[Hoover]

I wanted to get your opinion on the future of publishing.

Roosh has his book, self-published and under the public radar.

He has his niche covered through the blog.

What about aspiring young writers? I'm talking about young men in 20s.

The publishing industry is tight as an anus, and so many women act as gatekeepers on what goes through or not. If it has any hint of misogyny, it gets watered down and edited out. There seems to be no room for books geared toward men.

The only recent example I can think of is The Road, and even that had fame (Cormac is an established writer), mainstream crossover appeal (the sparse style was both artistic and accessible), and accidental publicity (women jumped on it only through Oprah). I just can't imagine any literary agent or publisher tolerating something like Fight Club if a draft was sent to them.

Which leads to the question: How can a book address the problems facing this current generation if it has no mainstream outlet to reach the male readers?

With the growing e-book industry and more people self-publishing, I'm curious to see what you guys think would be the best way to reach a big audience.

[SFTD]

(05-06-2011 06:21 PM)Hoover Wrote:  

I wanted to get your opinion on the future of publishing.

Roosh has his book, self-published and under the public radar.

He has his niche covered through the blog.

What about aspiring young writers? I'm talking about young men in 20s.

The publishing industry is tight as an anus, and so many women act as gatekeepers on what goes through or not. If it has any hint of misogyny, it gets watered down and edited out. There seems to be no room for books geared toward men.

The only recent example I can think of is The Road, and even that had fame (Cormac is an established writer), mainstream crossover appeal (the sparse style was both artistic and accessible), and accidental publicity (women jumped on it only through Oprah). I just can't imagine any literary agent or publisher tolerating something like Fight Club if a draft was sent to them.

Which leads to the question: How can a book address the problems facing this current generation if it has no mainstream outlet to reach the male readers?

With the growing e-book industry and more people self-publishing, I'm curious to see what you guys think would be the best way to reach a big audience.

The irony of Fight Club is that it was written by a gay guy.

But, anyway, as an aspiring author myself, I really couldn't be arsed to conform or worry about the publishing sectors wants and needs and shyness. My first real project is still in the baby stage and I'm writing as if I'm already out there, established and making it. You have to write like you're fuckin' Hank Moody or Kerouac or Bukowski. You write what you want for who you want. It could be a chick, a guy, or just your own perverted pleasure.

Once you find your style and you can sit down and just belt out a page or two a day, or whatever is your pace (Kerouac wrote On The Road in three weeks, probably did 10s of thousands of words a day) you'll hit inner game gold. Once you have your project ready, find someone who believes in you to pitch it, or pitch it yourself. There are tons of publishers, even small ones, that could start your career.

In the end, tho, it has to be about what you want to do. I've been writing since I was a little kid and I only now feel the deep spiritual connection with it, since I now write about myself and my life (or fictional variations of it) instead of trying to write epic dramas or politics-based universes. Find what makes you burst with words and you'll find your career sooner or later.

If you want to watch a movie with great advice/opinions on writing, watch Howl. Probably hard to find since its experimental, but it has James Franco as Allen Ginsberg and it mixes him writing the poem, reading the poem at the famous reading in 1955, an interview with him in 1957 and the trial also in 1957. For a movie on how not to take on writing, watch Sideways. I love the movie, but Miles is exactly what you shouldn't be as a writer: invested in single great works. And a depressed beta bitch.