Why is horror failing as a genre?  I’ve been asked this many times, especially in the past year or so.  So here’s my own definitive list of answers with explanations.  Of course, please keep in mind that I’m only focused on the indie perspective of why horror is failing.  This might save a future argument on the forums by some idiot pointing out that the latest horror flick, I Know What You Did To My Soul Last Summer After You Cut Up My Mom And Had Sex With My Poodle, made 22 million the first week at the box office.

Target #1: ‘For The Love Of It’ and ‘Fly-By-Night’ Publishers

Just stop it, will you?  Quit fucking throwing that ‘For The Love Of It’ phrase in everyone’s faces.  That particular phrase, when translated to reality, means ‘In The Process Of Failing.’  Publishing is a business, UNLESS you distribute your product for free, do not accept donations and have yet to spend a single dollar in production costs.  That narrows it down quite a bit I would think.  The problem is that publishers often use that phrase as a scapegoat.  It allows them to act unprofessionally, be unfair to their authors and to not do a single damn thing to help grow this genre, let alone their own company.

I’ve always held myself to one principle as a publisher: Be a successful business. Not just for myself, but for the fans of my press, the readers, collectors, the authors and other contributors.  The best way I can give back to the genre is by staying around, growing as a business, and becoming a stable home for fans of the literary horror scene.

Here are some cold, hard facts to digest.  I live in the US and the last time I checked it was still a capitalistic country.  Most of the world is.  Once that first dollar changes hands, you’re running a business whether you want to admit it or not.  So TREAT IT LIKE ONE!!!

Since 1999 when I became a publisher, there has easily been more than 100 presses start up and fail in our genre alone.  Why?  Because I swear to fucking God that most new publishers are bi-polar.  One day the refill on their medication just runs out and they get the life-changing notion that starting up a horror press is a damn fine idea.  Due to this widespread phenomena, I’m going to call my example press in this post Lithium Press just to be a smartass.

So Lithium Press doesn’t have the money to start up in the first place (they didn’t even have enough money to get a refill on their meds, remember?).  Oh, but that’s easily fixed: Lithium Press suckers in a dozen or so collectors to cough up a grand or so in ‘lifetime subs’ to launch the press.  They do this because at the height of their mania, they convince everyone they’re the next big press.  And they seem to be good guys, which, in fact, they may be, but…(And the BUT is what most of us have to worry about, which I’ll get to shortly.)

OK, so LP has jumped the first hurdle and raised the cash.  Mr. Valproate, editor-in-chief of Lithium Press, now thinks: this publishing business isn’t so hard afterall!

Now onto the first book.  Generally speaking, Mr. Valproate knows nothing about the business except that horror is cool and that a book is rectangular and is bound on the left side.  He doesn’t really care to learn anything because he’s American and our motto is “Why do something yourself when you can pay someone else to do it.”  So LP outsources their layouts, their copy editing, their webmastering.  Using Valproate’s business savvy, he contracts a mid-list author, sets a hardcover print run at 500 copies, expects it to sell out fast, get a quick return on his lifetime subscribers’ initial investment, and then proceed to launch his publishing “empire.”

Little does he know that there are, in fact, no publishing empires.  Sadly, only small huts and outhouses.

Now we’re at the stage where the first LP title fails, but it doesn’t matter because Mr Valproate can always go to his guns and shoot off several “For the Love Of It” bullets, shooting himself in the head (which, of course, has no effect), his author’s Muse in the heart, and each one of his lifetime subscribers right square in their puckered-up assholes.

Unless you’re a magician, you cannot sell 500 copies written by a mid-list author on the merit of the story alone.  The first mistake a publisher makes is generally thinking that since the story is the greatest thing since string cheese that it’s going to sell well.  In a perfect world, sure, I’ll give you that.  But we’re not in such a world, are we, Spanky?

To move a book, it takes a far greater gimmick than a good piece of fiction (that gimmick has been used on every title ever produced, so you’re too late to spring that piece of ingenious copy on the front or back of the book and expect it to fly).  It won’t sell, especially since you know nothing about marketing and have no ISBN, no distribution, no common sense.  And speaking of common sense, before the first book is in the hands of readers, Lithium Press has already contracted and announced 15 new titles by midlist authors to round out their publishing schedule for year one!!! Whoo-hooo!  Kudos!  Good move!

But, on a positive note, Mr. Valproate figures, At least it’s not my money I’ve just squandered, right?

Let’s skip ahead. The first book’s layout gets fucked up and the author wants to do a re-write days before it goes to the printer. Then there are problems at the printer.  There are problems at the bindery.  Finally, after all the turmoil, twenty boxes of hardcovers show up on the doorstep and now it’s time to ship them to customers.  At least, all 100 copies that have sold (which includes 12 lifetime subscribers).

Right about now is about the time Mr. V. realizes that publishing isn’t as easy as he had first thought the night his meds ran out.  Especially since he just lost 2-3 thousand dollars or more on LP’s first title.  And he will soon find out because he can’t pack books worth a shit and several boxes eventually come back damaged and the ones that do arrive in good shape to booksellers, well… unfortunately, a great deal of booksellers don’t always pay on time.

But those extra 400 copies will eventually sell, right?

Nope.

Because Lithium Press has no marketing in place, no distribution, all because they wanted to rush their first book to the printer.

Luckily, they’re only doing it for the love it and not as a business which they remind their author while letting him or her know that the book was a total flop and didn’t sell worth a crap.

You can see the cycle that is about to begin, but I’m not going any further.  Because it gets uglier and most of you know how it always ends.  How many ‘active’ publishers are really active?  In truth, there are already many on their last leg or they’re twirling around on their dicks right now, but you’ll never hear a formal announcement.  No one likes to post a news release that they’re a total failure.  That is an unlikely Endeavour.

Instead of progressing further into that ugly cycle, let’s look at some popular excuses indie publishers use and my answers to them:

Excuse 1: I have a real job and can’t focus my time on my press.
Answer: Too fucking bad.  Sleep less, spend less time with your family, ignore your friends, and spend more time growing your business.  Or give up!  You said you loved it, right?  Prove it!  You get nowhere in life without sacrifice.  If the sacrifices aren’t worth it, then give up NOW.  And be sure to refund your lifetime subscribers’ money back while you’re busy going under.

Excuse 2: My Uncle died.  (Believe it or not, most of these fly-by-night / for-the-love-of-it publishers use personal crisis as excuse).
Answer: How many fucking Uncles do you have?  You’ve had at least 7 die in the last few months alone.  And I don’t care if all of them really did die.  I’ll send 7 cards.  Now run your fucking business.  If I worked for a corporation and on payday they said they couldn’t pay me, ship books, pay invoices or pay back money owed, I’d go postal.  If you’re running a business, no matter at what level, this should be no different.  Tip: If your Uncle’s passing affects your business, he’d better be the fucking SEO or your partner, not just a relative.  If he IS just a relative, than that is the first sign you’re not cut out to run your own business.

Excuse 3:  It’s the printer’s fault.
Answer: Sorry, but who chose the printer?  It’s an extension of your business and it reflect on you, so you’re the (wo)man to really blame.  Working with printers and binderies is time-consuming and oftentimes frustrating, not to mention costly, but in my 10 years in this business 90% of printer blame I hear publishers using really should be directed right back at the publisher.  They use it as a scapegoat.  Publishers can’t miss deadlines they don’t set, so why set a release date and take preorders only to find you’re in a bind?  Work out the details and samples with your printer and bindery BEFORE the book goes up for sale.

Let’s face it, this rant is endless, so let’s just end Part 1 with more cold, hard facts.

When was the last time a press launched itself, lasted a year or less (maybe even longer) and made any type of difference in this genre?

Never.

The only impact a new publisher can make is to build its business model and adapt and grow to be one of the few that has an actual history.  Without a history spanning several years, there’s little a publisher can give to this genre.  Unfortunately, they end up taking a lot more, including trust of authors, customers and many others.

Sure, there have been presses established that put out a few good books, maybe even pay their authors and not fuck a lot of customers, but they make no real impact on our genre.  They become a mere footnote, mostly a sour one, even the brunt of a good joke every now and then.

Anyone currently a publisher or thinking about becoming one, remember one thing.  The road to Hell is paved with good intentions.

It takes more than a mere intention to become a publisher.  And a publisher is synonymous with business.  I’m sorry, but having a passion for books doesn’t make you an ideal candidate to become a publisher.  Because being a publisher has more to do with business than art.  And most often true artists make lousy businessmen.  There are only a few that can walk that line.

Ten Tips For New Horror Publishers

• Never take money up front
• Plan on losing money for the first 5 years, maybe longer
• Have the cash flow established to pay up front for everything and a reserve that will last you till your business takes off
• Treat authors and every other business relationship like you’d want to be treated if you were in their shoes
• Research everything.  From printers to binderies to booksellers to distributors.
• Learn the business yourself.  From laying out your first book, running your own website, handling sales, etc.
• Before you announce your first book, you should already have went through the process of book layout, production, including manufactured samples from your printer/bindery to shipping sample product.
• Set goals for your company.  Where do you want to be in 5 years?  10 years? And most importantly, how are you going to get there?
• Network.  With authors, other publishers, booksellers, artists.  The more you know and the more contacts you make, the easier it will be when the business begins.
• Pray To Whatever God You Worship (or get a lucky rabbit’s foot) because even if you do everything right, remember that, in the end, you’re selling books.  Horror books.  Overpriced books (from a general reader’s POV).  And hardly anyone reads these days anyway.  Best case scenario: you make enough money to get by.