“We suggest that you build up your online following, that helps to get the attention of publishers.”

I’ve been hearing this comment since the introduction of social media. Writers will hear this and nod their heads. “Yes, yes, build up your following. Obviously, that makes a lot of sense!”

But where do you think this idea came from? Is it something a publisher actually said? Or was it just the whimsical notion of some aspiring writer chasing a viral blog post. “10 sure fire tricks to help you land a six figure publishing deal.”

The internet has been around long enough that many absurd ideas have been fused with our perception of reality. It’s time to tap the brakes and reevaluate some of the truths we hold to be self evident.

Do publishers really care how many followers you have?

I’ve been out pounding the pavement like any other dutiful writer. I’ve got a folder in my email where I collect the correspondence of agents and all their polite rejections.

“I really enjoyed your writing and your narrative voice. Unfortunately this project isn’t something that I’m interesting in pursuing at this time.”

It’s like trading baseball cards. Have you gotten that rejection yet? I’m not referring to the sentiment, I’m referring to that exact sequence of words. Do they have some sort of AI tool that allows them to create a customized rejection note faster than it takes for them to type out, “Dream on?”

For years, I started all my pitches with a discussion of my social media presence. I told them how I had ten thousand followers here, and five thousand subscribers there. It seemed to help for a while. At least they opened the email and replied with a rejection. Some writers don’t even get that.

Followers don’t mean what they used to

New platforms change so fast it can give you whiplash. It seems like every single place I go, I think, “I’ve finally found my community” only to have my hopes dashed.

It always starts out the same. I’ll create a profile, and spend a day or so writing various witticisms. I’ll get an immediate response, dozens of likes, comments and shares. Then one day I’ll log in, do the exact same thing, and get nothing.

I go from being Mr. Popular to Mr. Invisible overnight. When I complain about it, everyone always says, “I guess it’s because you’re not very good.”

Okay, it’s either that or somebody on the other side of the screen decided to shadowban my account.

“Oh, we assure you that doesn’t happen. That concept doesn’t even exist. You sound like a conspiracy theorist.”

But everybody knows that having thousands of followers doesn’t mean much. The simple reality is that many of those people never get to see your work. Publishers know this. Agents know this. The only people who don’t know this are the bloggers writing their “7 hacks for literary success” articles.

Email subscribers are different

Email lists are a different sort of animal. Yes, there are inherent problems to email lists. If you’ve been collecting emails for years, chances are a lot of them have been abandoned. People change jobs, they stop using accounts, they get arrested, they pass away.

Some of your email followers might not even be real people at all.

Still, a large email list is a powerful thing, particularly for writers who are sincere in how they treat their readers.

Yes, people are inundated daily with all kinds of advertisements and pitches and harassment. Scrolling through your inbox is like a minefield. But if you’re a sincere creator, and your followers love you, they will open up your offerings.

In fact, the general population is so overrun by malicious distractions that they become fiercely loyal when they discover something real. Good writers can offer that.

Do publishers understand the pulse of the modern literary movement?

A writer friend of mine recently shared her latest rejection slip even though she has a profile that boasts more than half a million email subscribers. The rejection sounded something like this:

“I really enjoyed your writing and your narrative voice. Unfortunately this project isn’t something that I’m interesting in pursuing at this time.”

I saw that and I shook my head. In what world is it a good business decision to send a form rejection to a writer that has developed that big a following?

People always assume that big publishers are trying to generate profit. So, please connect the dots for me. If a writer with a massive following reaches out to a publisher with a book project, why is that writer turned down without even being considered?

I can understand that the publisher wouldn’t want to immediately offer a six figure contract, but why not offer a smaller deal. “We’ll give you $10k if you review 10 books.” That way they could gauge the value of that author’s list. It’s probably less than they spend on the advertising budget for their other books.

That’s just the first idea that popped into my head. Publishers are supposed to be creative people.

A form rejection letter doesn’t make sense.

We seem to be entering a new era of oral tradition

I’ve previously suggested that the era of paperback publishing is already dead. People don’t walk around with their noses in books anymore. They walk around with their noses in phones.

They want audio. They want video. They don’t want to have to read.

When I started writing, I never expected that I’d spend 10-15 hours a week sitting in front of a microphone having conversations, conducting interviews, and telling stories. But that’s what I do. My work is easily available to distract potential customers as they walk right by the bookstore featuring the offerings of the publishers who always reject my queries.

At this point, I don’t understand how those publishers stay in business. They aren’t interested in partnering with the best writers. They aren’t producing content people want. Where’s the money coming from?

They’ve pushed me to the side so long that I’ve learned how to survive without their support. Their rejection letters are oblivious confessions of entitlement and incompetence. They might as well write, “Unfortunately, we’re not interested in working with anyone who has already developed a loyal following.”

That’s fine by me. They can have the past. I’m quite happy to be a part of the future.

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A Half Million Email Subscribers But No Book Deal