Welcome to the 21st Century
Publishing Update newsletter. Published about twice a month it is
your source for news and trends in the changing publishing world.
Issue 07 (August 2001)
In This Issue:
-JD Writes
-New This Week
-Will Print On Demand Work for Me - Sales Goals
-More from the Writer's Digest
Award Winners
- Author's Q & A
- News & Updates
- Resources
-New Last Time (in case you missed it)
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JD WRITES
Hi,
It's been a busy couple of weeks in the publishing world - as a visit to the News and
Updates section shows: the Clinton book deal, new timed e-books, and alliances between Print On-Demand and writers'
organizations.
This issue also includes the third part of a continuing series on Print On-Demand publishing,
designed to help you understand the process and decide if it is the right option for you.
You'll also hear more from those authors who were chosen for special mention in the Writers'
Digest Self-Published book awards.
As always there are new resources and links for you as well as a new 'Question and Answer'.
Every time I send out an issue I'm delighted to see that more people sign up. My sincere thanks
to those of you who are recommending the Update to your friends. Remember, if there is
anything you would like to know more about, don't hesitate to email me at jd@jdwrite.com
Best wishes (and keep writing!),
Julie
NEW THIS WEEK
ARTICLES
Will Print On-Demand Work For Me -
Sales Goals
by Julie Duffy
Third in a series of articles about Print
On-Demand Publishing
Print On-Demand publishing offers
relief from handling all the orders and sales transactions that you
would have to handle if you printed 5000 copies of your book, stored
them in your garage and handled all the order fulfillment yourself.
Print on-demand companies usually arrange for the book to be listed with
bookstores and databases under their name. When someone orders the book,
the order goes to the POD company. The company processes the check or
credit card, prints the book and fulfills it.
TRACKING ORDERS
Many marketing books suggest that
each ad or promotional piece you do should contain a code somewhere,
that allows you to track which campaign your customer responded to. This
helps you to track your marketing efforts, select the most effective,
and build on it. This only works, however, if you are taking every order
for your product. If your POD company is receiving orders it is unlikely
that they will collect this kind of information for you. This means that
your ability to track the effectiveness of your marketing is limited.
You can, of course, still check the dates of a sale and, in some cases,
the geographical location. This helps you to see that the talk you gave
in Poughkeepsie in January, was probably the reason that 12 people from
Upstate New York ordered your book at the start of the year.
DISCOUNTS
One of the most powerful ways to
encourage people to buy a product is to offer them a discount and to put
a time limit on it. (‘Save 20%, this weekend only!’).
Self-publishers often offer discounts at book signings and events, or if
someone buys more than one copy. It is important to remember that, with
books printed on-demand, the profit margin is usually smaller than with
volume-printed books. This means that you have less room for offering
discounts. You may be buying author copies at a 20-40% discount off the
retail price. If you sell the book at even a 10% discount, you will cut
into your earnings significantly.
In addition, any discounts you offer
will be valid only for books the reader buys directly from you. Just as
you cannot force a bookseller to offer the book at a lower price, you
cannot force your POD company to keep track of this month’s
promotional offer on your book and the 10,000 other titles they produce.
(With technological advances this may be possible in time, but for now
the POD companies are simply not sophisticated enough to do this).
You may add value by inviting people
to come to a web-page with more information about the book – free to
purchasers. You may invite them to request a free booklet or workbook
associated with your book.
BOOKSTORES
Do you long to see your book on the
shelves in bookstores? Why?
Print on-demand book, by their very
nature, are not printed in large quantities, warehoused or displayed in
bookstores. They are printed when they are ordered. You are unlikely to
ship large quantities of a print on-demand book to bookstores for
display. It is important to remember, however, that bookstores are not a
promotional vehicle for books, they are simply somewhere people go to
buy books. Most readers buy books that they have read something about or
have had recommended to them, or that seem to be on a subject they are
interested in. It is also important to remember that most books do not
stay on bookstore shelves for more than 6-18 months, unless they are
consistently good sellers.
It is certainly a nice boost to the
ego to see your book on a bookstore shelf, but it does not necessarily
boost sales. In addition, bookstores take a 40% discount, cutting into
your profits, dramatically.
It may help to think of your book as
a mail-order product and market it accordingly. Identify your audience
and ways that you can communicate with them. Direct targeted mailings at
them. Encourage them to order your book directly from the POD provider
(and yes, they can do that by mail, with a check).
Placing a book on a bookstore shelf
is a very passive, very ineffective method of marketing your book. With
the advent of online stores, readers are increasingly accustomed to
ordering a book and waiting a few days for it to arrive. Take advantage
of this.
PROMOTION
You must be willing to promote your
book everywhere you go. Without the power of a publishing house behind
you, you are responsible for all the marketing and promotion. If you
hope to sell any books you must be willing to tell people about your
book. You must also – and here’s the hard part – be willing to
tell people how good the book is. If you can use other people’s
comments, so much the better, but you will have to swallow your modesty
at some point and stand behind your product.
Are you willing to:
If not, do not expect to sell many
self-published books.
EARNINGS
It is important to have realistic
sales goals. Do not expect to earn money from this venture. Expect to
break even, at best.
This statement holds true for almost
all kinds of publishing, traditional, self-publishing, vanity, or print
on-demand. Most books in traditional publishing do not earn out their
advance. This means that the publisher has calculated how many copies it
thinks the book can sell, and paid the author an advance equal to the
royalties on that number of books. Most books do not reach their
projected goals, do not go into a second print-run and do not earn the
author any further royalties. And these are books with the power of a
major publishing house behind them.
But this is not all bad news.
Chances are you are not writing to get rich – if you were, you’d be
writing dull financial documentation for a bank. You are writing because
you have to, because you want to be read, or because you want to build a
reputation as an expert in your field. In this case, the more books you
can get out into the world, the better, whether or not you make a profit
in the long run. Remember this when deciding how much money to invest in
setting up your POD book and promoting it.
If you are wildly successful you may
make a profit, but remember: only an estimated 6% of all writers earn
their living solely from their writings. Writing, especially fiction
writing, is an avocation, not an occupation. Print on-demand offers an
inexpensive way for you to share those writings, in book form, with a
wider audience. If this is your main goal, print on-demand may offer the
best solution and the least risk, and a safe way to test the waters of
self-publishing.
In
this article I have attempted to cover a lot of ground, quickly, and
have not tried to give all the answers thoroughly. If I have raised
questions and you want a more thorough answer, email me at jd@jdwrite.com
and I’ll be happy to clarify, expand on any point in this article, or
address new questions.
back
to top
The
Writers Digest
Awards - The Winners Speak
by Julie Duffy
This year, marked the first time Print On-Demand
books were allowed into the Writer’s Digest Self-Published Book
Awards. POD title Monkey Wrench, by Harland W. Carson, won its category
(Genre Fiction) and six others received honorable mentions. JDWrite
talked to the authors to learn their secrets. Last time they shared the
judges comments. This time they share their emotions.
Each of the authors expressed pleasure at having
their book selected as a winner or for honorable mention in the WD
self-published book contest. Their reactions, however, were surprisingly
mixed.
Genre fiction winner Harland W. Carson was
understandably ‘exhilarated’ at receiving the call from Writer’s
Digest editor Melanie Rigney. Carson says that the comments from the
judges were positive and that he knows the competition was fierce. He
also noted that he is receiving requests from agents to see the full
manuscript or to see future works – something that didn’t happen
before the publicity surrounding the contest.
Children’s book runner-up Robert Barlow Fox noted
wryly,
“So fine a line between winning and honorable
mention.” He added that it is the winners who “usually get calls from agents who
successfully market the book to a ‘Big’ publisher.”
Fox has yet to be approached by agents.
Likewise
author Carlos Ledson Miller expressed his reaction as ‘sweet and
sour’. As with the other authors Miller had received many compliments
on his two books, Panama and Belize, in the past. This
encouraged him to persevere.
He
explains his reaction to the honorable mention,
“The
‘sweet’ is having had professionals validate of the quality of these
two books, and justify the man-years I put into writing and producing
them. The ‘sour’ is
knowing that despite the books' quality, scores of agents and editors
rejected them.”
Genre fiction runner-up James Ignizio, adds that it
is not just agents he wants to read the work, but regular readers.
“My book (GONE AWRY: a virtual tour through
high tech hell) has, in all honesty, received nothing but glowing
reviews. Such reviews are great for the ego, but have little to no
impact on sales.”
Paula La Sala talked about the difficulty of
marketing a Print On-Demand book (many major review outlets resist
reviewing self-published or POD books leaving the author with little
independent promotional copy). The contest placement and judge’s
comments might, however, provide an equally powerful sound-bite for
these authors’ marketing campaigns. La Sala intends to enter her next
novel into the contest.
Dadah Means Death author Jonathan Linn, like
many others, says that the award reinforced the conviction that the book
is good, for the author as well as the reader. Linn sums up all the
authors’ responses, saying:
“Well, it’s not the Nobel, or a Booker, but it
still feels good.”
***
AUTHOR'S
Q&A
This
week Bob asks:
Hi,
In Dan Poynter's book The
Self-Publishing Manual he writes that you should mark your book up by 8
times the price it costs you to have the book printed. My book costs
over $6. Under Poynter's formula, my book should cost $48! That will
never fly.
My friend publishes a business book
that sells for $70 but even that costs him $15 to produce, so he's not
getting nearly eight times the cost.
How does any one make this work?
………………………………….
Hi Bob,
Poynter's 8x formula assumes that you're doing a large-run, and that
your per-book cost is around $2-3, and that you're selling your book out
of your home, to consumers and the trade. The formula doesn't work for
low-quantity/high-price print runs (whether print on-demand, short-run
or photocopied).
His argument is that you have to factor in the costs to you for your
time, for shipping, for fulfillment, for marketing, and deduct them from
your profit, as well as leaving room for bookstore discounts.
If your book is printed on-demand, your POD provider should handle
most of the order processing and fulfillment (from readers and the
trade), so that's a cost you don't have to bear.
For your friend's $70 business book that costs $15, well, he never
has to factor in a 40-65% discount to booksellers and wholesalers, so
again, Poynter's formula doesn't apply.
The formula doesn't work for everyone, but the basic advice (to
factor in all extraneous costs when thinking about price/profit) DOES
apply to everyone.
Good luck!
Julie
NEWS
& UPDATES
Xlibris raises book prices
15 Aug 2001
Print on-demand publishing services provider Xlibris
recently sent a letter to its authors informing them that the price of
their books will be increasing this Fall. Price will be based on
page-count for the first time in Xlibris's history. An average trade
paperback will sell for $22-$24, hardbacks for over $30.
Oxford
American pleads for its life
10 Aug 2001
Literary quarterly The Oxford American recently
sent an unusual letter to its subscribers. Editor Mark Smirnoff asked
faithful readers to help save the magazine by helping to drum up new
readers. Although the magazine touts itself as 'The Southern Magazine of
Good Writing' Smirnoff insists that it is not just for Southerners,
instead comparing it to The New Yorker - just without the New York
focus.
Literary magazines are the most promising market for new writer, yet
many struggle to survive because of low subscription volumes.
The Oxford American was founded by its publisher, best-selling
author John Grisham.
More:
source: The Write News
MediaLife magazine article
Related sites:
Oxford American Home
Page
Subscribe to The Oxford American
Time-limits
on ebooks?
9 Aug 2001
RosettaBooks, an e-book publishers, announced a plan
to offer e-books that 'self-destruct' after 10 hours. While few people
are prepared to read a book at a single sitting, Rosetta believes this
format may be useful for samples, review copies and the e-equivalent of
bound galleys.
More:
RosettaBooks
Knopf
reportedly pays $10-12million for Clinton memoir
8 Aug 2001
Literary publishing house Alfred A. Knopf has
reportedly paid $10-12 million to publish former President Bill
Clinton's memoirs - more than the $8 million his wife received, or the
reported $7.1 million recently awarded to GE CEO Jack Welch. Industry
insiders estimate that Clinton's book will have to sell more than 2
million copies to break even. This is part of a trend in which
publishing houses take huge financial risks on celebrity authors,
publishing fewer books by unknowns.
More:
Interesting
Christian Science Monitor article
The Knopf press release
Mystery
Writers of America Partners for Print On-Demand
4 Aug 2001
iUniverse,the print on-demand publisher,
has formed an agreement with the Mystery Writers of America writers'
organization, to help MWA authors bring their books back into print.
Authors will pay $299 and provide two copies of their books to be
scanned. They also grant iUniverse an exclusive license to carry the
book for three years. This agreement automatically renews after that
time, a year at a time, unless the author cancels.
More:
iUniverse's home page
Mystery
Writers of America's website
iUniverse Press
release on Internet Wire
Print
On-Demand Picture Books
4 Aug 2001
Xlibris, print on-demand provider, has
announced that it is looking into producing children's books. The
company is currently inviting children's book writers and illustrators
to take part in a test of the service. This seems to be the first
venture into producing picture books on-demand.
More:
Xlibris' Home Page
Contact point for interested authors/illustrators
RESOURCES
New
this week:
new!Write4Kids
Write4Kids.com - The Children's Writing Supersite some free content, some paid subscriptions and
special reports. This site oozes with confidence and with solid advice. Also home to the Children's
Book Insider, a newsletter for Children's Writers.
new!John Kremer's Book Marketing Tip
A regular email packed with really useful info if you are interested in marketing your book.
Recent editions contained information on up-coming themes in Publishers' Weekly, along with
advertising deadlines. Kremer is the author of the supremely useful 1001 Ways To Market Your
Book
NEW LAST TIME
THE 21st CENTURY GUIDE TO PRINT ON-DEMAND PUBLISHING
Second in a series
The appeal of Print On-Demand to self-publishers is easy to see: no printing costs, expert help with layout and cover design,
along with distribution support. But with so many companies springing up, singing the praises of
this new technology, how do you get to the truth?
The second article in this series examines the
technical challenges of preparing a manuscript for print on-demand,
along with the strengths and limitations of the technology itself, for
book production.
JDWrite uses experience gained in three years building the first
of the Print On-Demand Publishing Services Providers, to bring you the first in a series that will show you:
*if POD will work for your project,
*what to expect from your service provider,
*what's in a publishing agreement,
and more...
AUTHOR'S Q & A
This author's question focuses on how to become known online as an
expert.
NEWS & UPDATES
1st US National Book Festival To Be Held Sept 9 in DC
Writer's Digest Announces Self-Published Book Award Winners
ABOUT JDWRITE
JDWrite is the online home of writer, journalist and former Xlibris Director of Author Services, Julie McCarroll Duffy.
Julie has expert knowledge of the new world of publishing: Print On-Demand, self-publishing, online publishing, eBooks, the
evolving publishing industry and more. Her role at Xlibris was
to work with authors to help them understand these developments, to listen to authors' needs and communicate those to the
company. She has been a speaker at writers' conferences around the US and seeks to continue to educate authors to understand
their ever-increasing opportunities in the publishing world. After following her husband's career from their native Scotland
to the US, Julie is working on a book about Trailing Spouse Syndrome,
and a book about Print On-Demand Publishing.
All content copyright 2001 Julie Duffy.
For permission to reprint articles, contact the editor at
jd@jdwrite.com.
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