You Get What You Don’t Pay For…by Dee Stewart
Written by Dee Stewart · September 22, 2009 · 297 views
A few weeks ago I received an email from a Christian Fiction Blog (www.christianfiction.blogspot.com) subscriber that surprised me. He/she thanked me for my blog (it turned 5 this past July) and told me that she/he had printed many of my posts and put them in a notebook. For years he/she had been using my tips and it had proven successful for the author. Although I was flattered by the knowledge that someone found a post or two helpful, he/she knocked the wind out of my sail.
As great as I love to give great content to my readers, I also love to provide for my daughter. I wondered what value are my words to the reading community. I wondered what are authors willing to pay for, and most importantly, is what they’re getting for nothing worth it.
This week at The Writers View, an online community of Christian publishing industry professionals, we were discussing the devaluing of service providers (reviewers, virtual assistants, proofers, copy editors, Prs.) We learned some publicists had been stiffed by their clients, authors been jerked by their publishing houses, publishing houses robbed by their distributors…the list goes on, a chain reaction from top to bottom. The only reason you don’t see it, because it never affects their personal bottom lines. However, us plain folk…
Once people’s money get funny they do unfunny things like:
* trolling the internet for book marketing tip freebies like the kind you would find at Christian Fiction Blog without acknowledging where you received the information from
* pulling contacts from author’s guest books to build an unauthorized eblast list
* circumventing publicists with the hopes of getting bookings from the contacts they had introduced you, so as not to pay you for creating that opportunity
* asking family and friends to preorder a book that you haven’t published yet, because they don’t have the money to pay the publisher
* cutting discount deals with wholesalers which albeit saves your bottom line, but ruins your relationship with your authors
* book reviewers throwing out 5 star ratings like Santa Claus holding a bag of candy in a Christmas parade to get good page ranks
All those acts aren’t illegal; some are even applauded, but all border the fence of carrying a stench of unethical. And this bad practices issue is the rub for this post.
What are you getting for free? Are you really getting what you don’t pay for? How would you know?
Here are four sure indicators that you may need to retool your current tactics:
* you didn’t have a contract with the event planner, so now you’re stuck footing the bill just to save face
* book club presidents aren’t responding to your boilerplate release
* authors jumping ship
* distributors refusing your catalog or an audience with you
So how do we stop the madness?
* authors: drop the myth that there is a cookie cutter application to breaking 21k in book sales. Just because your favorite author bought a Facebook ad doesn’t mean you need to.
* hire an agent to fight for your book, a VA to fight for your production, a publicist to fight for your image and an editor to fight for your message
* publishing houses stop substituting championing for your authors for a lackluster online marketing campaign
* publicists stop overpricing for items the author can do themselves
* understand that a price will be paid for what we do either now or later and with double doses
* and most importantly, understand that if the publishing industry does not begin to take care of each other without hurting the other, the entire thing implodes
Dee Stewart is the owner of DeeGospel PR, an entertainment PR boutique located in Atlanta, GA. She specializes in literary publicity, music promotion, ministry and green business marketing and PR. Visit her at http://christianfiction.blogspot.com or the PR site at http://deegospelpr.com.
YES!
i take it you approve, angelia
Wow. As a reader I am obviously shocked. I guess one never knows what’s going on behind the scenes. Thank you for sharing the wisdom.
I agree, Mary! I never knew they behind-the-scenes stuff that goes on. However, I have seen books that were rated 5 stars, and I wondered if we were reading the same book! LOL
Mary and Susan, I hope I don’t focus a nasty lens on the industry. My aim was to have an honest conversation and implore those of us in the industry to work together. We can react to the downturn in our economy in a positive way, but when service providers and authors are taken advantage of we provide a disservice to the reading community, you guys.
Thanks for sharing Miss Stewart, as a new writer you find yourself in a whirlwind of little tasks. Doing the marketing, publicity, social networking, researching the internet for new ways and new flavs to promote your book, in a tasteful and professional manner. And before you know it, you are no longer writing, you are doing a lot of nothing, if you are not careful. I am grateful for your tips. But I do respect the fact that you took the time to compile this information and that time costs.
P.s. I look forward to your book hitting the shelves God knows best . . .wink
Alethea J. Brown, author
I Don’t Want To Be A “Mom” Today !!!
This is the old crabs in a barrell, authors, publishers, editors, are not helping each other. It’s about the almight dollar and self.
As always, great job! You hit it on the head. “…understand that if the publishing industry does not begin to take care of each other without hurting the other, the entire thing implodes.”
Maya Angelou once said “When you know better, you do better…”
We know. Now it’s time to do.
Again great job!
thanks, ladies.
What a great post Dee! Informative and realistic….no candy coating.
Connect with you soon.
Dee,
This was a great post. I learned a lot about the side of the industry readers don’t necessarily see.
-Brenda
thanks. i’m honored i’ve gotten great feedback from you guys
Dee,
We’ve talked about this and you know as well as I where I stand. Now the world knows where you stand. Kudos for your article. We won’t event get started on publicists pushing authors they know don’t fit a venue, and other sour candy (wink wink). I just decided to allow God to magnify what will glorify Him in my books. That’s what it is most important for me…God first and everything else second. His favor and blessing over your life even more is my prayer for you.
Later,
Shawneda
Your wisdom has helped many, that is for sure. It also served as an inspiration! God has indeed used you to become an instrument to enlighten us all!