Untying the Publishing Knot

Yesterday’s post got me thinking.

Most publishers want to innovate but they tie themselves in a knot trying.

They’re tied to existing processes, revenue targets, and sometimes mindsets that haven’t significantly changed for decades, if not centuries.

Can you untie a knot by adding excessive pressure to it?

No, brute force usually makes it worse!

You untie a knot by studying how each fiber has been entangled and determining how to unravel them.

Sometimes it’s hard to see the course each strand has taken, so you experiment. You pull on a string and see what happens – what moves.

Sometimes you make it worse before it gets better.

Other times the tangle is so complete that scissors are needed to remove part of the mess. Of course, this is the last resort because it can damage the fabric if it’s not done very carefully.