“New York Times Reviews Self-Published Book”

Source: iUniverse Blog

iUniverse blog came across the above headline to a recent article the other day. This intrigued us as it inferred that a major barrier to the acceptance of self-publishing had finally been overcome. The reality has not always been so; self-publishing is accepted by authors, the major book-sellers, both in-store and on-line, book readers themselves and the buying public across the globe. However it is now pleasing to note the book critics and reviewers, with their links to the traditional publishers, are now coming on board.

The revolution in the book publishing world has happened.

See the numbers

Bowker, the global leader in bibliographic information, in releasing its annual report on U. S. print book publishing for 2011, compiled from its Books In Print® database on June 5 2012 stated the following:

”Based on preliminary figures from U.S. publishers, Bowker is projecting that traditional print book output grew six percent in 2011, from 328,259 titles in 2010 to a projected 347,178 in 2011, driven almost exclusively by a strong self-publishing market. This is the most significant expansion in more than four years for America’s traditional publishing sector, but removing self-publishing from the equation would show that the market is relatively flat from 2010.”

“Transformation of our industry has brought on a time of rich innovation in the publishing models we now have today. What was once relegated to the outskirts of our industry—and even took on demeaning names like ‘vanity press’ is now not only a viable alternative but what is driving the title growth of our industry today.”

said Kelly Gallagher, Vice-President, Bowker Market Research and she went on to say:

“From that standpoint, self-publishing is a true legitimate power to be reckoned with. Coupled with the explosive growth of e-books and digital content – these two forces are moving the industry in dramatic ways.”

Indeed a more recent study by Bowker says the number of self-published books produced annually in the U.S. has nearly tripled, growing 287 percent since 2006, and now tallies more than 235,000 print and “e” titles.

iUniverse positive moves

Added to this are the recent moves within the publishing world such as Penguin buying Author Solutions (the parent of iUniverse) and virtually all the major National and International Book awards organizations accepting self-published books. (See recent blog post: iUniverse brings you the lowdown on book awards.)

iUniverse welcomes these positive steps in the world of publishing and looks forward to the day when similar headlines are redundant because there will no longer be any kind of distinction made about the publisher of any book.

Please note the book being reviewed was ‘The Revolution Was Televised,’ by Alan Sepinwall; And you can read the very positive review by Michiko Kakutani at www.nytimes.com