For all my published and yet-to-be-published friends, I wanted to call your attention to an article on New Year's Eve in the Wall Street Journal.
The article was a cautionary tale. Borders is trying to restructure its debt because it's in financial deep water. It has a cash-flow problem, meaning money is coming in but not enough to pay publishers for shipping the stores products to sell. This could turn into a vicious circle. If the big-box stores don't receive books to put on the shelves, authors won't sell books. And if the big-box stores sell books but don't pay the publishers for them, do you think authors will receive royalties?
I've been in business for over 35 years. Even I know that if I don't pay my suppliers under the terms and conditions of our contracts, I wouldn't be able to order more materials. The same holds true for authors. I for one am going to watch this very carefully.
This helps make the case for e-publishing.
