I recently was told that publishers were not paying writers. My first reaction was that the writer was fired from their job. I did some research and this is what I learned about the present situation concerning the relationship between writers and publishers:
Book publishers are recording the stories told by people who are incarcerated in prisons, medical institutions and various treatment centers. These stories are edited by committees, the same ones that re-write the manuscripts submitted by publisher's authors.
Furthermore, there is no need for line editors since they have spell-check. No need for editors since the "Gate Keepers" are provided with a check list that directs them to only accept those manuscripts that are written about depressing topics, are only about the subjects that relate to the authors race, sex, religion. In other words, writers most write about subjects that fit within their "Box". The only exception is white male writers since there are so many of them. If you are writing about inter-racial couples, they must be a white male and black female. The check list is easy to follow.
Therefore, I thought that book publishing has always been weird, until I was watching the news on CNN. A CNN reporter was proudly talking about the public taking pictures with their I-Pods and sending them to CNN to be broadcast on the show. The reporter also reviled that CNN was airing news as seen by eyewitnesses. There it is again, no need for Photo Journalist or reporters. The same goes for printed news. Its all cut & paste, with no need to check facts or edit. It is like one big Wikipedia: anyone can write information into it and no one asks any questions. When a story breaks no one has to get the facts. The "Anchor" person just fills in with their opinion on the news.
So what happens to all the authors and writers who can't earn a living in their profession? Maybe things will change or is Macys hiring?
