Marketing is worth spending money on if it brings in more money than you pay. I'd agree that it might be worth it if you're shooting for a bestseller, but the author lays it out as an unavoidable expense.<p>I love books, and being a writer sucks as a way to make a living even for very talented people, but the solution has to involve radical change to the publishing model. Big publishers seem to take a massive cut without improving the quality of the end result. I'm a big supporter of authors looking at alternative models, like Peter Watts with free downloads in the hope of donations:<p><a href="http://www.rifters.com/real/Blindsight.htm" rel="nofollow">http://www.rifters.com/real/Blindsight.htm</a>