Quote:
Originally Posted by ApK
Sadly, I have found this not to be true.
It's probably not a surprise that this thread was prompted by my wading through garbage when I tried to search for some new books in genres and categories I like. (I happened to be looking for business books today, but it's happened with sf too.).
|
It seems to me that our experiences have been very different. I have found some self-published books I didn't enjoy or finish, but only one that I thought was real drivel in the sense you describe. Surprisingly enough this one was quite popular and the author had written a number of other pieces of similar drivel which also sold well. I have no idea why. Our own different experiences could be for any number of reasons. I'm not surprised that you had this problem with business books. As a general rule I have found non-fiction is not yet that strong a category for Indies. Business, self-help etc tend to attract a lot of self-styled gurus specialising in click-bait headlines attracting web traffic to often barely literate blog posts or web pages. Little wonder their books are often just more of the same. I am surprised you are having trouble finding good Indie science fiction. I have discovered a number of Indie authors of science fiction whose books I now read regularly through purchase or KU.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ApK
That does seem to be among the most popular filters available, according to the posts here.
Perhaps the preferred reviewer/recommender the new gatekeeper. Wonder how they found the book?
|
At the risk of seeming a bit pedantic, I don't think the word "gatekeeper" is accurate here. The gates are well and truly breached and the walls have crumbled. Anyone of a mind to can now publish and does. No one can keep them out. The gatekeepers whose decisions meant a book or author would never even be published (or perhaps only published through a vanity press) and would therefore effectively not be available, are gone, and I don't miss them. There are many now seeking to step in and offer some of the services previously provided by gatekeepers, including curator-ship, but now on the basis of readers voluntarily using their services. Not all are strictly above board. Many of these are in fact marketing services with vested interests. But participation is up to the reader. And unlikely successes happen, of worthy books and otherwise.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ApK
I am indeed talking about a low bar here, but i recognize that a recommendation of good books probably comes with the automatic bonus of them being non-jibberish, so that's a good solution if you have a trusted recommender.
|
This is indeed a problem. The algorithms used by Amazon, Kobo and others are far from perfect. Many of the newsletter/email type services are paid promotions. Reviews are only valuable if the reviewer shares your tastes. I do believe, however, that with such a low bar a very brief read of a sample, particularly a random one, will eliminate all but a small number of such books from contention.