Of course I’m somewhat biased toward 2013 as being a good year for independent publishing, since that was the year I started publishing independently myself. But it was also a good year for the rest of the indie publishing world. Dean Wesley Smith has an excellent summary (with some looks ahead to 2014 as well).

Dean Wesley Smith is one of the canniest assessors of publishing I know (as is his wife, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, whom I’ve linked to several times in the past). He pulls no punches – one of the pleasures of reading him is the firmness and decisiveness of his opinions, even when I disagree or am uncertain. He’s not lukewarm about what he thinks.  For some reason his style and voice remind me of the great baseball writer Bill James – one of those guys who thinks before he writes, states his argument plainly, backs up what he says, stakes out new territory, and ruffles feathers when it’s necessary.

What I found fascinating about his summary is that the major changes he describes (and predicts) are mainly to traditional publishers – in particular mainstream presses, authors, and agents. In his view, the indie publishing world is settling into something of a period of stability. In any case, check out the entire post – it’s well worth a read.

For me? How does my 2014 look? I’ll have more predictions and news on Monday. And of course, I’ll keep you posted throughout the year.