tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post2321477702411732494..comments2023-09-25T02:24:22.087-07:00Comments on Anne R. Allen's Blog: Ready to be a Wrublisher? A Priter? Some Caveats for Self-Publishers from Bestselling Author Jeff CarlsonAnne R. Allenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02420000168356370825noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post-56192054246906016942011-04-28T22:44:33.298-07:002011-04-28T22:44:33.298-07:00This was a great post. I love seeing the real numb...This was a great post. I love seeing the real numbers. Puts everything in perspective.<br /><br />And interesting what a good cover artist charges? I'd honestly never thought about it!Jennifer Hillierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15783975547643539868noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post-46805427313905180922011-04-28T18:40:58.600-07:002011-04-28T18:40:58.600-07:00Holly--Good luck with the self-pubbing. Keep us po...Holly--Good luck with the self-pubbing. Keep us posted about your progress. <br /><br />My point exactly: there is no "solid" when everything is shaking. Those terrible pictures of Tuscaloosa on the news tonight show how fragile our places of "safety" are. Nothing is solid. I have a friend there I'm praying is OK.Anne R. Allenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02420000168356370825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post-44340276227256190002011-04-28T18:35:42.625-07:002011-04-28T18:35:42.625-07:00Good grief... How am I going to successfully forma...Good grief... How am I going to successfully format an ebook when I can't even post a comment properly... There's no hope for me.... :)Hollyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17582931842128068581noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post-35788304248584111502011-04-28T18:31:28.174-07:002011-04-28T18:31:28.174-07:00I plan to self-epublish at some stage because I...I plan to self-epublish at some stage because I'm odd--and my writing tends to reflect that. I've made small publishers' short lists a couple of times, because my work is different, but when the "can we sell it?" question is asked, it's too different... They don't know how to market it. (Fair enough, neither do I, but I'll worry about that later.) Maybe there is a small press out there that would be prepared to take that gamble, but I don't see the point in wasting my time--or anybody elses time--pitching my work at publishers when the tools are available for me to do it myself.<br /><br />And that is, in my opinion, the gift the internet offers writers. If your work is niche market/non-commercial stuff, or just plain odd, you now have an option. It doesn't mean you'll be able to reach your audience--or even that there is one out there--but you at least have the opportunity to try.<br /><br />Money is not my motivation. I don't expect to make any, and I'm fine with that. And I like<br />the fact that I'm the only one taking a risk. Don't have to worry about sending any small press into early bankruptcy...<br /><br />Jeff--I think the "The Frozen Sky" image looks great. From what I've seen of ebook covers,<br />simplicity is indeed the key. It has to look good in thumbnailish size.<br /><br />Anne--Maybe holding onto things that look solid is our biggest problem. Sometimes, the stable looking buildings are the first casualties.Hollyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17582931842128068581noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post-75226214501831997812011-04-28T17:53:45.672-07:002011-04-28T17:53:45.672-07:00This comment has been removed by the author.Hollyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17582931842128068581noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post-24936793453648926852011-04-28T10:03:46.880-07:002011-04-28T10:03:46.880-07:00Betty--You're so right. We all need eleven fin...Betty--You're so right. We all need eleven fingers to cross. You've got to have a great product, but you've also got to have phenomenal luck.<br /><br />Clarissa--We're in the middle of an earthquake. Everybody's looking for something solid to hang on to, but everything is getting shaken up. Exciting but scary times.Anne R. Allenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02420000168356370825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post-14548243206724212852011-04-27T10:59:51.706-07:002011-04-27T10:59:51.706-07:00These are excellent points. I think it's hard ...These are excellent points. I think it's hard to sell books right now because it's a changing market. People are still deciding the best price to sell e-books and buy them. I am excited for the change but nervous as well.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12160669603997465454noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post-39725722459859602062011-04-25T20:01:03.495-07:002011-04-25T20:01:03.495-07:00There are lots of ways of looking at self-publishi...There are lots of ways of looking at self-publishing e-books and it always boils down to the same thing as any kind of publishing. You have to SELL whatever you have, whether it be print or e-publish, whether it be quality or trash. You'd better look at the very best you can do and produce it by looking for the very best way for YOU to do it...and keep your fingers crossed (all eleven of them). Right?Betty Craker Hendersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07008202380876213558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post-68806776364235768572011-04-25T11:52:29.346-07:002011-04-25T11:52:29.346-07:00Aha ha. The good if less-than-certain news is tha...Aha ha. The good if less-than-certain news is that riding the fence looks like a perfectly viable option for years.<br /><br />Amanda Hocking was savaged on the 'Net for accepting a $2,000,000 four-book deal with S&S, which is crazy. Why the hostility? She'll only GROW her e-reader audience with stacks of print copies in Wal-Mart, Target and the chains, feeding her indie-published titles... and she's virtually guaranteed to pocket another $1M in foreign deals for those four books. Then those foreign publishers will start picking up her backlist.<br /><br />Hocking is such an outlier among the outliers of the outliest outliers that comparing her success to the norm is like apples to hydrogen bombs, but, again, there's no reason in the world why a writer can't go traditional *and* indie, using each to propel the other. <br /><br />The trick is to decide when and which way to hop off the fence with each project.<br /><br />Deep Thoughts With Jeff. ;)Jeff Carlsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05750124388445987629noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post-54493425227936507092011-04-25T10:06:00.561-07:002011-04-25T10:06:00.561-07:00Steve, Fois, Roh, Monica, S.F. and Natalie--aren&#...Steve, Fois, Roh, Monica, S.F. and Natalie--aren't we lucky to have Jeff giving us the benefit of some first-hand experience? It sounds as if some of you have already made the decision to jump into the "ebook chaos"--but you're doing it with your eyes open. A lot of the rest of us are still sitting on that splintery fence. I'm up there, too.<br /><br />Jeff, thanks again for all this.Anne R. Allenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02420000168356370825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post-19356875932080005982011-04-24T21:23:31.213-07:002011-04-24T21:23:31.213-07:00Thanks for your post. People tend to glorify self ...Thanks for your post. People tend to glorify self publishing nowadays, and it is comforting to hear from someone who experienced the whole thing.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post-16303364628809761942011-04-24T18:23:32.865-07:002011-04-24T18:23:32.865-07:00Jeff's experiences are a great learning opport...Jeff's experiences are a great learning opportunity! These are all topics I've been reviewing as I take my steps toward the ebook revolution chaos. Rather than see it as negative, I think it's a positive--this is all a challenge we authors are faced with on our own.<br /><br />How awesome is that? No more letting a publisher or agent do the fighting for us. The time to act and rise based on your own merits is now. I for one am excited to make my attempt to be an author in this brave new paradigm!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15367023448539921016noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post-79026888430312833672011-04-24T17:25:43.165-07:002011-04-24T17:25:43.165-07:00I'm plotting my first novel now. The more I re...I'm plotting my first novel now. The more I read on this topic, the more I feel like a college student who's glad graduation is still a year away. <br />Right now, I lean toward traditional publishing. I don't think I'd want to be writing and herding cats at the same time.<br /><br />Thanks, Jeff and Anne.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post-38868266167983549782011-04-24T15:25:42.204-07:002011-04-24T15:25:42.204-07:00My pleasure, Roh Morgon. Love the eyes.
For what...My pleasure, Roh Morgon. Love the eyes.<br /><br />For what it's worth, I'm with those who believe the seesaw will tip almost entirely to ebooks within... oh, five years? Ten? But readers, writers and publishers are all in flux. Chaos is opportunity. ;)Jeff Carlsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05750124388445987629noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post-85026674054306783282011-04-24T13:38:31.227-07:002011-04-24T13:38:31.227-07:00Thanks for sharing your experiences, Jeff. I, too ...Thanks for sharing your experiences, Jeff. I, too have been on the fence about self-publishing a novel I wrote two years ago. But a number of things have convinced me that, for this particular book, self-pub is the only way to go.<br /><br />I'm still hanging onto that fence edge by my fingertips, on the off-chance an opportunity will make me scramble back over.<br /><br />But every day I become more convinced indie is the path to take right now, and another finger slips from the fence.<br /><br />The most important thing that anyone considering self-pubbing needs to be aware of is to go into it with eyes wide open. Thanks for opening ours a little wider.<br /><br />And thanks, Anne, for your continued examination of this topic and for hosting Jeff today.roh morgonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06823641709307631626noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post-46330066369013522002011-04-24T12:24:39.709-07:002011-04-24T12:24:39.709-07:00Pond. I meant "e-pond" but my fingers k...Pond. I meant "e-pond" but my fingers knew I was writing a post... ;PJeff Carlsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05750124388445987629noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post-32952883262402976302011-04-24T12:22:31.213-07:002011-04-24T12:22:31.213-07:00Steve of Cambria! My reasoning in releasing four ...Steve of Cambria! My reasoning in releasing four small ebooks for 99c instead one large one for $2.99 or $4.99 is that nobody cares about 99 cents. As a price point, it's a low-risk introduction for anyone new to my work. <br /><br />Also, you have to realize, there many, many ereaders who are hostile toward high-priced ebooks... and mostly rightly so. Heck, sometimes they give *me* one-star reviews on Amazon because of the publishers' price set, which is beating the horse, not the king. (Am I mixing metaphors again?)<br /><br />That means a $9.99 mega collection might sell at a ratio of one-to-thousands in comparison to a 99c mini-collection, maybe worse. Sure, you'd pocket $6.99 for every copy purchased at $9.99 vs. 35cents for every copy purchased at 99c, but would you rather move 30,000 copies a year making 35c each or 3 copies a year making $6.99 each?<br /><br />Btw, my backside is also full of splinters, ha ha. Which way to jump is a big decision these days. Remember, though, there's no reason why you can't e-publish and legacy publish different properties at the same time.<br /><br />@fOIS, see above. My four ebooks to-date consist of a novella, a novelette and a lot of short stories that were previously published by traditional publishers in various magazines and anthologies. Now the rights are mine again. I could have bundled them into one full-length ms. and shopped it to medium and small press publishers (the big guys aren't interested in short fiction collections unless you're a big name author) for a print collection, which would look great on my book shelf. But short story collections don't sell anywhere near as well as novels, so, given that these are genre stories, odds are the print-run would be 2500 - 4000 with a sell-through of 1500 - 3000 if it did well. Maybe I'd see $2/per if that was a hardcover or fancy trade edition. <br /><br />Instead, via e-magic, the four ebooks have topped 9000 sold in four months. It's good to be read and to increase my audience, and already the money is similar to what I would have seen in total from a print deal, especially since my agent's not involved, so there's no 15% off the top.<br /><br />Will my leader "The Frozen Sky" continue to sell high? Dunno. Will the numbers for the three newer ebooks perk up? Dunno. But I wanted to get my feet wet in the e-post.<br /><br />JCJeff Carlsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05750124388445987629noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post-30735128343730508852011-04-24T11:31:31.756-07:002011-04-24T11:31:31.756-07:00Thanks for introducing your guest, Anne. Your rece...Thanks for introducing your guest, Anne. Your recent posts and this new addition is keeping up with my thoughts. Neck and neck ... or as the song goes ... belly to belly :)<br /><br />Jeff, I love Anne's slogan ... “KINDLE NO BOOK BEFORE ITS TIME” ... and it's brother ... Self-publish no book before you think hard about why.<br /><br />In light of that, I ask you Jeff ... why? You had an established relationship and your publisher seemed to have done a good job. <br /><br />Most inexperienced writers think the major motivation is $$ ... that is the message they get. It falls to those who believe they cannot get pub'd with a trad'l house. So from the perspective of an author who had successfully waded through the mote to NYC ... what was your reasoning? If not money, was it artistic control or another factor?<br /><br />Thanks for a very thoughtful post.fOIS In The Cityhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06347958777030988677noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8385052143211121638.post-2205957856084301872011-04-24T11:22:35.339-07:002011-04-24T11:22:35.339-07:00I am, as "they" say, on the fence about ...I am, as "they" say, on the fence about e-publishing. But I keep leaning one way, then the other so much, I now have more splinters than butt.<br />If I decide to e-pub a series of linked short stories, does it make sense to publish each at 99-cents with the rest offered on the same page, plus the whole collection for, say, $9.99?<br />---Steve of CambriaSteve of Cambrianoreply@blogger.com