Let me just put it out there that I cannot believe the changes in the publishing industry since I've been a published author. Way back in 1996 my first published book hit the shelves. And I mean the real "bookshelves." Well, I shouldn't say "real bookshelves" because cyber shelves are just as real as the olden wooden and metal ones. But that's really one of major changes I've seen in the last two decades.
The two major changes in publishing that personally always stands out to me are the evolution of books changing from print books to ebooks and the fact that when I started out as an author, self-publishing was considered disgraceful. I did not self-publish back then, instead kept trying and ultimately was very successful at finding and being published by traditional publishers for my parenting humor books and novels. Years later, of course I established my own publishing firm and I was way ahead of my time in publishing ebooks, I was on the early end of the curve, and really was in on the ground floor in publishing something people didn't understand. But that didn't deter me, in fact, I love a good challenge.
Today in 2011, it is so accepted to self-publish that it's become the norm for writers. You want to be published? Just do it. Now, I'm not advocating for writers to slap up their manuscripts and call themselves published. Yikes. Far from it. It is not as easy as many self-proclaimed "expert" authors would have you believe. Well, let me correct myself, it's easy, but to do it right and to be successful at it, that takes work and quite frankly I don't think most people are willing to put the hours in that it takes.
It's astounding to me how the industry has changed, how everyone now serves as their own publisher, but the one thing that remains the same is the love of a great story, and the fact that to be successful in the author and/or book business, takes hard work. Are you really up for it?
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