It seems the more that is written about the opportunities with digital publishing the more the competition for conversion from a vast array of people calling themselves publishers’ pops up in our inbox. The real decision for any writer is: who do you trust with your writing? Understand that your publisher is the one who defines you as a writer. Your publisher is someone you need to feel confident in their ability to maximize the potential for your writing. 

Printing is not publishing, creating a Kindle edition and throwing it up on Amazon is not publishing. This is a business of creating content that offers the reader something special. Good publishing involves skills gained from years of experience in the business of making quality content better, more marketable and potentially bestselling. Publishers have experience with all types of genres, authors, marketing plans and distribution.  They understand the nuances of the market for readers and books. 

Today I’m fortunate to work with a group of editors, designers and marketers with unmatched experience and qualifications in New York publishing. The decision for writers is who do you place your trust in to make your writing the best it can be? Who do you want to be associated with as a publisher? Would you prefer working with a company who sends blind emails? Or do you think experience in publishing is a major factor? How successful do you want to be?  

It boils down to choice and certainly who you decide to team up with regarding your writing is very important. If you feel you made a mistake with your print edition then correct that for the eBook and consider someone with experience. Publishing is perception and the logo on your published content sets the stage for much of what will follow.  Publishing is about writing and selling quality content to share with the world.

Having served my entire adult life in publishing it still amazes me to this day how many companies operate under such outright deception and distortion of facts. The sad fact in the “independent or self-publishing” business is that too many people make a living off promoting, marketing and selling products and services that simply do not work or have value in the real world of book publishing, marketing, distributing and selling of books. Writers MUST protect themselves and their writing. 

Here are some key points to keep in mind when trying to determine whether a product or service has real value: (1)  Never commit to a long term agreement with anyone! (2)  Never pay for a product or service without knowing who is behind the product and service, what their background in publishing is and knowing whether they offer testimonials from satisfied customers that you can contact and objectively verify. (3)  Web sites or email blasts that sell and promote without offering a legitimate telephone number that someone can call and ask questions should be avoided. (4)  Companies that take days to respond to emails sent through their web sites are also to be avoided. (5)  If it sounds too good to be true or offers promises and guarantees, consider them companies to be avoided. 

There are never any guarantees in publishing, even for the biggest of the bestselling New York Times authors, there are no guarantees. Anyone making claims that sound too good, too easy, or too quick to possibly be true, run the other way, save your money and send me an email. I’ll be happy to offer you honest advice and feedback on whether or not the offer is legitimate.

Digital publication in eBook format opens up new opportunities for independent authors and in virtually every case, the potential for widespread distribution is one thousand times greater than for a print title. For those independent authors the cost of creating an eBook is a fraction of the cost of a print edition. 

At this point in time the market is wide open and available for authors of all genres, however that may not be the case in six months, or even three. Once the big publishers realize the desire for eBook content is being filled by the small publishers and independent authors, their attitude and position will change. The best part of offering a digital version of your book is that eBook sales do not deter from print sales, they will only add to existing sales and support your dual marketing efforts for print and eBook.

Yet this hesitation will not last long because it is well known and understood in publishing that different formats (hardcover, trade paper, mass market paper, audio and eBook) do not take away sales from other formats because the market is different and separate and readers who prefer a specific format seldom stray. 

The primary reason for the reluctance on the part of the New York publishers to fully embrace the eBook is because digital is new and confusing to them and they are always slow to embrace change. At this time there is a massive desire for digital content in the form of eBooks and yet the biggest companies are not supplying what the market demands. Strange but this is exactly why print publishing has been in decline for years. 

This is exactly why the time for the independent author to get into the digital market is now, today! The longer you wait the less likely you are to find a fan base and grow your audience. This market is not going away and it will only get bigger and better especially as the price for eReaders decline, the demand for product will grow. Do not hesitate!

Price Waterhouse Coopers a consultancy reckons that eBooks will represent about 6% of consumer books sales in North America by 2013, up from 1.5% in 2009. Carolyn Reidy, the boss of Simon & Schuster, a major New York publisher, thinks they could account for 25% of the industry’s sales in America within three to five years. She may well be right if the prices of dedicated eReaders such as the iPad and Kindle keep falling and more consumers start reading on Smart Phones. The number of Apps for books on the iPhone recently surpassed that for games, previously the largest category.

Could it be any simplier? The time to publish your eBook is today!

The most curious thing about her new book was the fact that selling a little more than 10,000 copies could make it all the way to the #11 spot on The New York Times bestseller list, #103 on the USA Today list and ranked #862 on Amazon. Just goes to show how much publishing is based on “perception.” The book was sold based on previous sales, there were tons of copies stacked high in stores and even though it had very poor sales the first two weeks, the bestselling “perception” was created before anyone knew the truth. 

This simple principle holds for any book: IF you are successful at creating buzz around the launch of your new book, get enough copies stacked into stores, create a false impression that the book will be a bestseller, anything is possible. In the end it may come back to bite you and cost lots of money, but perception in publishing is still a very strong strategy for success.

Every author with a print title should not hesitate getting into the eBook market—AS LONG AS—they do it the right way with the correct brand and global distribution. The major publishers will eventually attempt to influence the market as they do with print titles and will do everything they can to dominate and eliminate competition. Small category publishers who have been around for fifty years are still holding space on shelves due to their longevity and ability to hang on. If they were new publishers today trying to gain a foothold in the market with print books their chances of survival would be slim at best. 

Don’t make a digital mistake that you may have made in print, select your publisher wisely, be concerned about the level of production, become part of a quality group of authors and not just another name on a list. Digital publishing will eventually focus on the “perception” of the product and the independent author will improve their chances at success by making wise decisions today. If you have questions about digital product or the market for eBooks, please send an email Jerry@WritersReaders.com and let me help you navigate the process.

Unfortunately there are programs available to independent authors that charge fees for presentation of a book by a thousand plus sales force which in reality means nothing. This form of direct sales rarely results in actual copies being sold and is only successful at separating the author from their money. If you are interested in pursuing this form of direct sales for your title please email with questions and I’ll gladly assist you. Specialty publishing is not the answer to poor book sales and in the end, it may very well be another disappointment. 

Publishing is easy, selling books is difficult. For authors who understand the market and the business behind the book, they have a much better chance at being successful by utilizing the power of the information they possess to their full advantage. This web site was created as a free information resource for unpublished writers and authors. The key is understanding how the pieces fit and where you and your writing can make an impact. It’s not rocket science.

Every author wants a print book and that is certainly understandable. The public at this point in time is enamored with print. However, if you cannot access the market and gain space in bookstores you will have a tough time of marketing successfully. Nothing is impossible and anything can happen if you follow the Book Industry Standard rules for production. But the mountain is a bit steeper to climb when your hands are tied behind your back.

Print is but one publishing format, audio is another and the most promising is the eBook. That market is expanding rapidly and the opportunities for growth and exposure to booksellers is uninhibited for independent authors and small publishers. Every author who has a print title should also have an eBook. If you hope to capitalize on the market potential, the time to act is now.

Apple on the other hand doesn’t seem interested in controlling the publishing market, they simply want to be the best at what they do and create products that consumers want to buy. Producing electronic devices that consumer’s want places Apple in a position of supplying both the device as well as the content that goes into it, such as music for the iPod and eBooks for the iPad. The big publishers in New York are still in control and even though they are at the mercy of booksellers who distribute and sell their products they ultimately control the flow of content which in turn the booksellers must have to be profitable. It is doubtful that Amazon or Apple if they wanted could duplicate the process that book publishers have mastered over eighty years.