Writers' Rebellion
There is a quiet revolution underway in publishing these
days. In response to technological advances, the ability to store manuscripts on
disk and print copies only as they are needed, thousands of writers are
circumventing conventional publishing by choosing to self-publish, and the
numbers are expected to keep on growing. This is not to be confused with the
‘vanity press’ of old, whereby an author surrendered huge sums of money for
little or no return, or the do-it-yourself publishing that was a long, tedious
and confusing process. In the last ten years or so, an increasing number of
innovative publishing services have been created to make self-publishing a
quick, affordable, accessible and exciting route to publication in which the
author retains full copyright and editorial control. Halleluiah! Writers have
been liberated!
Traditionally, writers have often been halted at the starting gate by publishing
houses standing like monolithic giants judging whose words pass muster and may
proceed into the public domain. Constant talk of rejection slips, slush piles
and the need for literary agents just to catch the attention of said monolithic
giants has deterred many more sensitive writers from even making the initial
approach. Words that might have changed a life, opened a heart or brightened a
day have never been read.
With Jill Tipping, I recently co-founded Kavanagh Tipping Publishing because of
a growing conviction that writers need more support and encouragement to put
their voices ‘out there’. Major publishing companies in partnership with chain
bookstores that all stock the same titles have too much influence over what we
read. There’s nothing sinister in that; it’s an inevitable by-product of mass
marketing. But we are not a homogenized mass that flourishes by being spoon-fed,
especially when it comes to imagination, ideas, perceptions and experience.
It’s a great loss to society as a whole when individual voices are drowned out
by the loud ones. People who are drawn to writing as a creative form of
self-expression are a particular breed: they observe and interpret life whilst
living it and, like all artists, have a need to communicate their vision. It
takes courage, because it is honesty - the willingness to be vulnerable and to
write from the heart of one’s own truth - rather than sophisticated literary
ability, that unlocks the unique ‘voice’ that is every writer’s birthright. That
is what ‘speaks’ to the shared humanity of the reader. Spanning centuries and
continents, that is what the simplicity of ten-year-old Mattie Stepanek, the
complex genius of Tolstoy, and the everyday ordinariness of Housewife 49 all
have in common: the integrity of the heart. The world needs more of that, and
we’re discovering it tucked away in corners.
Distribution and sales may be a headache for those hoping to produce a best
seller. However, self-published books that have been test marketed successfully
invariably attract the attention of conventional publishing houses, and
self-publishing has been the route to substantial contracts for more than a few
authors - John Grisham and Margaret Atwood, to name but two on a long list. The
Celestine Prophecy, Embraced by the Light and The Christmas Box are examples of
books self-published by the authors and later sold for hundreds of thousands of
pounds to publishing houses, who then went on to sell millions of copies.
From a less expansive viewpoint, we can reclaim family history in a way that
gives us a new sense of place and belonging in the ongoing family story we are
living, and, in so doing, pass that legacy to our descendants. Personalized
history (The Diary of Anne Frank is a perfect example) has emotional clout: it’s
the human aspect that hits home, provides insights and nurtures understanding in
a way that factual information alone does not. All those old photographs in
boxes at the back of the wardrobe or under the bed can be combined with moving,
funny or inspirational anecdotes to make beautiful gift books for immediate and
extended family members. Collections of letters can be the bones on which to
flesh out the lives of those now gone. Such short run limited editions or even
single copies (unique gifts for those significant birthdays) are now entirely
possible.
Whether their work reaches countless readers or a handful, writers are blessed
or cursed with an inner compulsion that makes writing an end in itself, which it
must be if the work is to be worthwhile and viable. Publication, on the other
hand, is the icing on the cake that used to reside more in the realm of dream
than manifest reality. It has emerged to rest comfortably, and appropriately, in
the hands of the writer.
Frances Kavanagh is the author of two self-published books (so far), and a
co-founder of Kavanagh Tipping Publishing, which offers a range of services to
support and encourage writers at every level from initial idea to publication.
Tel: 07853216102
Email: fjkavanagh @ gmail.com
Article from Go Folkestone Newsletter December 2007
