Quote:
Originally Posted by fjtorres
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She got started in a whole different era.
Yes, it's true that mastering craft is foremost. But these days, there happen to be other opportunities and any businesswoman has to look at the whole range of possibles. There's nothing golden or special about being published by a publisher. The end goal is to be read by readers (usually). People often confuse the "holy grail" of being published by a publisher instead of breaking it down into: What do they have to offer? What can I do for myself and who can do it better? Will I make more money/fans by doing it myself or through a publisher? Is that important to me?
These points are *especially* true if you already have a following of readers and want to branch out into a new genre or perhaps you want to publish a book that your publisher isn't interested in. Maybe your editor has left the team and you're not getting enough attention from your new editor. Maybe you'd like to try self-publishing for artistic reasons, to have the freedom to choose your own cover. It's like any other business. You look at what it takes to get to the end goal. And getting "published" is just a step. There are lots of goals attached to publishing: Getting into the hands of readers and/or making a living or for some, being recognized...that sort of thing.
Know your goal. Go after it in the way that makes sense. If the "badge" of honor of being published by NY means something to you or if working with a particular editor means something to you, then by all means, do your best to get there.
If you're after readers, right now, there are more ways than one to get there.
Grafton is well-known. She isn't going to be ignored by her editors or their marketing team. That isn't necessarily the case for a debut author.
And self-publishing doesn't mean you can't still try for a big publisher either. Maybe not with that book, but with others. It's not all black and white. Lots of paths up the mountain.
I think for her era, it was probably true. I don't really (obviously) buy it right now.