The Internet is creating new opportunities.
True. There's a lot more on the subject in Getting published: what does it mean?
The first novelists of 1977, even though they started their careers in the age of typewriters, carbon paper, and bricks-and-mortar bookstores, haven't entirely missed out on these opportunities. Chesbro, Slosberg, Ducker, Brooks, and Jackson have web sites.(Chesbro mentioned that he didn’t even have a computer until 1998, but that when he logged onto the Internet, it helped him transform his career.) Mayer commented on how Amazon’s linking him to John Grisham helped his sales. Swigart is into computers and new narrative genres.
Authors used to try hard to get publishers to keep their works in print, because once a book went out of print, it was very hard to find. On-demand printing technology and internet retailing have changed the situation dramatically, and for the better. Almost all of the 1977 authors' works are available through Amazon. Of course, the novelists' joy must be tempered by the fact that they are not receiving any royalties on these old books.