novel online lance schaubert the downfall of the ebook

Novel Online :: How She Dethroned the eBook

Seems these days old men like me can’t keep up with the pace of publishing. And if that’s how I feel at 28 (my birthday’s this month!), I can’t imagine what it feels like to be a sixty-year-old literary agent or legacy publisher.

Honestly, I’m excited because I love adapting.

Let’s start with a couple of Cinderella stories about people who put their novel online. I mean, they have a little more grit and grist than Cinderella herself, but they’ll do.

They’ll do.

In the blue corner, we have Fifty Shades of Grey. You’ve heard the story. Girl likes Twilight. Girl makes sexually violent fanfic off of twilight. Girl posts said sexually violent fanfic on her website. Publisher responds to large influx of web traffic.

In the red corner, we have The Martian. Perhaps you didn’t know this, but Andy Weir spent a significant time as a computer programmer, publishing short stories on his own website for years before he decided to release The Martian as a serial on his site. It picked up a ton of traffic, he was approached by an agent, and sold both paperback and film rights in the same week.

Of course there are others, particularly in the nonfiction market. The Pioneer Woman. Julie and Julia and so on. It was only a matter of time before this trend picked up in the fiction market as well — that the publishing industry picked up on more than merely the audience of those with large followings, but actually picked up the content of those sites as well — that turned the novel online into a novel in-print.

Wattpad came onto the scene, offering the novel online through accounts that serialized stories to their readers. Then a million sites showed up: Booksie, Fiction Press, Figment, Widbook and a dozen others, all of them making money off of authors desperate to put a novel online.

Ultimately, this is all one giant stew of up-and-coming writers who have realized what Cory Doctorow said in multiple forums:

The main problem the modern artist faces isn’t piracy. His main problem is obscurity.

And people remain desperate to break-in, so dozens are eager to take advantage of those with a penchant for the literary version of prostitution.  That’s true. But should you simply give away two or three years worth of work for free, even if it is serialized?

I don’t know.

Me personally?

I’m starting to think of my work like a funnel. I’m more interested in being relentlessly helpful and connecting, directly, with my readership. I see value in everything I do and that means at very least trading information — an email, a name, an address. If I’m going to be giving away free copies of my work, I’m trying to give those readers a chance to connect with me directly through every chance I get. Sometimes that’s a giveaway through Noisetrade.  Sometimes that’s white pages on the site. In any case, the novel online only works if you connect with these people. Make no mistake: the viral phenomenons listed above worked, but they only worked because of their consistent roles as early adopters. They’re the exception, however much we laud the novel online.

READ NEXT:  Experimental Fiction Experiment

It’s 2016. Things have changed for the novel online.

In the coming months, I’m going to be illuminating more of what it means to develop an audience who actually want to connect with your work, who actually become advocates for you BECAUSE you’re offering them something that will actually improve their quality of life.

As Tim Grahl would say: you build an audience by making lasting connections through being relentlessly helpful.

We’ll get you there, but for now, I’m curious for your opinion:

How has the novel online changed your idea of what it means to experience fictional stories?

 

 

 


Over seven thousand people have asked me to let them know when I release free stories, cool transmedia projects, and sell articles. I write them a letter about once every other month that rounds up everything for them so that they don’t have to go digging — I like being helpful.

You want in?

* indicates required

monogram transparent

cover images are covers from the novels listed ::
Fifty Shades of Grey
&
The Martian


Be sure to share and comment. And subscribe.

Comment early, comment often, keep it civil:

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Quick note from Lance about this post: when you choose to comment (or share this post with your friends) you help other readers just like you.

How?

Well, see, your comments & sharing whisper a few things to those who come after you:

The first is that this site is a safe place to speak up & stay curious. That it's civil. That discussion is encouraged. That there's no such thing as a stupid question (being a student of Socrates, I really and truly believe this). That talking to one another and growing together is more important than anything we could possibly publish. That the point is growing in virtue and growing together and growing wise. That discovery is invention, deference is originality, that we all can rise together. The only folks I'm going to take comments down from are obvious jerks who argue in bad faith, don't stay curious, or actively make personal attacks. And, frankly, I'd rather we talk here than on some social media farm — I will never show ads and the only thing I'm selling anywhere on the site or my mailing list is just the stuff I make.

You're also helping folks realize that anything you & they build together is far more important than anything you come to me to read. I take the things I write about seriously, but I don't take myself seriously: I play the fool, I hate cults of personality, and I also don't really like being the center of attention (believe it or not). I would much rather folks connect because of an introduction I've made or because they commented with one another back and forth and then build something beautiful together. My favorite contributions have been lifelong business and love partnerships from two people who have forgotten I introduced them. Some of my closest friends NOW I literally met on another blog's comment section fifteen years ago. I would love for that to happen here — let two of you meet and let me fade into the background.

Last, you help me revise. I'm wrong. Often. I'm not embarrassed to admit it or worried about being cancelled or publicly shamed. I make a fool out of myself (that's sort of the point). So as I get feedback, I can say, "I was wrong about that" and set a model for curious, consistent learning, and growing in wisdom. I'm blind to what I don't know and as grows the island of my knowledge so grows the shoreline of my ignorance. It's the recovery of innocence on the far end of experience: a child is in a permanent state of wonder. So are the wise: they aren't afraid of saying, "I don't know. That's new: please teach me." That's my goal, comments help. And I read all reviews: my skin's tough, but that's not license to be needlessly cruel. We teach one another our habits and there's a way to civilly demolish an idea without demolishing another person: just because I personally can take the world's meanest 1-star review doesn't mean we should teach one another how to be crueler on the internet.

For three magical reasons — your brave curiosity, your community, & my ignorance:

Please comment & share with friends how you prefer to share:

Follow The Showbear Family Circus on WordPress.com

Thanks for reading the Showbear Family Circus.
  1. "I think you can write about yourself without the vain, self-focused naval gazing. Good storytelling is a gift from writers…

  2. "His fans didn’t just write fiction about it. One calculated the tensile strength of the material it was made of.…

  3. My mother was the volatile Italian and my dad was the calming influence when things went awry. Dad was our…

  4. Lancelot, thank you, for that congrats, but I fear that continues my jinxed lament - that the late Andy Warhol…

Copyright © 2010— 2023 Lancelot Schaubert.
All Rights Reserved.
If we catch you using any of the substance of this site to train any form of artificial intelligence, we will prosecute
to the fullest extent permitted by any law.

Human children and adults always welcome
to learn bountifully and in joy.