Book proliferation: The pros and cons
Stephen Fraser, a marketer for Lulu, a print-on-demand outlet for self-publishing writers, is hardly the most disinterested guy on the headlined topic. Still, he has an interesting take:
I think most reasonable people would agree that there are both positive and negative aspects to the proliferation of books and other content. The overabundance of books is certainly bad from the standpoint of profitability if your business is based on making blockbusters (as opposed to nichebusters). If you are the author of a book–especially a novel–and you want as many people to read it as possible, then the environment may seem depressingly competitive. But for anyone who believes in free and open markets this should be an inspiring sight. For those publishing from among traditionally underrepresented populations it is inspiring…
The most important thing to remember is that this proliferation is the product of technological progress. The economics of publishing have changed. You can publish a book for free on Lulu. There’s no going back…
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