Like I said before, I think what you postulate in this post will be the future of music publishing as well. Forty years ago you couldn't afford really good musical equipment until you'd "made it big", and there was no such thing as a personal recording studio. Sure, you had the little booth things where you could record a song or two on a 45rpm, but if you wanted to do a real album you had to have a real agent book you real time in a real studio. Today, musical instruments, computers, midi hookups, mixing equipment, etc have become so cheap that practically anyone can build a studio in their basement. So, from my perspective, it looks like Harlequin is trying to do to the publishing industry what the RIAA is trying to do to the music industry--whine all you want, we have all the power, we'll just sit in our ivory tower and laugh. But what the RIAA/Harlequin doesn't understand is that, for the reasons I've outlined above, it's no longer necessary to wait for that "jackpot", that "big break", if you're willing to self-publish and
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That's my fear too, but really I don't think this is something that would work in every genre. Maybe I'm wrong though. Bleh.
Do I need to be fitted for a tinfoil hat, or is it just coincidence that Harlequin announced this towards the end of NaNoWriMo?
Ye-ah. I keep wondering about that myself. But that makes no sense either since if you finish, you can get a free copy of your book made and sent to you.
Ah, but it won't have that lovely Harlequin scent to it, and that's what Harlequin is spritzing at wannabes with their Horizons. Their ad copy for Horizons implies, suggests, and otherwise floats the possibility that if you throw your money at Harlequin for Horizons, they might just think about throwing some money back at you later on.
I've lost track of how many Harlequin authors online have stated some variant of, "I used to be proud to be a Harlequin author. Being a Harlequin author used to mean you were considered a successful romance novelist. Now it seems to mean that you had a grand or so to spend."
The whole preying on hopes and dreams of the naive, wishful writer really puts me on edge. That whole line about considering those authors is just mean.
I can imagine. It really does dilute the brand name and the value of what it means to be an author for them.
And the whole thing is just so... insulting. Really, really insulting for everyone involved in that genre whether they're a pro or not.
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Do I need to be fitted for a tinfoil hat, or is it just coincidence that Harlequin announced this towards the end of NaNoWriMo?
Ye-ah. I keep wondering about that myself. But that makes no sense either since if you finish, you can get a free copy of your book made and sent to you.
Reply
I've lost track of how many Harlequin authors online have stated some variant of, "I used to be proud to be a Harlequin author. Being a Harlequin author used to mean you were considered a successful romance novelist. Now it seems to mean that you had a grand or so to spend."
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I can imagine. It really does dilute the brand name and the value of what it means to be an author for them.
And the whole thing is just so... insulting. Really, really insulting for everyone involved in that genre whether they're a pro or not.
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