Whither (or Wither) Publishing

A piece in recent New York Times Book Review provoked some letters to the editor. They and the author’s response, in turn, provoked response in my online writing group. The questions revolved around the role and virtues of traditional publishing in comparison to the world being formed by the digital onslaught. I too had some reactions. They slightly amended are below.

The letters and writer's response illustrate the complexity and crazy-making of the current techno disruption.

1. Amazon is not the Walmart of book publishing. It is Walmart. It's mission seems to be to sell everything to everybody, and a key tactic is to sell everything for less so as to own the market share. Ultimately, that can harm its suppliers.

2. I am grateful to Amazon for its Kindle and CreateSpace divisions. They’ve helped us publish a novel that otherwise would not be published. Now it's my job to see if I can find a market. Also, as a  reader,  I like having all my stuff in one lightweight, portable place.

3. The  sanguine view  of the finer glories of traditional publishing's value added ---"promotion and development"  is quaint.

4. A contention that the real climb in e-bookssales is due to "one-time conversion of great titles from publishers’ backlists. . .  reprints" is "illusory" misses the point. When Sony and Phillips introduced CDs (in '82 I think) the great majority of purchases were by boomers who could afford the equipment and were eager to rebuild and recreate their music libraries. It was a backlist experience. Equipment prices went down.CDs went universal.

5. The real battle being waged now is over who and what shapes standard business practices and thereby controls the market. With every shift and tumble in book publishing, authors have been the collateral damage. This period is no different, except. . .

6. The notion of what constitutes a brand represents a modicum of hope. Authors have a greater opportunity to be seen as brands than publishers. That's not to say, every author a Proctor &  Gamble. But with somewhat favorable payment arrangements, the current new publishing model could work work well.

7. Remenber when Barnes & Noble was the villain?