It was such a treat to be invited to talk at The Writing Coach's annual Getting Published Day.
I really enjoyed chatting with Jacqui’s writers plus the two literary agent speakers and her special guest, Louise Doughty. But it was also a chance to reflect. I was glad to be able to share just how much the landscape has changed since I got my own mainstream publishing deal as a novelist back in 2001.
Blackbird was the UK’s first digital publishing company, launched in 2009 when there was still a great deal of scepticism around ebooks, digital publishing, and so-called ‘vanity’ self-publishing. It all began by accident, when the (wonderfully funny) travel writer Susie Kelly got in touch via my (anonymous, miserable author) blog and asked if I’d be interested in e-publishing her book The Valley of Heaven and Hell: Cycling in the Shadow of Marie-Antoinette.
She had published successfully with Transworld until her agent died and she found herself out of contract. At that time ebooks were only available on US Amazon. Valley soared up the Amazon US charts, and we've worked together ever since. I think we've published around 15 titles to date, including her Transworld rights-reverted backlist. I imagine publishing contracts have tightened up since then, and those backlist rights aren’t so easily come by. Another backlist title Blackbird is proud to publish is The Writing Coach founder Jacqui Lofthouse’s much-lauded Bloomsbury novel Bluethroat Morning.
Self-publishing has truly come of age. The publishing options for writers today are many and varied. Some go on from self-publishing to secure major contracts with mainstream publishers - often genre-focused authors of thrillers or romantasy. Others publish new work or backlists with small digital publishers like Blackbird. Some become authorpreneurs, managing their own author businesses. This takes learning and dedication, especially in marketing and advertising, and isn’t for everyone. But these days, it is possible to make a decent living, or more, through writing.
My favourite outcome from all the changes in publishing over the years is the growing respect the industry now has for authors. Even more important, perhaps, is the self-respect that savvy self-published authors now have in spades.
A shout-out to Jacqui’s fantastic artist husband David - isn’t he great? As a cartoonist, live illustrator and caricaturist, he’s hugely in demand for corporate events, weddings, and big birthdays (including HM The Queen’s 80th!). If you can book early enough, check him out here: David Lewis – Live Illustrator. And of course, to Jacqui and all of her consultants: whatever genre you’re writing in, fiction, memoir or non-fiction and, I believe, screenwriting, she’ll be able to match you with a personal mentor. There’s also a terrific community element, with online and in-person workshops and outings. Just look at this sumptuous writing retreat in Portugal currently on offer!
Write a comment