After the Death of Oldpub: What Comes Next?
If you’ve been paying attention, you’ve heard it …
The groan of empty convention halls, the sigh of remaindered titles gathering dust; the awkward shuffle of a midlist author hawking paperbacks at a booth next to a wall of FunkoPops.
That’s the sound of oldpub dying.
Contrary to what newpub authors have said for years, the legacy publishing industry isn’t in trouble.
It’s terminal.
The patient flatlined years ago. The only thing keeping the corpse twitching is brand inertia and an aging back catalog by authors who are even deader than the houses that bought their rights.
These big New York publishers have been on death watch for a decade. And every quarter, their numbers get worse.
Meanwhile, newpub: a loose market of independent authors running their own micro-businesses, continues to grow.
Why?
Simple: Oldpub doesn’t have a value proposition anymore.
Amazon replaced their vertically integrated paper distribution monopoly.
Freelance editors who work for you made giving a publisher a permanent share of your royalties for editing obsolete.
Ditto cover design. Pay a pro once up front and get exactly what you want.
And you know you’ll be doing all the marketing yourself, anyway. The dirty secret is out that oldpub only spends ad money on their A-listers, all of whom were made over a decade ago.
Related: Why Newpub Is the Only Way Forward
I’ve said it before: Oldpub is a dinosaur waiting for the asteroid to finish the job.
But here’s the catch: The space rock already hit. We’re living in the post-impact world.
Screen cap: Gainax
The collapse of the old system means more opportunity than ever for authors willing to take the wheel.
But it’s not a utopia. Newpub isn’t magic; it’s work.
Some say you can’t make a living in newpub. I’m here to tell you in no uncertain terms that you can. You just need to master three elements:
Craft: Write books that people want to read. This means knowing your audience and delivering exactly what they came for … plus a little extra to surprise them
Presentation: covers, blurbs, and formatting that look professional. Readers do judge books by their covers, and they should
Visibility: In newpub, obscurity is the real enemy. if readers can’t find you, they can’t buy you.
Related: Newpub Tips—How Not to Get Noticed in 2025
Mind you, sugarcoating the scope of the challenge won’t serve anyone. Newpub authors may have it easier making a living from their writing than their freshly signed oldpub counterparts. And that’s easier as in “any chance at all.” But it’s still no walk in the park.
We’re not talking two or even three times as hard as most people think.
Nope, we’re talking more like 10 times.
So nobody can blame you if you’d rather hang up your pen and go drive a forklift.
To make a living wage in the book business, you need: a) fanatical drive that won’t let you not write, b) the predisposition to have equal regard for the money and the art, and c) nigh-preternatural persistence in the face of years without recognition, profit, or encouragement.
Now, if you’ve been in newpub circles long enough, you’ve seen the rugged individualist types who insist they can do it all solo.
Those guys burn out fast. Because the “self-made-man” is a manmade spook.
The truth is, we need to boost each other up.
Oldpub isn’t coming to save us, and Hollywood isn’t optioning our novels … or oldpub’s, for that matter.
Our growth depends on mutual promotion and mentoring.
You want to be the next breakout indie?
Good.
When you get there, turn around and pull the next guy up.
That’s how we win.
Because like the dinosaurs, oldpub is being replaced by swifter, more agile, and more adaptable competitors.
And the new environment belongs to those who build it.
Brian Niemeier is a best-selling novelist, editor, and Dragon Award winner with over a decade in newpub. For direct, in-person writing and editing insights, join his Patreon.