The
book publishing industry is no longer relegated to the tens of thousands of people involved
in editing, printing, and marketing books for mainstream publishers that
release around 350,000 new books annually.
It now extends to the writers-turned-publishers, thy hybrid publishers,
and the tiny indie presses. There are
over a million new books being manufactured -- print, e-book, audio book in 2019
– and we need to call for some better quality controls.
America
needs and deserves books that are produced accurately, quickly, and with
something of value inside of them. There
are many good books out there, from traditional publishers, university presses,
self-publishers, and the indies. But,
there is also a lot of crap, stuff that should not be published or simply add
nothing to what’s already available.
We
need to raise awareness about this – and raise our standards. Right now, everyone has a rush-to-press
mentality, but quality controls suffer.
Misspellings, errors, improper quoting, and fake facts are littering our
books. We don’t need the book world to
turn into a propaganda machine, the way some traditional media outlets and social media platforms. Books need to be above that. They are comprehensive, longer-lasting pieces
of the permanent record. Our society and
culture depend on having a collection of reliable, useful, interesting books.
Some
solutions are simple. For instance:
·
No
book should be published without a trained, professional editor combing through
it.
·
No
book should be released without a fact-checker going through everything.
·
No
book should be published without a libel check by an entertainment lawyer.
·
A
book should be published only, if it offers something better, different, or updated, or at least be more entertaining than existing books. Why repeat what’s out there?
·
Reviewers
need to do a better job of pointing out errors and sloppy editing, even if
minor, even if they love the book. We
need a more accurate accounting of things.
·
Writers
should seek to explore or share a truth, but not to just propagandize or
undermine what they know to be truthful.
·
We
need to be better at separating an opinion from fact, just as the media needs
to clarify opinion editorial vs. news vs. advertising.
Perhaps
one of the biggest changes needed to happen in book publishing rests in my own
industry of book publicity. We need to
stop:
- Promoting books that are mediocre at best.
- Publicizing a book we have not read or fact-checked.
- Marketing an author we have not vetted.
- Ignoring the role money plays in which books our society and culture hear about.
It’s
hard to make a change in an industry that’s competitive and focused on being
profitable. This is as true for book
publishers as it is for other industries, but if we are to be different than an
oil company, a hedge fund, or a used car salesman, book publishing will need to
put society, truth, and quality controls before rushing to produce an inferior
product.
It may
only happen once consumers rebel, if that ever happens. Or it can happen internally, from within the
publishing industry and those that make up its ecosystem. We should all want to sell and promote the
kind of books we would want to read.
“Hope
has two beautiful daughters. Their names
are anger and courage; anger at the way things are, and courage to see that they
do not remain the way they are."
--Saint Augustine
“The
world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page.”
--Saint Augustine
“First
comes grub, then morality.”
--Bertolt Brecht
“Youth
is a defect that corrects itself with time.”
--Enrique Jardiel
Poncela
“It
is better to die fighting than to live dying.”
--Tirso de Molina
DON”T MISS THESE!!!
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Brian Feinblum’s insightful views, provocative opinions, and
interesting ideas expressed in this terrific blog are his alone and not that of
his employer or anyone else. You can – and should -- follow him on Twitter
@theprexpert and email him at brianfeinblum@gmail.com. He feels much more
important when discussed in the third-person. This is copyrighted by
BookMarketingBuzzBlog ©2019. Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in
Westchester. His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s
Independent. This was named one of the best book marketing blogs by Book
Baby http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs and
recognized by Feedspot in 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. Also
named by WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.” He recently hosted a
panel on book publicity for Book Expo America.
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