You can write all you want. As much as you want. Until it gets published you might as well never have written it.
So what is new. Actually nothing. Publishing has remained steadfastly moored to traditions rather like fossil fuels. The Gutenberg press was the first revolution to hit the hand written word which in turn had dealt a body blow to the oral traditions. Imagine learning the entire vedas and the hundred thousand sloka Mahabharata by heart. Not to mention Homer the writers of Rome the medieval European writers. The entire corpus to be held in the human brain.
Development, the so called progress, would be slow as history is evidence. The so called traditional publishers arose from this quagmire. The author is only good to write. The editor is only to edit.
Everything, especially the marketing part was brought under one umbrella. Called The Publisher. This phenomenal entity reads your work and decides if it is worth showing it in public. Those they exclude will perish regardless of their worth
The publishing and layout platforms now available, some of them for free should have altered the publishing scenario long ago.
Why didn’t they.? The author is an artist, no good at the nuts, bolts and such stuff of publishing. Into this scene entered the predators with their tall promises. The number one self publishing company in — fill in the country name.
They are honest in that, although honestly is never their strong point. The make you self publish. And collect the money. Sales and marketing is touch and go depending on your luck.
I am not talking about such predatory publishing companies. Take as an alternative model the Kindle publishing facility. Done carefully indie publishing can be rewarding. So why don’t more folks enter that circle.
Ability to write but nothing else could be a curse.