Come closer, so I can whisper you a tale of what used to happen to stories in the Dark Ages of Publishing. They used to die. Yes, that's right. They simply disappeared from the shelves without a trace. One day the books were there on display, beckoning you with bright colours and brighter promises. And then... well, they were gone. In their place were other books, perhaps with equally bright colours and with promises just as dazzling; but those original ones, the unique stories that had been there, were gone forever.
Bookstores were graveyards.
The life span of stories has now changed. Twenty years ago, when my novel, Zenith, was first published in the traditional manner, it had, like the vast majority of its brethren, a life of 3-6 months on the bookstore shelves. Three to six months. That was pretty much the only light it had, the only oxygen it was given – unless it became an instant high seller (akin to winning the lottery twice in a row for a first time novelist). After that time, booksellers started taking it off the shelves to make room for the next hopeful novelist. That was the system. Out you go – let's try something else for 3-6 months. And then let's try something else. And then... you get the picture.
Three to six months. There are single-celled amoebas with longer life spans!
How the world of Publishing has changed since then! Zenith (with its two sequels, Equinox and Eclipse) were released as eBooks in November last year by the same publisher that published Zenith twenty years ago – and what a difference.
It's now been over 3 months and The Books of Ascension are steadily gaining momentum. They're only starting to grow into their potential, and the great news is: rather than being killed before they mature, they'll be alive forever. Books in the New Age of Publishing are immortal. Time is now on the side of the story, rather than its enemy. No one will whisk books off their virtual shelves to make room for other novels because the virtual bookshelf is infinite.
We don't need to whisper stories of dying books anymore. The Dark Ages of Publishing are gone. Long live the forever stories!
Bookstores were graveyards.
The life span of stories has now changed. Twenty years ago, when my novel, Zenith, was first published in the traditional manner, it had, like the vast majority of its brethren, a life of 3-6 months on the bookstore shelves. Three to six months. That was pretty much the only light it had, the only oxygen it was given – unless it became an instant high seller (akin to winning the lottery twice in a row for a first time novelist). After that time, booksellers started taking it off the shelves to make room for the next hopeful novelist. That was the system. Out you go – let's try something else for 3-6 months. And then let's try something else. And then... you get the picture.
Three to six months. There are single-celled amoebas with longer life spans!
How the world of Publishing has changed since then! Zenith (with its two sequels, Equinox and Eclipse) were released as eBooks in November last year by the same publisher that published Zenith twenty years ago – and what a difference.
It's now been over 3 months and The Books of Ascension are steadily gaining momentum. They're only starting to grow into their potential, and the great news is: rather than being killed before they mature, they'll be alive forever. Books in the New Age of Publishing are immortal. Time is now on the side of the story, rather than its enemy. No one will whisk books off their virtual shelves to make room for other novels because the virtual bookshelf is infinite.
We don't need to whisper stories of dying books anymore. The Dark Ages of Publishing are gone. Long live the forever stories!
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