When the first washer machines and dryers came out, people who hung their clothes on the clothesline swore they would never switch. However, many of these same people are the ones who, once they got their money together, began putting down people who still hang their clothes on the clothesline. I see a similar trend with the advent of e-book publishing.

In the June 2000 issue of Writer's Digest, M.J. Rose has an article featured titled, "What's the State of Publishing? A Hint--It Starts with the Letter e." (For those who aren't familiar with her, M.J. Rose is an author who garnered national attention after publishing on the Internet. She has since signed a contract with Simon & Schuster--and the resulting hardcover book, to be released this August, has been a featured selection with the Doubleday Book Club and the Literary Guild.) The article features the pros and cons of e-book publishing.

The biggest argument cited against e-books is that the quality of writing will suffer and that the books won't be edited. Of course, the biggest detractors were the agents and publishers. M.J. quotes an agent (who will remain nameless in this article) as having said, "If you can't find an agent who likes your book, perhaps there is something wrong with the book." Now think about it. If you were receiving 15 percent of the advance and money from book sales (on a book you didn't even write) or 85 percent of the book's profit, would you be happy to give up your part of the pie? And think of the history of the many books that later became famous, which agents and publishing houses rejected.

As far as quality control of e-books, any writer who is serious about his craft will seek a good editor. And there are cooperative publishers for writers who don't want to assume all the responsibility for their self-publishing efforts who can do this for the writer. (The manuscripts I work with are both copy and story edited before they are published as e-books under Black Butterfly Press.)

One only has to look at the trends to get an idea where the future of e-books is headed. Traditional bookstores and publishers are jumping on the e-book bandwagon. According to M.J. Rose's article, Barnes and Nobles bought 49 percent of Universe.com, the publishing company who provides print-on-demand and e-books. M.J. Rose goes on to point out how in the past two years, more than 100 e-publishing companies have started up and over 1,000 authors have published full-length books available only on the Internet.

To quote from the article, "Lately, I noticed a few more independent authors, who are being interviewed rather than laughed at," says Pauline B. Jones, who last year sold the first e-book to the film industry. The e-book, "I love Lucy-When I don't Want to Kill Her," is being produced by Indie Gal Productions. "It's about time. That kind of snobbery only helped publishers keep a lock on publishing. You don't see that kind of attitude in other creative venues. In cinema, independent filmmakers are applauded. They are the mavericks. Now, it's our turn.'"

Definitely, e-books are an idea whose time has come. I recently read where Publisher's Weekly has even reviewed an e-book! Moreover, since the Stephen King success with his e-book, "Riding the Bullet," Simon and Schuster, (the same publisher) will be releasing an e-book edition of author, Mary Higgins Clark's latest book, and plans to make all her other 18 books available in e-books.

To quote from BookIdea.com, in their article called "How do you publish an e-book," "While most of us don't foresee the demise of traditional print books anytime soon, more publishers and writers are exploring ways to distribute their works electronically as well as on paper.

Other fictional e-books--especially in the genres of romance and science fiction--also have done well online. In non-fiction, any subject that requires constant updating (computer books, for example, or professional directories) is also ripe for e-publishing."

Why e-books? Because they require less upfront expense, no inventory and fewer middlemen. The result: you can often sell them at a lower cost than traditional print books, yet collect a larger percentage of the profit. You can also keep a book with a limited, but ongoing audience "in print" indefinitely. Your books need never die."

My contention is that most of the negative press seems to come from fear of change and fear of the loss of power.

When people warn that e-books will lower the quality of published works, I think this is a scare tactic to keep other writers from venturing into this relatively new field. There will definitely be a shift of power from the people who have owned the publishing industry.

In conclusion, publishing e-books is like the Flying Wallendas--a family of trapeze artists who performed worldwide without a net. You will lose your net--that is, your safety and comfort zone. Although there is less financial risk involved, as an e-book publisher, you are still venturing into unknown territory, so you are afraid. But just look at the trends of the larger publishers and I think it sends a louder message than your fear. Either you set the rules to the game, or someone else rules!