As I mentioned in our last post, in order to meet the demands of the new marketplace, both writers (including entrepreneurs who wish to become bestselling authors), and publishers, need to change the way they do business. Here let’s look at what publishers might do to stay ahead of a changing marketplace.
- Become career managers rather than marketers of books. Many top music artists now sign with companies such as Live Nation to organize the rights to concerts, music-related projects, albums, tours and merchandise. Now, authors are less likely to go on tour (though a rare few, such as David Sedaris, have public events), but many can diversify beyond the book. We’ve already long recommended that authors use their books as ways to build their business. But both nonfiction and fiction authors can work with publishers to see how together they can expand on the book, into video, film, television and other projects.
- Become talent houses. Why should literary agents work with publishers on their own? Why shouldn’t more and more literary agents become marketers – some are already doing that, branching into film work – but also publishers themselves? It’s true that a few literary agencies are beginning to offer e-publishing options – but there’s no reason an agency can’t be more than the person who offers a book to a publisher. The literary agency world is already in a state of flux over self-publishing and lower book advances – why not rework what a literary agent can be?
- Become multi-dimensional. Publishers should be able to develop, nurture and profit from talent rather than being one component of a writer’s livelihood. This would mean that the cost of an individual book becomes far less important than other aspects of a writer’s career.
- Become talent seekers. Publishers shouldn’t rely on literary agents to find talent. They should actively seek writers and entrepreneurs whose careers they could help advance, much as the better talent agencies do. What prevents a publisher from soliciting manuscripts or searching blogs and elsewhere for original voices? The hoary old myth of the publisher as gatekeeper has been debunked, as a lot of self-published work is of a very high quality. Publishers shouldn’t sit idly by as authors look for ways on their own to engage with a public.
We’ll explore more of what authors can do in the new marketplace, in our next post.