Hey fam,
I like to start these notes as though we’re in the middle of a conversation, but so much has happened in this last month that I feel I need to catch you up.
So, first, I started working with a tech company to build out all their content and even though I’m only a week in, I’m absolutely loving it. I have a background in tech (I studied Information Technology in college and my first job was for a tech magazine) and until recently, I hadn’t realized how much I missed writing, talking, and researching new innovations in this space.
As I was finalizing that contract, I pitched a long-form tech piece and it got immediate interest from a major publication, so now I’m doing a bunch of research to see if it’s actually a viable story and how I might want to report it if it works out.
Lastly, I finally have clarity on what I want to do with my books and overall publishing career. What I want it to look like, and how I want to work in the day to day.
Here’s what happened:
One of my indie books sold enough copies in the last few weeks that had it been traditionally published, it would have landed on several bestseller lists.
But had it been traditionally published:
- My publisher wouldn’t have allowed me to do this price promotion through direct sales.
- I would have made a quarter of the money.
- I wouldn’t have my readers’ email addresses, readers who may be interested in my other books and other higher-priced products.
(Hi to everyone who found this newsletter through that promotion! So excited to have you here!)
So, the question I have now is what, if any, benefit is there of publishing via traditional mediums?
Other than stroking my ego, what can a publisher do for me that I can’t do for myself?
My novels bring back racist rejections from legacy publishers while my indie books are making a growing and sustainable income.
I get regular emails from many of you asking where you can read my novels and short stories, but I have nothing to offer you because editors in London or New York still believe that white readers don’t want to read global stories. They don’t care about non-white readers. We’re non-existent as a demographic in marketing conversations.
I was asked by an editor in New York to give a bigger voice to the white male rapist in my novel so we could better understand his perspective and where he’s coming from. This is the sort of editorial request people of color still get in 2021, post the #metoo movement.
What’s worse is that I’m so used to this shit at this point that I didn’t even react. I wrote a polite email thanking her for her “careful consideration of my work” and her “helpful suggestions.”
My mentor threw a fit.
My husband threw an even bigger one.
So, I feel done with the traditional side of things. I don’t want my books to make money for agents and publishers who see me and anyone who isn’t cis and white as lesser than.
Plus, given all the opportunities that are suddenly exploding for authors, it feels incredibly short-sighted to continue pursuing old models.
I am very excited about what’s coming, but in order to take advantage of all that is available I need to, at the very least, own certain rights to my work. Rights that traditional publishing will scoop up, but most likely never do anything with.
I’m still figuring it all out and learning, learning, learning, but I’m excited about my publishing career for the first time since 2016, before I got embroiled in traditional publishing.
I feel like I’m now on the cusp of melding the three worlds I love the most– writing, tech, and entrepreneurship.
As a first step, I’m digging out some of my older work and publishing it on Vocal, a new-ish platform for writers. I’m aiming to publish one piece a week, a mix of essays and short stories.
My first essay went live yesterday.
It’s called “You Have Not Yet Lived” and you can read it here.
(CW: rape, suicidal ideation)
The next one is going up later this week.
Once I’ve got a bunch of short stories written and published, I’m going to put them in a collection and indie publish them to start building my fiction audience.
So far, my fiction has been written alone, away from the world. But I don’t want it to be like that anymore. I want it to be a collaborative process. I want to write with more people, I want to involve you, my readers, and I want to be 100% transparent about the highs and lows, something that traditional publishing penalizes you for doing.
I also have new plans for The International Freelancer, but I’ll save those for another email.
I’m entering a new, extremely exciting phase.
I’m going to call it Experiments in Publishing.
Stay tuned.
Cheers,
Natasha