My wife and I were on the shore of Maui one evening, watching the moonlight on the water as the tide came in, enveloping us. We had stood in nearly the same place earlier in the day, watching ships on the horizon as the tide rolled in, again enveloping us, but rising higher on the shore. Despite the fact that we were in the same place, the scene changed from one of sunlight dancing on the ocean to one of absolute darkness broken only by the seemingly incandescent glow of a full moon. But in the midst of the change, one thing was certain. The tide rolled in with consistency even though it was different each time.
Change is inevitable. Those of us who write – and even some of us who read – bemoan the changes we see in the publishing industry. We do so because change nearly always brings uncertainty, even when such change is often in our best interests. When I was younger, I didn’t like change either. But as I grew older, I learned to accept it. Now, I’ve learned to embrace it. Want to know why?
Because: this too shall pass away. Even the change we see now will change.
I am a traditionally-published author. I have written several crime thrillers in that venue and have done quite well. I have published short stories and have had a play of mine adapted by a dinner theatre. But I am about to embark on a new ocean. I am going to self-publish the next novel in my Colton Parker series.
Am I excited? Yes. Concerned? You bet. But the changes we have seen in this business have had many more positive implications than negative. Yes, the gatekeepers are no longer in charge of the doorway, but that change has opened the channel for a host of new writers, many which are quite good. Of course, there is a flipside, too, and we often see work that should never have seen the light of day. But that was true in the traditional publishing model too, wasn’t it?
Embrace the change. Adapt. Books are still being written, still being published, and still being read. And that’s a good thing.
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