Sometimes Self-Publishing Makes Sense
By OFW Member: Renee Miller
Published: December 10, 2012
Publishing is a tough industry, and it’s not likely to become easy any time soon. Even if you skip the traditional process and publish your own work, the competition is brutal and success is elusive for most. Most days I’m solid in my decision not to self-publish (at this point) but sometimes, I read shit that shakes my resolve a little.
Reading about celebrity animal memoirs is quite disturbing to put it mildly. Yes, autobiographies about animal stars. According to The Independent, two animal autobiographies…although we use the term “autobiography” loosely, become the latest in a publishing trend that apparently started seven years ago. Pudsey, a dancing dog and winner of this year's Britain's Got Talent, and Uggie, whose starred in the Oscar-winning film “The Artist” are set to publish their memoirs. Pudsey even has an entourage. An. Entourage.
Other recent canine memoirs include Triggs, “The story of Roy Keane's Dog” (2012). Her story was ghost-written by Irish sports journalist Paul Howard. I’m trying to imagine how anyone would assume the animals’ stories would be anything but ghost-written, but I guess this needs clarification, as every source I’ve read feels the need to make that clear.
Everyone likes dogs. And this would be mind-boggling enough, but publishers don’t leave it at dogs. Cats, monkeys, and any other famous animal-type you can think of have “told” their stories in book form, and the folks that claim ownership of them have profited. They even got advances. You know what I mean; big fat cheques presented to authors on the signing of a contract based on potential sales, etc. Ugh.
This tells me I’ve gone about this all wrong. First I thought I’d get published by writing well. Then I grew up a little and realized that I need to get famous first. Now I realize I either need to change species, or make my pets famous. Somehow, it all seems impossible.
Yes. Self-publishing makes sense now. If you’ll excuse me, I have to go train my dogs to do something other than shit and scratch their balls.
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