I found an interesting article written by the talented Amanda Green today about a new self-publishing/vanity-esque endeavor from Book Country in which they offer publishing services for a fee.

I agree with most of what Amanda says here. She, as usual, hits it right on the head.

However, my only minor quibble is her belief that nobody is going to pay for these services. I disagree. I think there will always be someone out there so desperate to get published that they’ll shell out a lot of their own money in the belief or hope that their book will end up on a bookstore shelf (which, let’s be honest, is the goal of the majority of writers out there… money dreams come later).

Yes, some publishers are firmly convinced we are stupid. However, with people like Amanda and Dean Wesley Smith leading the way, the more authors who are educated out there, the better off we’ll be in the long run as publishers are forced to accept the fact that authors are not trained monkeys.

One day, I mean. I don’t think it’ll happen soon. Publishing moves at a glacial pace, after all. I mean, they’re just now accepting the fact that ebooks aren’t just a passing fad.