This above raises another issue related to publishing and money: I get the strong impression that many people imagine that writing is the way to fame and fortune. Well, there might be a little fame, but dosh? - I doubt it. Some time back I contributed to a Literary Critical journal - not for the little money, but to establish myself as one who could usefully write for peers. I also enjoyed it, and it sharpened me up in my field, knowing who the audience was. I think Xander did the same in his area.

Even if a book is published, the writer might care to check the number of hours against the payment, and work out the hourly rate. For most people except the J. K. Rowlings of this world and the journos of mainstream newspapers, the money isn't there. So CS's view, IMO, is the right one in a niche biking market; a book, maybe an article, is part of a whole, and not an end in itself (to say nothing of the off-road groupie "benefits in kind").

In an ideal world, money wouldn't enter into the writing debate at all; ideally we would write because we had something to say, which CS competently does. But we live in a cheapened society where money is usually the prime factor of motivation; we are all trapped in it to some degree, and one result is the financial chaos which we are all paying for - don't ever doubt it. Adam Smith and Karl Marx warned about this, a long time ago.

And no, this isn't off topic - it's at the heart of the issue.

PS I hear that one of those above-mentioned fishing magazines (Total Carp) is popular in Colombia, amazingly enough.