Long ago in a dreamy land far, far away, publishing was a “gentleman’s business.” Publishers, agents and authors respected each other because they were working together to reach readers.

Then publishers started to become corporatized, focused on the bottom line. Over the decades, authors ended up at the bottom of the barrel. The only advocates, it seemed, were their agents.

Nowadays, things are changing rapidly. Self-publishing and the advent of new digital platforms are shifting the way publishers do business. One of the things that suddenly has become more important is…you guessed it…authors.

Authors are the brand around which readers revolve. A host of recent conferences and book trade shows have hosted multiple sessions that focus on the writer.

It’s a great time to be an author!