Saturday, October 23, 2010

Saul Bellow to Philip Roth

An interesting missive on why author's write.  I give much thanks to my brother Dave for sending me the letter.  I'm going to go get the book of all of Bellow's letters.


To Philip Roth:

January 7, 1984
Chicago

Dear Philip:

I thought to do something good by giving an interview to People, which was
exceedingly foolish of me.  I asked Aaron [Asher] to tell you that the Good
Intentions Paving Company had fucked up again.  The young interviewer turned my
opinions inside out, cut out the praises and made it all sound like disavowal,
denunciation and excommunication.  Well, we're both used to this kind of thing,
and beyond shock.  In agreeing to take the call, and make a statement I was
simply muddle-headed.  But if I had been interviewed by an angel for
the Seraphim and Cherubim Weekly I'd have said, as I actually did say to the
crooked little slut, that you were one of our very best and most interesting
writers.  I would have added that I was greatly stimulated and entertained by
your last novel, and that of course after three decades I understood perfectly
well what you were saying about the writer's trade - how could I not understand,
or miss suffering the same pains.  Still our diagrams are different, and the
briefest description of the differences would be that you seem to have accepted
the Freudian explanation: A writer is motivated by his desire for fame, money
and sexual opportunities.  Whereas I have never taken this trinity of motives
seriously.  But this is an explanatory note and I don't intend to make a
rabbinic occasion of it.  Please accept my regrets and apologies, also my best
wishes.  I'm afraid there's nothing we can do about the journalists; we can only
hope that they will die off as the deerflies do towards the end of August.

- Saul Bellow, Letters


So what are your trinity of motives for writing?

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Packing Books

I'm moving my physical library.  I'm at 30 boxes and not even half done.  I've read countless articles on digital books and I love my 350+ digital library that is with me all the time, but I've never once read anything about whether an important metaphor will be lost with the digital flood.

Words are so heavy.

Words overwhelm me, press down on me.  I pick up a box of books and the muscles strain and my breathing quickens.  I hold in my arms the lives of people -- authors, actors, translators, editors, typesetters, booksellers.  Their words are heavy.

Dust has accumulated on the shelf were they sat.  No book burning ash, but they have returned to dust.  I could start reading my library today and if I did nothing else, I would be dust before I finished.

Tomes are tombs where we bury our dead.   And the tombs are made of heavy granite.

Monday, October 18, 2010

Everyone Has Ink By the Barrel

Now everyone has ink by the barrel, the power will go to those who can hold our attention.

The changes in publishing are exciting, but how do you get past the narcissism of an audience of one?  The CEO of Border's stated, " “Everyone has a story to tell, pictures to share or advice to give."  Yes, we want to hear other people's stories, but even more so, we want our story heard, often to the exclusion of everyone else.  The paradox is we want connectivity and individuality.

Facebook quickly turns into numbing sameness.  Everyone may have pictures to share and advice to give -- and most of it is bad or mediocre at best.

Places like Borders, Amazon, B&N, Apple that allow us to self-publish are cashing in on our narcissism -- post your stuff for people to buy.  Maybe only 3 people will buy it, but hey, that is OK, because we publish everyone and 3 times everyone is a lot of money for us.  This is vanity publishing exploded into tiny little profitable bits.

I am in the race, but not the publish everything race.  I'm in the filter race.   Even the filter world will be fractioned, but the filter pie is the pie I want to eat -- not the crumbs of self-publishing.

Friday, October 15, 2010

The Problem with Retail

I wanted to buy something, so I went to Best Buy, Staples, Office Max, and Target.

Every response was the same: " This is only available on-line.  I could order it for you."

Uh, I can do that myself.  I wanted it today, not tomorrow.  Retail needs to be re-thunk.

Monday, October 11, 2010

The Publishing Pendulum

Traditional publishing is restrictive.  The restriction comes from economic constraints on the publisher. Publishing has always been a few hits to lots of misses and the only way to eliminate the economic risk was an extreme conservative approach. Yes, many authors are feeling the liberation of not having to answer to those conservative publishing enclaves, but economics still govern.

The problem isn't being "branded" as a self published author, but rather the author never gets a brand. JA Konrath has a brand, "the self-publish" brand, which he has been cultivating for a couple of years quite successfully. This is why his books sell. Everyone knows who he is, even people who don't read his type of books.

Somewhere there is a happy in-between, a sweet spot where the author has freedom, the publisher allows it and readers get what they want and a lot of books get sold as everyone plays off each other's strengths and needs. I think that is the future and that the self-publishing pendulum will swing back until it is resting somewhere in the middle -- which is good news for the middleman.

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Content, Content, Content

What makes a book last?
To play off the old real estate adage -- content, content, content.

I can't even keep up with the stuff I write, let alone anyone else, and I read -- a lot. As a publisher, I hope I can direct my readers to the types of content they desire. Desired content is as varied as humanity, so directing the reader to what they may be interested in feels like an overwhelming task.

I feel the tension as I've begun the publishing company in a whole new way. Immediate gratification seems to drive the human compulsion to buy. And motivating the compulsion to buy is what a business is all about. Content, however, is what gives the book legs. A great book is not like a great feast. A great book can sit on the shelf for decades and it will still be a great book. A great feast can sit on the table for about four hours before it starts to go bad. The battle between immediacy and longevity is just one paradox the writer and the publisher must face, but it is a biggie.

As a publisher, I hope I can provide great books and great feasts.

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

The Flood of Words

Authors and writers are finding themselves in a similar position to musicians, except that is hard to go on tour and play to large crowds. The entire blog tour idea is somewhat analogous, but no T-shirts and beer.

I'm not so sure how it will all work out either. It is a great time to be a reader is a little bit like saying it is a great time to be swimmer during a flood. I'm not sure what the landscape is going to look like after the flood, but everybody needs to be finding an ark.

I think the easiest way around the pandering of self-promotion is a straightforward, outright declaration of what your self-interest is. I just got finished reading Christopher Hitchen's memoir and his friendship and relationship with Martin Amis and Salaman Rushdie didn't stop him from commenting fully on those authors or praising their work.

Taste is taste. If you like someone's taste, odds are someone with similar taste will like yours too. Think staff recommendations at the indie book stores. It won't matter if it is a book written by them or a friend or relative. Influence comes from the reader's taste and finding other reader's with similar taste. Think of it as the log you grab as the Titanics of publishing sink.

So What Does It Take To Be Officially a Publisher?

I'd say four books is a start.

TDTM
Falling Back To Earth
The Fourth World
Twisted Sister

The crazy thing -- this is going to be over ten within the next week or so. I will also be adding four or five more authors.

I love my new job (and I still have that attorney day job).

Saturday, October 2, 2010

Books v. eBooks: A Non-Argument

Too much time is wasted on the argument over books versus eBooks. Formatting has always changed. The fact that Shakespeare may have wrote with a quill and his plays were originally preserved in folios doesn't much matter today. The only thing that mattered is the words that dripped off his pen -- and the word's impact on audiences, culture and the language.

What matters today is the same as the 1600s -- whether the words will last. Any real writer will strive to have words that impact. The only real discussion about formatting should be about how to reach the widest possible audience for words that truly need a wide audience.

This comment brought to you by my sponsor: Binary Press Publications


You can buy the first two publications:  here and here.

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