Bullies, Big Boys & Egos

Smell that? Do you smell that? That's fear and you can not only smell it, you can hear it and taste it and feel it all around you.

I'm certain that anyone involved in the publishing business in any aspect, be that author, printer or retail bookstore, has been made aware of Amazon.com's move to control the publishing world.

What fascinates me much more than the online behemoth's tactical and strategic manuevers, is how everybody is reacting. I have visited scores of blogs, social networks, and author websites, where Amazon's posturing is the topic of the day.

It's all about change and lots of people don't handle change very well. It often brings out the snarling dogs, who snap and bite everybody nearby. I am NOT amazed at some of the pompous, self-centered bullying unleashed by the Old Guard, as they are uneffectionately dubbed, those people and institutions supporting how things used to be.

The publishing world, books and magazines, is a-changing and there's not a bloody thing anybody can do about it, except complain or go along for the ride. Yes, the Internet is to blame, but not in a bad way. Technology has given a common voice to so many. That's true democracy in action, by the way.

Sure, I've read all the banter about the quality of books today, the poor writing, lousy editing, ridiculous plots, blah, blah, blah. The fact is that many books published by the BIG Boys in new York are pure crap, have lots of typos, editing mistakes, lousy editing and stupid plots. Just because a named publishing house was foolish enough to publish a certain work, doesn't give it instant credibility. Yes, there is a lot of less-than-spectacular work out there, but the customer will decide what's good and what isn't, not Borders or Barnes & Noble, not Amazon.com, not New York publishers, not anybody but the buyer.

In simple terms, all of the traditional publishing icons we've know over the years are fading and they're going fast. So who can blame them if the dig in their heels and growl? Seems perfectly normal behavior to me. It's too bad they're wasting so much energy on bad-mouthing everybody else, instead of working to be a positive influence as the change takes place.

Remember the music industry? LP's to CD's to downloads. Recording artists realized very quickly that things weren't right, that the moguls were keeping all the money. The customer didn't want to pay for LP's that scratched. They didn't want to pay for CD's that had 1 or 2 good tracks, so the consumer made it clear what they wanted. In 10 years, we won't recognize the music industry at all, because the new generation of musician is responding to the customer, providing the needs directly.

Likewise, so should publishing.

Remember Hollywood? Beta, then VHS, then laser disc, now DVD. Movies also went through an enormous change. Sure, we still go to the theater, but for the experience and movies we really want to see on the giant screen. The rest we rent on DVD. Movies open and close in a week, if they're bombs, but can be redeemed with DVD sales/rentals.

Likewise publishing. It was just a matter of time.

Now Amazon flexing it's muscles is to be expected. The final outcome is too foggy to be foretold. The backlash is already pretty vocal. It may or may not change Amazon's collective minds.

Still, for authors and independent publishers, this is a critical time. As a part of that crowd, I am welcoming the change with open arms. When the dust settles, the publishing world will be different and perhaps so much better. I tend to believe that the horizon looks very bright. What I won't be a part of is the bullying authors who strut around badmouthing all the little guys. In the end, the little guys are going to win and I want to be with the winners.

My advice? Put aside your egos, your NY attitudes, your "I'm so special" nose-in-the-clouds view of books, bookstores, and authors, so you can be a part of this glorious transition. If you're really a writer, then you put your arm around all the other writers in friendship, because you know how tough this industry can be. You support your independent bookstore, not the soulless chains. More importantly, you fight narrow-mindedness. Shame on anyone who claims to be an author, who also shuns others, just because they sought a different path. Artists are all about differences.

Please, put aside the emotional response and let's make this journey benefit anyone with the courage to put words on paper, even electronic. We're still capable of burning books, just with email, delete buttons, and inflamatory press lambasting fellow authors. Get over it!