Avoid the Publishing Mills
By Jerry D. Simmons | March 31st, 2010 | 1 Comment » (Click to add yours!)
We’ve all heard of “puppy mills” or “puppy farms” which are large-scale breeding facilities for pets that operate in deplorable conditions and cause health and hereditary problems. They exist in publishing, those large mass produced factories that turn out books without editorial control. I’ve written and spoken numerous times about the need for writers to avoid those types of companies when publishing their manuscript. Then tend to be companies and individuals that promise a lot and deliver little, unsuspecting writers fall for the “sales pitch” and purchase services that are worthless.
I’m asking all writers to avoid the “publishing mills” that advertise and market aggressively and tend to dominate the self-publishing industry. This is not in reference to the “mom and pop” operations that handle authors and the end product with great care and produce a professional product. I’m speaking of the large scale operations that eliminate individuality by covering the book with a common template boring book jacket and have little concern other than getting paid and pushing out inefficient product.
If you have hope that your writing has a chance to sell in the marketplace you must avoid the “publishing mills” and concentrate on making an investment in the final product. Printing books will soon become obsolete for the independent author, producing an eBook for launch is the most cost effective and will even get you greater access to the market than a printed book. Consider your options carefully.
Being an author has two-parts—the writing and everything else. Don’t ignore “everything else.”
Anything is Possible in Publishing
By Jerry D. Simmons | March 30th, 2010 | No Comments » (Click to add yours!)
If you are laboring away at a manuscript and are at times perplexed about writing and publishing, you aren’t alone. This is a tough business and it’s difficult to get your writing noticed and read. Your decision on how to publish can be confusing, expensive and costly in a number of ways if you make the wrong choice.
Help is available and there are answers to all your questions. Don’t rush into anything, ask for advice and do your homework before you purchase a product or service. Avoid companies or individuals that make wild promises because there are no guarantees in publishing. Take your time, complete your manuscript, find a competent editor, then worry about publishing and marketing your book.
I’ve been fortunate to have developed a tremendous number of contacts throughout publishing and my mission is to help you make the right decisions about how to publish, how to market and all related matters. I’m tired of unsuspecting writers being taken advantage of and during hard economic times when there are deals galore.
Don’t fall for the pitch, if you make the right choices, anything is possible in publishing.
Publishing is Parting from the Past
By Jerry D. Simmons | March 29th, 2010 | 1 Comment » (Click to add yours!)
The big New York publishing houses have been systematically laying off workers in small numbers so not to catch the attention of the media. By eliminating loyal employees in groups of ten and twenty without fanfare, the action flies well under the radar of the press. People with famous names and pedigrees in this business will soon lose their jobs. What’s going on?
Sales are dismal. But that’s been the case for the past 16 consecutive years. Why now? Publishing is a broken business model and is in need of an overhaul. When I hear about the problems of the automakers, I can’t help but think how publishing is also in dire need of a major transformation. The marketplace is demanding change.
A good friend of mine who lives in New York recently returned from maternity leave at a major publishing house. She told me that her boss sat her down and explained: “publishing is not the same as it was twelve weeks ago when you left, and it will never be the way it was before. Everything you thought you ever knew about publishing is different. We’re all going to have to learn a new way to conduct business.” Behind the scenes, people are worried. Many have worked years with the same house and are scared.
Is there a silver lining? There might be. Ask yourself this important question: Would you like to be a part of the revolution to change publishing?
How to Sell More Books
By Jerry D. Simmons | March 26th, 2010 | No Comments » (Click to add yours!)
There’s a ton of information on the subject of publishing books. Through all the rhetoric, articles and blogs, the question remains: how does an author sell more books? In my opinion there are three very important considerations—price, package and distribution.
Cover prices on all books (hardcover, paper and now eBooks) published by the NY companies are set for one very distinct reason: to generate billing in a time when single copy sales are declining. Higher cover prices make up for the sin of paying undeserving authors higher-than- necessary advances. For those who are in control of their own destiny and publish independently, there is no reason why your book should be priced higher than those you find in bookstores. If your publisher is forcing these higher prices on your book then you need to find another publisher. The rule of thumb is price as aggressively as you can. Sometimes print editions make that difficult but certainly with eBooks you can. Pricing aggressively means undercutting the competition on cover price as much as possible.
For all the faults of the big New York publishers the one thing they get right is packaging. They understand how to effectively package a book. Covers and copy are paramount to selling books. Get it wrong and your book could fail in the marketplace, regardless of how great the writing, story or message. If your book does not fit in with all other categories of books you find in bookstores then refocus your attention to how to properly package your book. Before you make mistakes you might consider consulting a professional for advice.
Finally, the best price and package means absolutely nothing if you do not have direct access to the market via a professional sales force presenting, selling and distributing your book. This is especially true for print and even more so for eBooks. Sorry, but without distribution, you will not get the exposure or sales you need to generate the kind of attention your book requires to gain traction—defined as having the ability to backlist and reorder on a continual basis.
It’s really simple…write a great story, price according to the market, package with distinction yet fit into a specific category or genre, and gain access to the market via complete distribution. These are the keys to improving your chances of selling more books.
Free Book Reviews
By Jerry D. Simmons | March 25th, 2010 | No Comments » (Click to add yours!)
The NothingBinding.com web site was developed to help the independent writer and author promote themselves and their books. One way they assist you in doing this is with “free” book reviews. There are plenty of web sites where an author can get reviews but most charge a fee. Nothing Binding does not! However, free book reviews have limits, here are two examples of the biggest problems with free book reviews.
First, the web site is limited in the number of book reviewers simply because they cannot find enough people willing to read a book for free and write a review. They are always trying to attract good book reviewers. This means that all books cannot be reviewed in a timely manner. They would love to overcome this problem if more good book reviewers would come forward.
The second problem is that too often, authors fail to mail their book to a reviewer. The web site gets too many emails from reviewers complaining about authors failing to adhere to the free book review guidelines posted at the site. Some book reviewers who have been waiting upwards of a month for a book to arrive, and unfortunately no book. If authors are participating in the program and receive an email asking to send a book to a reviewer, they should do so immediately; otherwise their book will be removed from the list.
Finally, the NothingBinding.com web site was designed for the independent author. When a free book review program is offered the site needs the help of the authors and book reviewers to make the program work. Take advantage of all free web sites and programs to increase your audience and promote your book(s). It’s simple and designed for you, the independent author.
The Future for Digital Content is Bright
By Jerry D. Simmons | March 23rd, 2010 | No Comments » (Click to add yours!)
Sony brought eBooks to the market when they launched their eReading device many years ago. Amazon placed eBooks on the map when they introduced the Kindle. Now Apple will help all authors realize how to maximize the potential of their digital content including Audiobooks. Without a doubt, Apple is the game changer for the digital marketplace. The fact they are spending millons of dollars on advertising and promotion for the iPad signals they are willing to bet on the viability of reading public and future of digital content.
The audience for eBooks and possibly even Audiobooks is just now waking up to the fact that eReaders and digital content are going to become an important component in the technology needs for everyone who owns a computer or cell phone. This content represents more than music, but creative voices in all walks of life, not just authors. The fact that eBooks are not hampered by the size of the writing means that more excellent content will make its way into the hands of the consumer. No longer are writers restricted to 50 or 60,000 words when eBooks are marketable as small as 5,000 words.
Teachers and professional people who would never dream of writing as full length manuscript can market their ideas in eBooks and price aggressively, attracting audiences through the use of social media and networking. The publishing world is entering an entirely new phase in the evolution of books and the prospects for being a professional writer.
The Price of eBooks
By Jerry D. Simmons | March 22nd, 2010 | No Comments » (Click to add yours!)
While the big publishers make arguments for higher eBook retail prices to support their business model, I find it encouraging for the independent author. While the profit margins for the major companies remain a mystery they have made it known that the author royalty will be around 20 percent of the retail price. Even though this fact has not yet been proven it seems reasonable. It benefits the heads of the major houses to keep their cost structure for eBooks and print private otherwise authors under contract would likely rebel at the low royalty rates handed out over the years.
Bestselling author Anne Rice recently commented that she doesn’t even know the true price of eBooks and the cost associated with publishing her print titles. This has always remained a very private area for publishers. They never want authors to know the costs associated with publishing their books and cry foul every time someone starts to criticize the retail price for eBooks. The bottom line remains, the independent author will benefit from the big publishers insistence that eBook retail prices remain close to the hardcover print edition. This strategy allows for aggressive pricing of digital content unavailable in printed books.
New and Exciting Market for eBooks
By Jerry D. Simmons | March 19th, 2010 | No Comments » (Click to add yours!)
The demographics for eBooks clearly illustrate there is much to learn about who buys and reads them but we do know that the average age is above 40. We also know that the market has barely scratched the surface and as eReaders become widely available and hit the shelves of mass merchants, the market will likely explode. Where was music before the MP3 and iPhone? It seems that eBooks are heading in the same direction.
Success as an author in the digital marketplace still boils down to finding an audience and marketing your writing. Niche musical groups have managed to find ways to promote their music and themselves via social networks and the Internet so it seems logical that writers will do the same. I don’t believe that publishing mirrors music but I do think that writers have some advantages over musicians and that has to do with the plethora of writing groups and forums.
Although it is frowned upon to join a group or forum and promote you’re writing there are free formats for promotion such as NothingBinding.com.
There are lessons to be learned and information to share but in the meantime, you have to be in the game to play and if you’ve ever considered an eBook, now is the time to move forward and explore your options.
The Economics of Print versus Digital Publishing
By Jerry D. Simmons | March 18th, 2010 | 2 Comments » (Click to add yours!)
Over the course of the past fifty years, the major book publishers of this country have created a system where they have systematically eliminated competition for retail book sales. They have managed to monopolize booksellers by offering an assortment of incentives, fees and discounts that capitalize on their deep pockets and prevent small and niche publishers from finding shelf space for their own titles.
Quality independently published books are having a difficult time finding adequate distribution for the print edition simply because the major houses continue to pour money into the retail sector. They will pay for anything from newsletter placement to author book tours and signings to advertising allowances for anything and everything. This has created a distribution system for print books that grossly limits quality small press titles from competing.
Retailers take a straight 50 percent off the top of every book they sell. Consider a $15.00 trade paperback, the bookstore will take $7.50, distributor will take another 30 percent or $4.50 leaving the independent author with 20 percent of $3.00. If you cannot print enough books to cover the cost of the $3.00 per copy printing then you will lose money on each copy sold. My best guess is that you would need to print roughly 3,000 copies to meet that threshold. The problem is that the quality independently published book rarely achieves a 3,000 copy advanced order.
Now consider the eBook market which is still so new that the major publishers haven’t figured out how to flex their muscles. The distributors for eBooks are not in bed with print publishers, they are digital companies who are willing to give quality small companies a fair chance to sell product. This favors the independent author over print in a number of ways. Plus, retailers for digital content have not set discounts that run standard like the print market because they are all still trying to find a competitive advantage. Another plus that favors the independent author and their eBooks.
Marketing and selling digital content is still faced with the massive problem of how to reach an audience and unfortunately there are no special formulas or secrets that will solve that issue. However, it appears that consumers or digital content are more likely to read about content via social networks, blogs and eBook reviews that are just starting to emerge. My prediction is that marketing for eBooks will start to shift from the traditional methods to more advanced ways of finding an audience through the Internet.
The cost of converting a word document original manuscript to an eBook that is compatible with all formats of eReading devices is a fraction of the cost to produce a quality print book. The eBook market is one where all sales are final which means no returns and no printing costs or warehousing, shipping and handling. Convert a manuscript to an eBook and concentrate on marketing, rather than reprinting and all that goes with that process.
As long as the major book publishers continue to focus on hardcover and trade paper print while delaying release of their eBooks the independent author has a clear advantage. By launching in eBook followed by print, after achieving a significant audience is the perfect strategy for the independent author. The low cost for entry into the marketplace allows more resources to be devoted to marketing which makes digital content the preferred choice over print editions for the independent author.
If you have a print edition and have been discouraged by the process and success, eBooks are not necessarily the answer. You should step back and look closely at your entire publishing program before deciding to move forward with an eBook edition. The emergence of eBooks and the growing market does not mean your content will suddenly find an audience it merely provides another opportunity for sales. In my thirty plus years of publishing experience, the emergence of the digital market is clearly one of the most exciting. If I can help answer your questions about eBooks, please send me an email jerry@writersreaders.com.
Opportunities Abound in Today’s Marketplace
By Jerry D. Simmons | March 18th, 2010 | No Comments » (Click to add yours!)
Certainly the economic downturn has negatively impacted sales at the bigger publishing houses. At the same time they continue to search for new writing talent and one way they do that is visit large web sites with multiple author profiles. One such free web site is NothingBinding.com. That site is attracting more agents and editors than ever before. At the same time those that visit are providing some great feedback on the most common writer and author do’s and don’ts.
But first, let me introduce you to the site: www.NothingBinding.com started in 2007 as a social networking site and has evolved into an online catalog where agents and editors can search for new talent, topics and product to publish. The site was originally owned by a group with some being non-publishers but recently ownership and control have changed. Expect a complete overhaul in the coming months. The important thing is the writer/author profile is free and is just another way to display writing and or books.
Now to the feedback: agents and editors are completely turned off when the profile is too clever or glib and photo is compromised by your pet or book cover in the place of a face. Agents and editors tend to back off when writers and authors display a personal image that signals anything beyond the norm. Cute, sweet or shy are not traits that publishers want today because they need to be able to promote authors and their books and the last thing they want are difficult creative people.
If your profile is glib, less than genuine or incomplete, agents and editors are again turned off. In addition they really want to hear your voice or see you speak via audio or video. It goes back to promotion and the need to hear and see the writer or author. If you fail in any of these areas then you may have missed the opportunity to raise your credibility as someone worth publishing. You need to capitalize on the one chance at making a positive impression because the time is short in which to catch someone’s eye.
NothingBinding.com will continue to provide free writer author personal profiles and drive traffic in the form of agents and editors interested in finding talent with new ideas. This free web site is what creates opportunities in today’s marketplace.
