Merchants of Culture: The Publishing Business in the Twenty-First Century (2nd Ed)

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Written by John B. Thompson
Published by Polity Press, Cambridge

I have just read John Thompson’s review of the publishing industry world-wide and gained so much insight into an industry facing its greatest challenges since Gutenberg. Thompson examines economic and technological changes that are challenging those in publishing today as they move into the digital age. He dissects the roles of publishers, agents and booksellers and explains how their practises have shaped the industry as we find it today.

The economic recession and technological revolution have had a significant impact on trade publishing. Hard-copy sales have slumped and ebooks are expanding. Top-line revenue is in free-fall for the big publishing companies and their focus has had to change from a growth orientation to one of increasing efficiencies. The result has been cost-cutting through reorganisation or closure of divisions, freezing salaries, shedding positions,, slashed marketing budgets, consolidation in office space and cutting travel and entertainment expenses. Publishers now focus on the ‘big books’, those that they gamble to be bestsellers in what is known as ‘Extreme Publishing’. In an industry that demands profit and growth this is the only way to inject cash into their businesses. In the past, publishers grew by buying out other publishers to build their profitability. Today, this is no longer possible.

Thompson cautions that this approach has led to a decline in diversity in publishing output so that we are seeing homogenisation on content and an impoverishing of the culture of the book. Large publishing houses want ‘big book’s that are commercial, with celebrity and entertainment tie-ins which means that there is less room for literary fiction and serious non-fiction.

For authors, competitive auctions are diminishing, low or no advances are being paid, and higher royalties are only seen with ebooks. Agents are focussing on A-list authors, younger authors, and assertive, ambitious authors who aggressively build and promote their brands in the marketplace. Many authors are in a vicious down-hill sales spiral. They have been forced to turn to teaching would-be writers for their income. As sales fall agents and publishers decline their next book and they are in a sales history trap. Thompson notes that options are few and industry support is minimal. Some authors will find success with smaller publishing houses, others will have to completely re-invent themselves, perhaps by changing their name, changing their focus from fiction to non-fiction or by changing their career focus to teaching. Others will pursue the new technologies, following the digital path with new digital publishers, Apps or publishing independently.

This book is a fascinating look at the publishing industry and one I would highly recommend.

My SCBWI Australia and NZ Conference Blog 2012

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Session on “Going Digital”

Stories are shaped to fit their form. Traditionally storytelling involved, ‘Listen, while I tell you a story’. With the development of writing and printing, story structures changed and moved from their oral-aural-sensory focus to a visual focus. With print, “words became things” that could be arranged on a page. Unlike the oral tradition, these printed stories were now given closure. Today, we’re in the midst of a technology explosion so that once again, stories can change to fit their form. I seek to take storytelling into the future by using transmedia. ‘Listen, while I tell you a story,’ is now, ‘Let’s tell a story together’.

Transmedia involves telling stories over a number of media platforms, stories that are connected in a common story world. For my transmedia novel, Kiss Kill, my character Mat’s world is the story world. Mat’s story is a story of a boy who triumphs over a relationship with his abusive narcissistic girlfriend. It is about a disintegrating and fragmenting relationship. The story frame reflects this by combining prose with other narrative fragments such as scripts, songs, notes, poems, comics, essays, texting, photos and more. Transmedia is used through blogs, YouTube, iTunes, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter.

Young adults are adept at reading multi-platform narratives. They are used to reading non-linearly and they are used to interacting with narrative through sharing (social media) and co-creation (for example, mashups). Kiss Kill consciously provides multiple openings into the story for co-creation and the multiple platforms allow for engagement and participation. Readers can engage with me as the author on my blog (www.jenimawter.com), or Mat on his blog http://www.whyidontgetgirls.com. Facebook, Twitter (@mawter @kisskilldigital) and Pinterest are also used for sharing the story experience. Kiss Kill readers upload their creations on Mat’s blog. They have created artwork and music and recorded their own versions for my song lyrics ‘Thought I Knew’ as well as made a YouTube for the haunting scene ‘How Do You Define a Man?’ Individual as well as community creation is encouraged so that this story can continually evolve.

As a transmedia writer I need to educate myself on multiple platform storytelling, writing non-linear narrative and, technology developments that change daily. I am not just on a steep learning curve, I am on a trajectory. To the best of my knowledge Kiss Kill is one of the first transmedia young adult novels published for a global market by a small publisher, Really Blue Books, on a minimal budget.

Questions about Kiss Kill for Book Clubs, Educators and Readers

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1. Kiss Kill is an ebook, so its format and content varies when compared to traditional hard copy books. How does it vary and why is the ebook format appropriate for Kiss Kill?

2. At the beginning of the ebook, Mat says that the new philosophy class is intended to teach the students “how to become better human beings”. Do Mat’s experiences make him a “better human being” and does the philosophy class help him achieve any insights into his “Self Concepts”?

3. Kiss Kill raises issues relating to abusive relationships. At what point do you think Mat realises that Elle has become his abuser? At what point does the reader realise this? Are these points the same for Mat and various readers? If not, why not?

4. Mat researches narcissism and comes to the conclusion that Elle is a narcissist. How does being able to give a label to her behaviour help him?

5. Online social media, such as facebook posts appear in the ebook. How does Elle’s ability to publicise her feelings online effect Mat’s feelings and how can this media effect young people in particular? Is the ability to publicise your feelings to the world quickly and easily a good thing?

6. Mat’s mother writes him notes showing her concern for Mat. Why are these notes shown in graphic format, rather than quoted in text, as they would be in a traditional hardcopy book? Does the graphic format lend the notes more or less impact than they would have if they were simply quoted as text?

7. Mat understands that his body’s physical desires are not always in harmony with what his head is telling him to do. How and why does he come to the conclusion that he should listen to his head?

8. Friendships are important within the book. Mat’s friends help and support him. Why does he find it difficult to talk to them about his relationship with Elle?

9. An important point, that not only girls can be the victims of abusive relationships is made. During the talk on abusive relationships, the students display derision for male victims of abuse. Why? Is this a cultural norm?

10. Phone text messages appear in graphic format, just as if the reader has picked up their phone and seen a new message. How does this effect the impact of these text messages within the ebook? Is the language used for these messages the same as that which would be used in a traditional hardcopy book? How does this language reflect the characters’ personalities and emotions?

11. Mat is relieved when he is helped by others, yet he finds it very difficult to seek help. Why?

12. Mat talks and writes about sex and the physical aspects of relationships, but when he is faced with an actual sexual experience he thought he longed for, why is he reluctant?

13. At times Mat and Elle become characters in a play or television program playing out in Mat’s mind. How does this device help Mat to view his relationship with Elle?

14. Much is made in philosophy class of “the human condition”. How do Mat’s experiences effect his view of what it is to be human?

15. Kiss Kill is written mostly in the first person, with Mat narrating his thoughts and experiences. Would the ebook have the same impact if it were narrated by a third person?

Emotional Abuse Con’t: The Silent Treatment

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When someone is in the same room as you, but acts like you don’t exist it’s called the Silent Treatment. They don’t speak to you, answer your questions, make everyday comments – they completely ignore you and act as if you are invisible. This is a form of emotional abuse or bullying. By treating you as though you don’t exist the person is trying to punish you in a non-physical way. They are manipulating or controlling you into believing you are a ‘nothing’. As a non-person you are not valued or cared about and have no self-worth.

Abusers use excuses to justify their silent treatment:

I didn’t do anything
I needed my own space
I thought you needed your own space
I was depressed and didn’t want to drag you down
I thought we both needed to cool off
I felt threatened/insulted/hurt by you
I needed time to think
I didn’t want to fight
You told me to leave you alone!
I needed to sort out some problems from my past

Excuses are just one more way for an abuser to blame somebody or something else for their abuse.

Being ignored on purpose can be very disorienting. It wounds without an obvious scar. So, what can you do?

1) Acknowledge to yourself that this form of punishment is not acceptable.
2) Acknowledge to the person that this form of behaviour is not acceptable.
3) Inform the person that you need to discuss the situation in order to repair your relationship.
4) Do not plead or beg.
5) Ignore the ignoring.
6) Carry on doing your own thing.
7) Don’t play the game by demanding to know what you’ve done wrong.
8) Change the subject.
9) Try to deal with your own emotions of frustration, anger or hurt.