Jonathan Karp, publisher and editor-in-chief of Twelve-- an imprint within the Hachette Book Group, gives his own take on the future of publishing in "Turning the Page on The Disposable Book."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/27/AR2008062702868.html
His essential premise is that too much junk is published and that publishers should concentrate on books of lasting worth.
Unfortunately, the major flaw in this premise for fiction is that publishers can't really tell what is and isn't of lasting worth because only time is the true indicator.
Many of the books we now consider of lasting value were either popular fiction or poorly reviewed. Dickens and Melville are perfect examples of this.
Nor does the amount of time spent writing the book or intensive editorial presence in the writing process equate to quality or lack, thereof.
Moonrat, a blogger on the publishing industry, also talks about Karp's take on editing and the publishing industry here:
http://editorialass.blogspot.com/2008/05/less-is-more.html
REMINDER: I'll be teaching a course on taking one idea and turning it into a novel in August. To learn more, go here:
http://marilynnbyerly.com/marilynnbyerly/thebigquestionwr.html
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