Self Publishing Debate, Round Two

A Ms. Shamontiel Vaughn, the author of Change for a Twenty, recently read my article on the artistic pitfalls of self-publishing, and as a writer who has self-published took great exception to it. After emailing me and informing my of her impending rebuttal, she wrote the following response:

Shamontiel Vaughn Rebuttal [back online]

The writing in this piece shows intelligence, and knowledge of her industry. But even more so, it shows the intellectual disconnects between commercial and literary fiction writers: we have dramatically different ideas about what constitutes good writing, we have dramatically different ideas as to what constitutes literary success (entrepreneurial versus artistic), we also differ completely on the central importance of literary criticism (which just isn't done in the commercial world, so is misconstrued by them as personal attack, or "player hating"). We even disagree on that absolutely primal element of all good writing: improvement of the text through extensive editing and revision (many of them see attempts at editing their work as attacks against their original vision). The divide is so great that at times it shows how futile these dialogues can be: we seem to be having two entirely different conversations even when we use the same words. Yet I keep talking, in the hope that these back and forths may still be helpful for beginning writers to see, regardless of what path they choose.

I've been over all this before, but here it goes: I don't think the physical act of self-publishing hurts a writer, just that the hustling involved takes away from time that could be spent developing craft, which is essential to do in the beginning before bad habits set in. I don't think publishing with a major publisher helps or insures the quality of a work in any way, in itself. And I don't give a damn about the business of selling books, or typos. My focus is on originality of prose, storytelling, and thought. I don't think a writer has to write literary fiction—there is a time for popcorn and there is a time for steak—but I don't think the two should be confused, or that burnt stale popcorn is okay. My primary goal is helping those who want to write literary fiction (like the works of James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, Ralph Ellison, etc.) avoid modern day publishing pitfalls.

I don't like hurting people's feelings—most of these self-published authors are nice people, just trying to make a success of their lives. I don't even like to hurt Omar's feelings: I just singled him out because of his repeated insistence that his entrepreneurially motivated tomes are actually "classic" literature. But I do care very much about African American literature. I do care about its quality, its future, and the writers who seek to be the next ones to load the cannon. Without honest criticism, none of those things can be properly maintained.