{"id":936,"date":"2016-04-25T12:01:09","date_gmt":"2016-04-25T12:01:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/WritingTutors\/?p=936"},"modified":"2016-04-26T10:52:14","modified_gmt":"2016-04-26T10:52:14","slug":"literary-writers-and-the-indie-spirit-from-jules-horne","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/WritingTutors\/?p=936","title":{"rendered":"Literary writers and the Indie Spirit – from Jules Horne"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s fair to say the world of publishing is in turmoil. With margins squeezed in commercial publishing, mid-list authors are being dropped, and it\u2019s harder than ever to find a publisher. Writing literary or experimental fiction? Forget it (mostly). I\u2019ve been shocked to hear of major Scottish authors struggling to find publication after mainstream UK publishers let them go.<\/p>\n

But while some avenues are closing down, others are opening up. All around, I\u2019m seeing writers publishing their own work, whether as e-books or in print. I\u2019ve been particularly impressed by younger writers embracing indie publishing, and not waiting for permission to have a voice.\"jules<\/a><\/p>\n

So I decided to try it for myself. Not just ethereal e-books, but solid, papery ones that have a smell and a heft, and real pages you can write on and fold (I know, I know). With ISBNs and my own Texthouse imprint. The whole indie author shebang.<\/p>\n

My poet friend Andrew Forster wasn\u2019t impressed. After all, poets have been producing their own books for ever. And it\u2019s always been possible to get a short run done at your local printer.<\/p>\n

But what\u2019s new and impressive to me is the speed and ease of printing a new book. With print-on-demand, you can order a dozen, or even just one. You only pay for what\u2019s printed, so the cost is low.<\/p>\n

You do need patience to learn the ropes, and a techie mindset definitely helps. But printing your own book is incredibly empowering. And for literary and experimental authors who may not find mainstream publication, or regional authors with a strong niche, it\u2019s a real eye-opener. The difference between you and a small press is vanishingly small. And what\u2019s good enough for Virginia Woolf\u2026<\/p>\n

So here they are:<\/p>\n

Nanonovels<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 experimental flash fiction, written one a day in the course of a year. Wrapped Town<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 a collection of stories from anthologies, competitions and radio.\"Jules<\/a><\/p>\n

Fellow OU tutor and sometime concrete poet Dr Mike Johnson was kind enough to call them \u2018vibrantly original tales\u2019 and \u2018evocations of the spirit of Ray Bradbury and Angela Carter\u2019. Pints on me!<\/p>\n

And now I\u2019ve done it, my mind is racing with the possibilities. Apart from all else, it frees up literary writers to write what they want, and bring it to their readers, without fretting about genres, markets or profit margins. It puts individual creativity back in charge. Exciting times!<\/p>\n

That said, national agencies including Creative Scotland, Publishing Scotland and the mainstream press have yet to catch up. They don\u2019t yet recognise self-published work \u2013 presumably because they want to avoid a deluge of submissions. But how long can they ignore this creative revolution? Especially with literary authors taking things into their own hands?<\/p>\n

I\u2019ll be blogging more about the indie author-publisher journey at www.juleshorne.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Jules Horne is a playwright and publisher who teaches on A363 with the Open University in Scotland.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n