Indie writers and readers

In 2012 in an interview with Leslea Tash for LouisvilleKY.com, Sue Grafton said the following about Indie Publishing:

To me, it seems disrespectful…that a ‘wannabe’ assumes it’s all so easy s/he can put out a ‘published novel’ without bothering to read, study, or do the research. Learning to construct a narrative and create character, learning to balance pace, description, exposition, and dialogue takes a long time. This is not an quick do-it-yourself home project. Self-publishing is a short cut and I don’t believe in short cuts when it comes to the arts. I compare self-publishing to a student managing to conquer Five Easy Pieces on the piano and then wondering if s/he’s ready to be booked into Carnegie Hall.

In the same interview she also said:
Don’t self-publish. That’s as good as admitting you’re too lazy to do the hard work.

A statement she later apologised for.

– Full interview –
http://louisvilleky.com/2012/08/louisville-author-spotlight-welcomes-sue-grafton/

At the time, many traditionally published authors agreed with her.

If you’re an Indie Author or Indie Reader, do you think this view has changed, or does the Indie Publishing stigma remain? I’ve been reading books written by Indie Authors for many years, and in my personal opinion the quality has vastly improved, to the extend that I now almost exclusively read Indie.

If you’re an avid reader I would be interested to know if you first check if a book is traditionally published before spending money on it? If you’re an Indie Author I would really like to know if you’ve ever been sorry you took the Indie route (as apposed to going through the process of getting traditionally published).

Just to clarify, with ‘Indie Author’ I am referring to authors who self publish their books.

Look forward to hearing your thoughts.