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Post by RickW on Feb 27, 2021 20:27:57 GMT -5
Further to a discussion from earlier, regarding the state of independent publishing, that is, those authors who publish on their own, without a major publishing house. I was looking at Amazon’s information on the services they provide. For 2019, over 1,000 independent authors made more than $100,000, and thousands made above 50k. Considering that when I was writing in the 90s, the belief was that much less than 100 people were even making a living from writing, that’s pretty incredible. The publishing world is being turned on its head. Amazon controls 80 percent of the market, but Kobo, Barnes and Noble, Google and Apple also all do independents as well
55 percent of Amazon’s book sales are independent now.
I’ve been submitting to agencies since the start of the year, and I have my doubts my book will get picked up. They get inundated with manuscripts, and the big guys only publish sho many books a year. So I’m assuming that if I want to publish, I’ll have to do it myself. Be an adventure, we’ll see how it goes.
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Post by millring on Feb 28, 2021 7:23:17 GMT -5
That's good news for those who need an end-around the gatekeepers. If the trend follows the same trajectory as all the other digital end-arounds, it will end in total institutional censorship.
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Post by RickW on Feb 28, 2021 9:49:48 GMT -5
In many ways, that’s what has happened and is happening. There other platforms need to get bigger, to provide a foil. Right now Amazon could easily change their rates and process, and become the new gatekeeper, paying poor wages.
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Post by John B on Feb 28, 2021 10:33:08 GMT -5
Amazon could easily will change their rates and process, and become the new gatekeeper, paying poor wages. |
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Post by coachdoc on Feb 28, 2021 11:42:27 GMT -5
Amazon could easily will change their rates and process, and become the new gatekeeper, paying poor wages. I dislike this but think it's true. The advertising part is totally on you, and it is very hard to spread the word beyond friends and family without some structured support. |
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Post by RickW on Feb 28, 2021 12:09:56 GMT -5
I dislike this but think it's true. The advertising part is totally on you, and it is very hard to spread the word beyond friends and family without some structured support. It’s actually not that hard. There are well worn paths now. Most authors advertise on Amazon and/or Facebook. Now, whether your ads or your books capture the imagination enough to sell is another thing. But there are legions of books/podcasts/FB groups that have all the ways to do this codified, how to do the selling part. It’s a bunch of experimentation and work. A lot of artists don’t like to do that stuff, to see and manage the business side. |
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Post by Russell Letson on Feb 28, 2021 13:00:27 GMT -5
I've been reviewing science fiction for four decades now, and as mediocre as many commercial books are, most self-published books are worse. The exceptions I've seen have been established professionals who have reverted their backlists (Walter Jon Williams) or who have decided to take their work in directions that their publishers did not want to support (Linda Nagata). For every producer of genre fiction who manages to bootstrap a writing career via Amazon or some other platform, there are hundreds who will break their hearts, backs, and bank accounts chasing success. I've been following this and other publishing matters for decades now, and I understand what it takes to make a living from writing--and what distinguishes writing as a career, a sideline, and a hobby (even a paying one).
Which is not to say that self-publishing is entirely a mug's game--just that it needs to be entered with open eyes. It's not just a matter of logistics (production, promotion, distribution, accounting), which are exhausting and not at all like the work of writing. Writers need editors--and I say this as a writer with a pretty high opinion of his own skills. Good editors have always improved my work. (And mediocre editors have made more work for me, reversing their bad edits.)
And when I finally manage to finish my book on slack key*, there's a good chance that my publisher will have forgotten or written off the contract I signed long ago, and while I'd prefer conventional publication, there's a good chance that the handful of houses that might be interested in a niche topic will resist, at which point I'll trudge through the process of releasing it myself. (I own just about every book on the topic of Hawaiian music, and they're all from academic presses or very small specialty outfits. This is not a red-hot publishing category.)
* If I die with it incomplete, Cezarija will kill me.
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Post by RickW on Feb 28, 2021 14:01:53 GMT -5
It has been interesting listening to the various podcasts of both traditional and indie writers over the last little while. There was so much promotion from all of them that if you just work hard, you can make it. I suppose partly because there is such an industry around providing services for writers. But even Brandon Sanderson came out and said that he felt that he and others had not provided the entire truth; you still have to be able to write a good book, and you may or may not make any money, much less a living, even after listening ot their podcasts, and taking their courses, and buying their books.
It’s a different economic proposition. It’s a long game, with most indie authors making money off their back lists. And there’s certainly drivel out there, because anyone can upload a book to any of the major platforms. But the recommendations now are to get an editor, to get an excellent cover, to understand how to write the marketing material like blurbs, and experiment a lot with the marketing.
And it’s doable, and you have control over it. The chances of getting a traditional publishing contract were always tiny, no matter how good your book was. And even if you did, there was no guarantee the publisher would do squat to promote it. The world is littered with stories of traditionally published writers who said to hell with it, and went indie, so they could write what they wanted, publish when they wanted, and make a lot more money off their books.
But, I don’t need to care about making a living. I just need to cover my expenses, and that would be success to me. We’ll see how it goes.
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Post by jdd2 on Feb 28, 2021 14:24:05 GMT -5
I have a friend here who's hobby is bookbinding. He's given us a couple of empty books.
I don't think he has any dreams of getting rich.
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Post by Village Idiot on Feb 28, 2021 18:54:16 GMT -5
You know, back in the day, like in Dickens' time, books were revealed over time in newspaper installments. I'm not saying this is doable now, but there have got to be ways of getting your book out there than what has been mentioned.
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Post by John B on Feb 28, 2021 19:00:54 GMT -5
I have had a handful of authors as clients over the years, with only one earning enough (over time) to cover costs (mostly up front). The one who succeeded was unfortunately deceased. Her surviving husband continued to ean her royalties. Her catalog of out-of-print romance/fantasy novels got a second life as ebooks.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 1, 2021 5:12:55 GMT -5
Give it a go, Rick. You'll get more reasons why it won't work than Caters has liver pills.
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Post by Marshall on Mar 1, 2021 9:18:39 GMT -5
I have had a handful of authors as clients over the years, with only one earning enough (over time) to cover costs (mostly up front). The one who succeeded was unfortunately deceased. Her surviving husband continued to ean her royalties. Her catalog of out-of-print romance/fantasy novels got a second life as ebooks. Sounds like a murder mystery. |
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Post by coachdoc on Mar 1, 2021 11:18:24 GMT -5
I'll be first in line for your slack key book. Fascinating history and perfect musical style.
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