Hello, my name is Elly Zupko and my writing has been rejected over 60 times.
I have to be careful not to say “I have been rejected over 60 times.” It’s the writer’s dilemma that her writing is an intrinsic part of her self, but that it must also be separated as a severed other so that the writer can maintain a modicum of self-esteem and go on to create more. From agent and publisher rejections, to scathing reviews, to lack of sales, the writer is assailed at all sides by judgment as to the viability—commercial, creative—of their output.
Writing (specifically long-form fiction) is one of the last of the creative arts to arrive at the party that is the independent movement. Until recently, thanks to e-publishing and inexpensive print-on-demand services, publishing one’s own work was considered to be a vain endeavor. It wasn’t self-publishing so much as self-indulgence. Wankery. A self-published novel equated with some sort of trash worse than pulp. The lot was tainted by a few loudly rotten pieces, and for decades it wasn’t acceptable to put out your own material. It wasn’t acceptable to be confident in your product, or to be tentative but brave.
This list is all over, but it bears repeating. Famous authors who self-published:
Mark Twain, John Grisham, L. Ron Hubbard, Walt Whitman, Beatrix Potter, Thomas Paine, Edgar Allan Poe, T.S. Elliot, Carl Sandberg, Gertrude Stein, Deepak Chopra, Upton Sinclair, D.H. Lawrence, George Bernard Shaw, e.e. cummings, Henry David Thoreau, Virginia Woolf, Margaret Atwood, Tom Clancy, Stephen Crane, etc.
In April 2011, I finished my first novel, The War Master's Daughter. I submitted it to over 30 agents. Over 20 of them returned form rejections. Two of them returned personal rejections to the tune of, “Liked it, but not enough.” Many didn’t reply at all—a disappointing new trend in publishing (“will not reply unless interested”). One agent, on whom my hopes were firmly planted, requested the full manuscript within the first few hours of receiving my query. She kept the manuscript for almost two months, and when she finally replied, it was a form rejection that could be boiled down to: “I just wasn’t in love with it enough. I have to consider the market.”
At that moment—no, several days later; I had to cry a lot first—I decided I was not going to be a part of the publishing rat race. If one person is going to decide the fate of my book, it is going to be me.
And I made it happen: The War Master's Daughter is now available in paperback and e-book formats.
And I made it happen: The War Master's Daughter is now available in paperback and e-book formats.
Patronage and Independent Publishing
There are centuries of history behind patronage of the arts, with the most detailed recorded history of it occurring from the Medieval to the Renaissance periods. Shakespeare, Da Vinci, and Mozart all benefitted from the assistance of sponsors in the creation of their art.
There are centuries of history behind patronage of the arts, with the most detailed recorded history of it occurring from the Medieval to the Renaissance periods. Shakespeare, Da Vinci, and Mozart all benefitted from the assistance of sponsors in the creation of their art.
As it was then, however, patronage now is concentrated in small, powerful, elitist centers—mostly corporations, government, and educational institutions. Whenever control over decisions is concentrated, the art output is purposely or inadvertently homogenized, with a bent towards return-on-investment. This does not bode well for the independent artist, from whose mind commercialization is often far away.
Those arts which can be reproduced, packaged, and commoditized—namely, books and music—are extremely susceptible to death by lack of perceived commercial appeal. Large upfront costs for said packaging and reproduction, combined with the paradox of economies of scale, make independence in these media cost prohibitive for the so-called “starving artist.”
But thanks to the power of the internet, social networking, and (dare I use the term) crowdsourcing, the decision-making power can be spread across the masses and the risk/reward model changes. The risk for the patron is diluted to almost nothing. The reward for the artist is that she foregoes being a (financial, intellectual, creative) debtor and remains the artist, with requisite artistic control.
By dealing with the artist directly, the patron can now directly contribute to the creation and distribution of a new work. Once, the publisher would put out tens of thousands of dollars in what was essentially a gamble, expecting, no, hoping for that return on investment. Now, the investment is small—the price of one book—and the expected return is not financial; it is creative, intellectual, soulful. The patron transcends commercial consumer to become part of the creation myth.
So how does this work? If you want to buy the book, buy it directly from SMLX Books. As an author, I make approximately six times the royalties if you purchase from the publisher instead of from Amazon. That means more money goes toward the independent artist instead of to one of the largest corporations in the world. You'll also get cool goodies (while supplies last), including:
By dealing with the artist directly, the patron can now directly contribute to the creation and distribution of a new work. Once, the publisher would put out tens of thousands of dollars in what was essentially a gamble, expecting, no, hoping for that return on investment. Now, the investment is small—the price of one book—and the expected return is not financial; it is creative, intellectual, soulful. The patron transcends commercial consumer to become part of the creation myth.
So how does this work? If you want to buy the book, buy it directly from SMLX Books. As an author, I make approximately six times the royalties if you purchase from the publisher instead of from Amazon. That means more money goes toward the independent artist instead of to one of the largest corporations in the world. You'll also get cool goodies (while supplies last), including:
- The author's signature on your book (if you want)
- A WMD oval bumper sticker
- A beautiful bookmark
- A postcard so you can tell your best friend or your mother about the book
Get Informed, Join the Conversation, and Spread the Word
Independent publishing, like any independent art, functions best when there is an active conversation between the artist and the patrons--the author and the readers. Stay updated on the progress and new information by following my blog here, or joining me on Twitter (@ellyzupko) or Facebook. You can also join the conversation about writing and publishing by commenting on blog posts, or send an email to ellyzupko at gmail.com. I'd love to hear from you, and I will reply! I need all the support and advice I can get, and would love to share the knowledge I've gained through my own process.
If you're interested in me, my novel, or the story of independent publishing, please spread the word. You can link to book excerpts, tweet a picture of my book cover, tell your friends to visit the Facebook page, or gift the eBook to a fellow reader. Once you get your copy, you can post reviews on Amazon or on your own blog, suggest it at your book club, or lend it to a friend.
Word-of-mouth is really all I have, since commercial advertising is out of my reach--and frankly isn't usually successful. My book is not going to end up one the shelves of Conglomeration Books; it doesn't work that way. I need your help to spread the word.
Independent publishing, like any independent art, functions best when there is an active conversation between the artist and the patrons--the author and the readers. Stay updated on the progress and new information by following my blog here, or joining me on Twitter (@ellyzupko) or Facebook. You can also join the conversation about writing and publishing by commenting on blog posts, or send an email to ellyzupko at gmail.com. I'd love to hear from you, and I will reply! I need all the support and advice I can get, and would love to share the knowledge I've gained through my own process.
If you're interested in me, my novel, or the story of independent publishing, please spread the word. You can link to book excerpts, tweet a picture of my book cover, tell your friends to visit the Facebook page, or gift the eBook to a fellow reader. Once you get your copy, you can post reviews on Amazon or on your own blog, suggest it at your book club, or lend it to a friend.
Word-of-mouth is really all I have, since commercial advertising is out of my reach--and frankly isn't usually successful. My book is not going to end up one the shelves of Conglomeration Books; it doesn't work that way. I need your help to spread the word.
