Despite bleak global economic conditions, it’ s interesting to note that the 50 largest global book publishers achieved approximately $ 68 billion dollars in sales in 2011. With this knowledge, it quickly becomes clear why, in the past twelve months particularly, the publishing industry has undergone some monumental and game-changing shifts. With the book business now considered hot property, both traditional and digital publishers are scrambling for their share of the money pot. Though, it is perhaps the most unlikely of players in this new marketplace who are giving traditional publishers the biggest run for their money. That’ s right, independent, self-published, authors are here and they are making a massive impact on what we’ re reading.

Independent publishing by definition is not a new concept. In fact, many of literatures greatest writers were self-published – Mark Twain, Beatrix Potter, T S Elliot, and Virginia Woolf for example. Writers and authors have been penning influential literature for centuries, much of which will never see the light of day due largely to the exorbitant costs associated with traditional self-publishing. However, with the emergence of new technologies, most notably eReaders, the capability to self-publish has become more accessible than ever before.

This accessibility also translates for consumers; e-Retailers offer convenient round-the-clock access to their stores, security( in regard to providing clean downloads and safe payment options), and competitive pricing.

On the surface, these positives would seem a win-win situation for publishers, authors, and readers alike. However it’ s not all roses. Increasingly, industry purists and authors are far from impressed with the influx, quality, and success that the accessibility to digital publishing offers. Recent criticism from 32-time

bestselling author Sue Grafton was scathing,“ Self-publishing is a short cut and I don’ t believe in short cuts when it comes to the arts. I compare self-publishing to a student managing to conquer Five Easy Pieces on the piano and then wondering if s / he’ s ready to be booked into Carnegie Hall”.

Whilst highly dismissive of the merits of self-publishing, Grafton’ s comment begs the question— is the method of delivery more important to the reader than the delivery of the topic? More importantly, should the merit of selfpublished authors be quite so generalised?

Author Sylvia Day achieved notable success when her selfpublished novel Bared To You, released in April 2012, quickly climbed the charts and established a dedicated readership. This early success subsequently led to major publishing house Penguin acquiring the novel a mere one month after release. Importantly, this proves several points: firstly, the quality of self-published authors can indeed be on par with industry standards and secondly, and perhaps most importantly, traditional publishers are paying attention to self-published authors and their readers.

Also garnering strong and sustained success is New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, Bella Andre. Having sold more than 1.5 million books and with a portfolio encompassing 16 self-published ebooks, Andre proves there is industry and consumer merit to be achieved as an independent author.