Publish and Perish
b"h
The Argument Against
Self-publishing:
Introduction
Massive technological changes in the publishing industry in the last thirty years are radically affecting Torani publishing as well. The publishing industry as a whole is struggling with encroaching electronic media. In many ways Jewish publishing is dealing with the same issues that confront secular publishing. The outcome however, may be quite different.
The purpose of this essay is polemical, to argue for and against
community-based control of publishing. We will outline how technological and
media changes are affecting Torani publishing and offer some guidelines on when
and how to self-publish. This essay is not intended to be an academic paper; our
goal is to analyze these effects and to argue for and against making a major
change in the community's attitude regarding the role of Torani publishing.
Books are called Seforim in Hebrew. Seforim used in the context of Torah study have a very specific role. In library classification systems they are called Rabbinics i.e. books that convey Jewish laws and traditions from the Oral Torah. Seforim act as a vehicle for transferring the teachings of the Oral Torah, from generation to generation. This process of passing on the Oral Torah is called the Mesora. Every year the body of Oral Torah grows as thousands of new Seforim are added to the Mesora.
Changes in publishing:
Before the invention of printing, manuscripts were
written either by the authors themselves or recorded by their students. Some
were copied by scribes for wealthy patrons. There wasn't any profit motive per
se in writing or copying a Sefer, nor was there any method of mass
production or any way to profit significantly from the sale of Seforim. Forty
years after Gutenburg invented the printing process, the first printed Seforim
already began to appear. These first Hebrew editions were enormously expensive.
Not only was owning a printing press a substantial investment but the
labor-intensive processes made the investment in printing a Shas, a Tur or
similar multi-volume work astronomical. The printer would often seek a ten-year
moratorium from the leading Rabbis of his generation to stop a competitor from
printing another edition.
At the beginning of the 16th century, printing Seforim became a more commercial
venture. Non-Jewish printers in Venice such as Bombergi and Justini printed
dozens of Seforim and Talmud editions purely for profit. The Venice Jewish
community even gave such a Talmud to King Henry the 8th, truly a gift fit for a
king. Hebrew printing in the 17th century spread rapidly across Europe and
reached as far east as Constantinople and Safed. However, most Jewish printing
was concentrated in a handful of major centers. Venice, Amsterdam, Cracow,
Fuerth, Lemberg and Vienna are a few examples. By the mid 19th century, Hebrew
printing had spread from Europe to such far-flung locations as Morocco, India,
and the USA.
Technological innovation in the last century has far surpassed those of
the previous 400 years. From the 15-19th century's books were printed in
hand-set type, whereas during the 20th century printing advanced every few years: from linotype, to
offset printing, to computer typesetting, to desk-top publishing, to electronic
publishing! The ability of the author today to self-publish and self-distribute
in one sense returns us the days of where Seforim were principally copied for
the author and his close students.
Who is publishing?
Before WW II, the general trend was that only a Rabbi of a city or major Jewish congregation would undertake to print his novellae or commentaries. However at the beginning of the 20th century we find here and there local congregational rabbis in the USA printing Seforim which could be classified as ‘vanity publishing’’. In Israel where more Seforim are printed than all of the Diaspora together’, ‘vanity publishing’ became fashionable, so to speak, quite a bit later. In the 1980's when I personally gained hands-on experience working at publishing houses such as Feldheim, Yad HaRav Herzog and Machon Yerushalayim, many young Avrechim were looking for unpublished manuscripts and the Machonim would reprint Aharonim from well-known Rabbis and Roshei Yeshiva. Of course a young scholar could print his own Sefer, but this was not a common event. However 15 years later we find computers and laser printers have become household items and the number of newly published Seforim already burgeoning. Today, another 15 years down the lime, there are more lap-top computers in Israeli Batei Midrash than there are electrical sockets to recharge them. Roughly one out of ten Avrechim is sitting with a lap-top computer and almost all of these are working on a Sefer!
To get an
impression of how the printing of Seforim is mushrooming, the author did a
quick retrospective search for the word "Halacha" in the topic field in the
catalog of the Yeshivat Har Etzion Library for ten year periods.
I got the following results:
1950-1960 298 titles,
1960-1970 569 titles,
1970-1980 803 titles,
1980-1990 1031 titles,
1990-2000 1768 titles,
2000-2010
2240 titles!
There was a time when a competent Torah scholar had seen or at least had heard
of all the Seforim published in his field. Today, however, even the well
organized and funded libraries cannot keep up with the dozens of new titles
appearing weekly. I estimated the number of new Torani titles and new editions
currently appearing weekly in Yerushalayim to be 10-20. However a cataloger at
JNUL told the author that many books printed by authors living in Bnei Brak and
Kiryat Sefer are only sold locally. His estimation of the number of
self-published titles appearing in Israel weekly is more than triple.
The most prevalent topics are: Summaries of Sugyot, Likuttim, Hiddushim of
Maggidei Shiurim in Yeshivot, Kovtzei Halachot on a certain very specific topic,
Maasim and Stories, and Light Mussar. The majority of the books appearing are
self-published and even self-distributed. Unfortunately many of them are
inadequately edited, show very little originality, and don't always have an
audience. Many bookstores won't accept these privately published Seforim because
they have no room on the shelves. Often the author cannot even sell out his
first edition of 1000 copies to recoup his investment.
On the other hand, many new Seforim of real value and content are lost among the
great quantities of unoriginal and unedited material. In short, ‘vanity
publishing’ is choking the Seforim industry. Some publishers have even stopped
selling their Seforim; the author or sponsor pay all the costs (and profit) up
front and it is a waste of time and money to try to market these Seforim that
have no takers. It is not unconceivable that in another few decades authors will
be offering bonuses and kick-backs to entice readers to read their books. To a
great extent the learning public has become bored, cynical, and inured to the
flood of new titles. Everyone is printing. Pamphlets and soft-cover ephemera
pile up in Batei Midrashim, and fill Genizot and unfortunately even end up
getting kicked around in the street. Seforim are offered for free and there
are often no takers. A recent phenomenon is that in Jerusalem one can find
Seforim on a table next to a bus stop, exposed to the elements, with a Pushka (donation
box) chained to the table. Rachmana Letzlan – this is Bizayon HaSefer Mamash.
What are the options?
The classic model where well-known publishing houses accept or reject works and the general public relies on the publishing house's good judgment to print what is worthwhile has entirely broken down. Firstly the relatively low-costs of self-publishing in the era of the note-book computer and laser printer, make every tenth Avrech and even Bocher a potential author/publisher. Secondly, some of the formerly highly-regarded Torani publishing houses have to a lesser or greater extent compromised there own business. They will print almost any Sefer if the author is willing to provide the funding or if he has the right protekzia (connections) and they will reject any Sefer that does not.
Given the
Ayin Tova (favorable viewpoint) of most Gedoley Yisrael, approbations from
Rabbonim unfortunately often no longer carry the weight which they used to –
they are no longer a meaningful way to judge the value of a Sefer. I have not
heard of one Rav in the last 30 years who reviewed a Sefer and then refused to
write a Haskama (letter of praise). One possibility is to perhaps set up a Vaad
HaRabonnim Le Hotzaat Sefer which could screen, reject or approve and certify
every new Sefer. However for obvious reasons this can never work. Freedom of the
press is dear to us all. The community is too diverse and the Rabbonim cannot be
expected to agree on a question as subjective as - Is this Sefer worth printing?
Another possibility is if a major foundation (similar to the NY based Memorial
Foundation) would set up a funding mechanism which would screen and support the
publishing of the best new Seforim – this process may be able to influence the
market to a certain extent.
Voluntary Takanot (guidelines) may be helpful, (as guidelines) but are
impossible to enforce because of the diversity of our community. Nevertheless
I would like to offer the following list of somewhat tongue-in-cheek guidelines
for new authors to ask themselves:
Ten questions you should ask before printing a Sefer:
1. Will my brother-in-law sit down and read it?
2. If my son got this Sefer as a Bar Mitzva present, would he ever use it?
3. Have I asked a distributor how many copies I can realistically expect to sell?
4. Do I have storage room to store the copies that don't sell?
5. Is the Sefer truly original in a meaningful way?
6. How many similar Seforim have been printed in the last 10 years?
7. Am I saying something new or is it essentially summaries of the material I have been learning ?
8. What does my wife really feel?
9. Is this Sefer really worth an investment of $5000 of hard-earned money?
10. Perhaps I should print a few copies on my home printer and save all that money.
Advice to new authors:
Rule number one is that if you are going to self-publish
you still need an editor. Even the greatest Gedoley Yisrael (leading
rabbis) consulted with their Talmidim (students) and contemporaries before
printing a Sefer. In general I recommend to first-time budding authors to print
in small editions. If you can print a single chapter in the form of a trial
pamphlet it can help tremendously to get feedback and positive criticism from
your friends. A first Sefer should appear in soft-cover without expensive
graphics. Many small printing and copying stores will print and bind small
soft-cover editions for a fraction of the price of a hard-cover edition. These
way 50-200 copies of a Sefer can be printed economically, without investing in
expensive printing plates. Disks are another option for a first work. Sending a
.pdf file to a small list of motivated readers who agree in advance to look at
the Sefer may be a good idea. I don't recommend putting your Sefer on the web
with unlimited access. Chances are no-one will relate to it and even if they
download it to an electronic reader, there is no guarantee that they will
actually read it. (However these habits may change and I hope to discuss
electronic book-readers in a later discussion.). When you decide to print a full
edition, consultation with an experienced graphic-design and
pagination expert is an absolute necessity.
Yaakov Rosenes
The Arguments In Favor Of Self-publishing:
In this section I am indebted to Dr. Milton Tobias of the Kollel Library in
Johannesburg S.A. and to his relative Rabbi Tuvieh Goldschmidt, Rav of Beis
Hamedrash Chofetz Chaim in Johannesburg S.A. who sent their excellent responses
to the outline I forwarded them. I include here excerpts from their letters and
some excerpts from a secular discussion group on LinkedIn discussion about
Self-publishing titled – "Does anyone else out there, besides me, think that
self-publishing should just go away and let "real" publishing take over again ?"
This discussion group has attracted more than 1270 comments since 2009, the vast
majority of them favoring "self-publishing". I bring a small selection of
quotes:
Rabbi Tuvieh Goldschmidt, Rav of Beis Hamedrash Chofetz Chaim in Johannesburg S.A , makes the following remarks:
.. It is
an increasing issue, and will have eventually to be addressed. My response is
due to lack of having heard an opinion about it by one of our Gedolim.
Throughout the generations the writing of a Sefer made that mechaber a mumcheh
(professional) on his subject. We can compare it to daf hayomi that has produced
hundreds of maggidey shiurim that are ‘boki’ in shas over the decades of its
existence. A critical eye could find fault in the daf hayomi that it goes
too fast, with no revision. However a responsible critic would be careful not to
downplay its greatness and importance or to expose its weaknesses, unless he has
found a workable system that has been tested to be as appealing and motivating
for the masses as daf yomi is. So too, in my opinion, we should excercise great
caution before exposing the existing weaknesses in our "mechabrim generation"
before there is a workable ( alternative )which will motivate and form the next
mumchim on the relevant inyonim and sugyes in shas.
It is true that sometimes seforim are printed that could have applied more iyun. Who is going to make the selection and risk demotivating future Talmidey chachomim, who might do better in their second attempt? And who can ensure that those selecting will do a perfect job, without over-scrutinizing?
It is true that kolelim are "pushed" to publicize and distribute divrey toireh for fundraising activities. Perhaps the awakening has to come from the donor’s side to evaluate kolelim by who they really are and not by how they represent themselves. It would include taking counsel from real talmidey chachomim’as to how the quality of a kollel is to be evaluated. As much as there is a fatigue regarding Seforim, I think that the donor fatigue exceeds it by far.
Popular Seforim or sets such as Orchos Shabbes or Tuvcho Yabiu can be printed in the tens of thousands. But many Seforim can find a more humble distribution that still is immeasurable by its value.
The Gaon of Vilna said that it is worthwhile printing a sefer for one good idea. The Rambam in the hakdomeh of zeroim says that an entire palace can be built many generations earlier, so that an odom hasholeym will find shelter in its shade once in his lifetime! Talmud toireh keneged kulom - if one yid will understand the sugyeh better, it is already keday.
Finally it is breath-taking to see our "otzar hachochmoh"
with the endless eternal growth of the toireh shebaal peh of our torah, and each
additional sefer adds to this koved!
The hard-earned $10,000 is worthwhile to be invested for one idea of the toireh
that would not have found its revelation in this world without the motivation of
the sefer! Of course there are side-effects and labor pains of the growing
zibbur and the ability to print, but every sefer is a new birth!
If you ask our mechabrim if they would have learned their inyen as well or better without the pressure of the sefer, how many would answer yes? Maybe one percent!
And finally if you count the Seforim which have been printed measured up against the real numbers of klal yisroel (14,000,000) it is still small (This brings to mind Rav Shach"s ztl. opinion on a project to motivate avreichim to take positions after 5 years in learning, where he responded that the numbers are so small compared to our real figures!)
Kol tuv Ubehokoroh rabboh.
Tuvieh Goldschmidt, Rav of Beis Hamedrash Chofetz Chaim
Dr. Milton Tobias, project director of the Kollel community’s Otzar Haseforim in Johannesburg SA, writes as follows:
Despite all of this, there is no doubt in my mind that having a good Torah library, especially for a family, changes a home. Think of all the Shabbos and Yom Tov and night Seder learning alone!
I think the Torah-reading public will decide the fate of all this – let market forces rule – in the end, no-one will clutter their homes with seforim that are unlikely to ever become useful …. And even the ‘collectors’ libraries will not give value to poorly-produced seforim which have no recognition … these will simply fade off the radar.
Excerpts
from the LinkedIn discussion group on Self-Publishing
I think the market speaks. There are needs out there that traditional
publishing houses may not be able to meet. For example, it may not be a large
enough market to justify the expenses required to publish and print a book. I
have self-published a book on security because the market was "too
small" for traditional publishing. Though the market may be too small
(40,000 potential customers who may or may not respond), I am providing a
valuable resource and filling a demand using print- on-demand technology.
I am self-publishing after having started my own company to meet small niche
demand.... .
So we
see a lot of interesting perspective on this. Nevertheless it seems
to me... that most of the somewhat academic discussion,
presupposes that people actually have a choice! The biggest issue is not about
choice - it is about practicability. The main problem
with trade/traditional Publishers is the fact that they rarely actually
publish books at all, unless you are already an established best seller (note I
didn't say established 'author' as that is no longer good enough) - or you are
some kind of 'celebrity' and a quick return can be guaranteed. The choice
therefore is often between publishing or not publishing, not the mechanics of
how it is done. It would of course be lovely for all those lucky authors with a
contract if 'self-publishers' simply went away.
I fully support your view that readers would lose out in this scenario. There
are some excellent hidden gems out there in the long term, and non
traditional publishing allows these to exist. Authors should never be put off
from putting out their works; there are endless ways to do this from free to
not so free. If your writing touches, helps or entertains just one person, you've
contributed to the world and changed someone's life.
It's more of a discussion on specifics on the benefits of both rather than
a ‘me versus you’ thing. Publishers obviously answer a dramatic
market need and self’- publishers have their specific niche. I may be
wrong, but as with most things, self publishing arose because many struggling
authors were not able to break into publishing and so they tried to do it
another way—for some, this meant great success, if you knew how to work
it, and for others it was a total flop. I work with many self publishers who
have a few palettes of books sitting in their garage...
There are amateur writers and authors and there
are professionals. You just described the difference between the
two. A professional author/writer has professional editors edit his/her
writing. An amateur has friends, family and non professionals do their
editing.
Here's one of the best analyses I've read of the subject, " Do authors
make good publishers? The answer is No. But it’s fascinating to watch them
try......"
Where self pub really works is in non-fiction, particularly in
niche interest areas. Publishers wouldn't touch many of the obscure books
out there but they serve a valuable purposes, as evidenced by their sales. I
think maybe fiction is harder to sell outside traditional channels but that
doesn't mean the opportunity should be withdrawn.
Audiences will vote with their wallets. If a book is bad, they won't buy it. My
e-book retails at a high price, I make sales and the feedback is unerringly
positive. I can't see a downside really.