Authors are often treated like second class citizens in the publishing world. Part of the problem is that publishers take on so much risk related to printing books that in return they get the upper hand when it comes to defining contract terms.

Most publishers aren’t very good about keeping authors informed about their book(s). Some don’t even provide timely sales data for an author’s work. Authors should be able to see at any time how well their content is selling and not be dependent on an ambiguous Amazon sales rank as their best measure for performance.

Much can be done to improve the author experience and internet publishing helps level the playing field. The cost structure is much different than the print world so publishers don’t have to assume as much risk. Creating an informative and flexible environment for authors to work will be imperative to retain top notch talent.