Amazon launched its Digital Text Platform ("DTP") in November of 2007, the same month they debuted the Kindle. It was a major game changer for e-books.
It was such a game-changer that writers, agents, and publishers went to war over the changing concept of self-publishing. It became easier for some writers to publish stories that mainstream publishing ("trad publishing") didn't want to touch. By the same token, readers had more stories in the genres and subgenres they love instead of waiting for those types of books to become popular again.
After nearly twenty years, we've hit the (relatively speaking) the new normal in publishing.
On the plus side, we don't have the nasty online flame wars online that happened in the beginning of the changes. For the most part people stay in their lanes and don't bother the other side.
The weird thing is that so many agents I used to follow back in the '00's are no longer agents. Even the readers who tried gatekeep via their blogs during the initial chaos no longer have any power. And you know what? That's okay, too.
So many of the authors I followed before the changes hit are still the same authors I follow today. And guess what? A large portion of them have gone indie.
So what it comes down to, I still love my favorite authors, and I get to read a wider variety of the books they enjoy writing. Especially on a day like this when there's five inches of snow on the ground and the temps are below freezing.
All I need is the Princess Pup on my lap, a hot cup of tea, and a damn good story. Life doesn't get any better than this.
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