Publishing is a time-honored profession lovingly cared for and protected by people who believe in culture, books, and ideas.
Or…not. From Andrew Sullivan:
We are asked to believe that [Palin] wrote a 400-page autobiography in two months. Although no one ever believed Harper Collins’ Jonathan Burnham was actually interested in the content of books, this new contract and its absurd delivery date closes the case.
…
(Full disclosure: Burnham published my last book, The Conservative Soul. I know whereof I speak.)
Ouch.
Update: more on Burnham, and why amateurs are not qualified to decide who gets published.
(Hint: professionals are rigorously trained to put money ahead of everything else, including their own self-respect.)
— Mark Barrett