Are these books all traditionally published or are some of these titles indie and/or self-published? I set out to find out. It didn't take very long. Most, if not all, are traditionally published as far as I could tell. What does this say? Is there any hope for the rest of us? Does it mean only traditionally published is the best? NPR is not alone. Just look on the web. Big name sites are everywhere. Goodreads in one of my personal favorite sites to surf. Sure there are sites like Smashwords and LuLu, and though they are making headway, they compete with the likes of Barnes and Noble and Amazon. Yes, I said Amazon.
Have you tried the Google search, "best of ... " Have you ever wondered how to get in "the best of ..." sites? Or, how to come up on the first ten pages of that Google search? SEO, that's a whole other topic my friends.
Amazon is clearly bringing indie published/self-published or vanity published to the forefront of potential readers; that golden audience, the reader, and how to reach them. I personally feel I will thrill readers with my selection of books. But how do I reach them? I was becoming frustrated, because I found myself with every published author's nightmare - marketing. Okay, you have a small nest egg; one you know you need for retirement, college, something or anything besides following your dream of writing successfully for a living. And don't even get me started about reviews and moving up Amazon's ladder, out of the pits of Amazonland. This is clearly my personal opinion and I am not getting paid nor do I dislike any of the companies mentioned in this blog article. Just the opposite, in fact, I am most grateful to Amazon and the others listed here for the opportunities that they have provided me.
