epiphany preceded the print-on-demands and the cheaper self-publishing outlets like iUniverse, for which he is grateful because he admits he might have gone that route and settled for mediocrity. Instead, his literary failure forced him to strive to become a better writer by enrolling in an MFA program. It took him four years to complete the program, but during those four years he became a stronger, more polished writer. He surmises that if he'd had the option of self-publishing, those four years "would have been spent on learning book marketing, promotion, publicity, audience identification, and all of the other many aspects of the publishing world. My time would have been spent traveling around with boxes of books in the back of my car, hand selling the thing to black bookstores and barbershops and churches, attending every cheesy promotional event I could find just to get White Chocolate Melts out there, no matter how flawed it was. I would have created press packets and done mailings and been out there schmoozing, trying to sneak my way onto every local TV and radio station I could find. "And at the end of that four years, I would probably have several books, having written them in a month or two to expand my product line. And with no real time for craft and my attention completely focused on the market, each would have sucked roughly as much as the first one. Having spent the bulk of my energy on the commerce instead of the art, I would have remained the same shitty writer I was when I started. The moment I chose to self-publish, I would have ceased to make substantial growth. I would have virtually calcified ." Johnson's candor is bound to rile those who have taken this route, and yet he speaks the truth in a lot of cases. Self-publishing is a dicey enterprise because there is the danger of self-delusion about one's ability and much more time has to be focused on marketing efforts than honing the craft. On the other hand, many good works might not have ever gotten into the public's hands without the self-investment their authors took (we all know the story of the Celestine Prophecy). As for the subtitle, Johnson might want to stay as far away from brother Tyree as possible. Although, you never know, Tyree just might agree with him. Labels: Writing
|
| Layout Design by Hajira | Thanks to:Getty Images • Blogspot • Blogskins • |
