So You Wanna Be a Writer: What’s The Future of Publishing?

So You Wanna Be a Writer: What's The Future of Publishing?

Today, like many other days, I was asked a familiar question:

“I really feel like the Lord is telling me to write, but I don’t know where to begin in the process. What do you advise?”

My answer isn’t particularly simple or precise.

Book publishing is where music was in 2004. Everything is in transition. No one is quite sure how things are going to look when the dust finally settles. Digital readers which are shifting the way people purchase and interact with books, and while publishers will hail particular titles as e-success stories, overall, the increase in digital sales is not keeping pace with the lack of overall sales for publishers.

This article describes the fast-growing indie eBook sales on the Kindle. One 26-year-old is pocketing millions a year without a traditional publishing contract through her sales on Amazon’s Kindle.

New competition abounds. One of the biggest competitor for publishers is simply other options for people to spend their time. Whether it’s X-Box, PS3, iTunes, Facebook, Twitter, Hulu, Megavideo, or other diversions people are learning, having fun, and spending money with something other than a book.

In addition, we’re living in a world where content has been becoming increasingly free. Why buy a Cookbook when you can snag the same recipe on demand for free online? If you splatter on a free, printed out recipe, no worries simply print out a new one. It’s not just recipes that are free. Essays, articles, excerpts and news abound. Wanna know something? Just Google it.

Thanks to the internet the availability of used books is having a significant (and often understated) impact on publishers. Why spend $19.99 on a new book, when a quarter of an inch of a click away on amazon.com, you can buy the same book for $2.97? Sure, there’s some wear on the edges and a mark on the cover, but if it’s content you’re after, then you can score a great book and still have enough cash to go out for a quick dinner at a local café. While the websites offering used books are pocketing a transaction fee and the used book sellers a thin profit, the authors and publishers are making zilch.

That’s hundreds of thousands of extra zilches a year.

That leaves the publishing houses scrambling. Authors questioning. And people who want to write asking familiar questions.

My advise for any wanna-be writer is to begin by blogging. This not only becomes fertile ground to build an audience, but allows you to test new ideas, explore reactions, and garner feedback in real time.

As you’re blogging, pay attention to what hits a chord with readers and resonates. Blogging also allows you to see if you really want to be a writer-disciplined, creative, timely, consistent. And then go to a writer’s conference and learn everything you can. Study. Ask questions. Hone your ideas. And you may just discover that what you create, in whatever form you create it, may help shape the future of publishing in ways we haven’t even imagined yet.

So you wanna be a writer? Go for it. But make sure that you watch this video clip first:

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16 Comments

Elicia Johnson on April 29, 2011 at 4:45 pm

Wow! Thank you! I’ve heard you tell your story about how you started several times. I always think, “How do I start my version of this story?” And then I think, ‘If only Margaret and I could go out for coffee and visit about life in the publishing world (and Alaska and puppies)!’ While I’m sure I would enjoy a coffee date significantly more, this post and video were what I needed. It confirmed my suspicions about the writing business but oddly enough though, it has me excited and inspired to do it anyway!
Thanks again and God Bless
Elicia