{ The Princess Experiment Update }

I haven't done an update on my public domain experiment in a while. Mostly because there hasn't been much to report. Anyway, here it goes.

Back in February I started selling a public domain title, The Princess and the Goblin, through Barnes and Noble's PubIt. I created a cover for the ebook and formatted the text (no easy feat, let me tell you) and then put it up for sale for 99 cents. For each copy sold, I get a grand total of 40 cents profit. Considering I spent $10 dollars for the cover image, I knew it would take me a while to break even. 

And as of last month, I've done just that. 

I've actually made $12 in profit as of today. B&N doesn't send out a check less than ten bucks, so I expect to be seeing my direct deposit sometime in the next month. I'll try not to spend it all in one place.

As I've said before, I didn't do this little experiment in order to make money. I just wanted to see what the PubIt experience was like. It was fairly easy to work out and I'm pleased with the whole system. It certainly is less intimidating than Amazon's Kindle Direct Publishing, which I have yet to try out since their policy on public domain titles is stricter than B&N's. 

I'm just now discovering that BN.com has started nesting ebooks, so same-priced versions of public domain titles are getting shoved on the same page. This makes it a little harder for people to find my particular edition, but that doesn't really mean much when actually shopping on an eReader like the Nook. 

I know I need to start poking around at Kindle's site sometime before I set out to publish GOFL, but there's something about it that just seems so intimidating. Oh well...

Book Update

I've spent the past two days trying to improve my author presence on the internet. It's all a part of 'marketing' and 'author platform building'. Erg. Just saying those things make me sick.

As with most people, I'm terrified of putting myself out there and asking, "Hey, could you look at me, please?" People who know me know that I don't really have a problem talking about my book in real life. I've wrangled practically everyone I know into reading it. (If I haven't asked you and you're interested, just let me know!) I actually feel bad about how much I talk about it, so I've tried to cut back.

On the net, however, I don't feel comfortable seeking out readers. It's not that I have a problem talking. I doubt very many people will actually read this post, but I'm writing it anyway. I just don't know how to sell my book. I've only just figured out an acceptable jacket copy--the little blurb that usually goes on the back of the book or the inside flap. Though funnily enough I have no intention of putting it on the actual book jacket. A lack of jacket copy had made setting up professional pages for my book a little difficult, since all I was able to post was the cover and title. This problem has been fixed and information on my book can now be found in a few places:

• Under the My Fiction tap at the top of this blog
• On Goodreads.com, where I finally managed to get my Goodreads Author status working properly.
• On Inkpop.com, where I've also uploaded the first four chapters of the book for previewing/reviewing purposes. The first chapter is on Goodreads, as well, but it's so much easier to view on Inkpop. 

Tied into my presence on these sites, I've also set up an author fan page on Facebook. The little 'like' button on the right there lets you add me to your feed. I use Facebook regularly and have always posted my blog updates for my friends. I will also use my author page as a way to share information and make announcements. I know everyone is flocking to Twitter these days, but I have to admit that I don't get it. I can barely wrap my head around Tumblr (got one of those, too, but it's fairly useless). I know that makes me sound like an octogenarian, but I don't care. If I get super (or even mildly) popular and there is a request for a Twitter feed, then I guess I'll get one, but in the meantime... 

One big thing I've been avoiding on the whole book launch front is diving into the world of Kindle. I just need to get over this stigma I feel against Amazon. Their policies just irk me. They're my Wal-Mart. But this is no place for a soap box lecture. I've made my Kindle Direct Publishing account and I'll get used to using it. The next step after that would be chatting people up on Kindleboards and Nookboards. Let me tell you, I'm totally looking forward to that. Ug. 

All right, that's enough ranting for the day. I've worked myself into a bit of a depression, so I need to stop. I need to find a new book to read. Something light and happy. Any suggestions?

The cost of the written word in the Digital Age



Shutterhacks at Flickr



Well, it seems everyone and their dog really did get an e-reader for Christmas this past year. Not only did computer servers start crying as people downloaded their ebooks, so did all those physical books that found themselves staying on the shelf.

Publishers Weekly reported on the sales figures released by the Association of American Publishers, which saw a whopping 115.8% increase in ebook sales in January, resulting in almost $70 million, beating out hardcover books and mass markets paperbacks. The little books that gave birth to a literary boom in the past century seem to be dying out, as publishers opt for the bigger (and more expensive) trade paperbacks, the only book category that beat ebooks dollar-wise with $83.4 million sold.

I think now is a good time to bring up the whole 'race to the bottom' mentality, as far as ebook pricing is concerned. The willingness to read books digitally is obviously there. The 115.8% increase was a reflection of the money spent on ebooks, not the actual number of units sold. I'd like to know what that number was. There probably aren't enough zeroes on the number line, especially if they factor in the free books that were downloaded.

However, considering most ebooks are $5-$10-$15 cheaper than their physical counterparts, it's no wonder that publishers will continue to cling to physical books. Even if they only sell half as many paperbacks as ebooks, if the book cost three times more, they make a greater profit.

My concern then, is that ebooks are really selling themselves short, both metaphorically and literally, especially when it comes to self-published authors. The popular opinion when it comes to paying for ebooks is that because I'm not buying a physical book when purchasing an ebook, then I shouldn't be paying as much for it. Or much for it at all, really. This ties into the whole "if it's on the internet, it's free" way of thinking (which is completely wrong, of course). This willingness to price ebooks at a dirt cheap level is sad. Are you telling me that a cup of coffee is worth more than the blood, sweat and tears some writer put into writing their masterpiece?

As a reader, I value the words more than the page when I'm reading a book (digital and physical). When I buy a book, I'm paying for the content, the story that this author has written for me to read. Not the paper, the cardboard or the glue. Sure the publisher is charging me for those things, but to me the words are totally worth it, especially when it's a really good book.

The music industry has got it right. Even after the digital demise of CDs, artists still charge their listeners at a reasonable and, more importantly, a respectable price. The average price of an album on iTunes put out by major labels and indie artists alike is $9.99. The average price of a CD in the store? Only a few dollars more. Musicians charge consumers for their content, for the effort and time they spent to make the songs that people listen to.  

Ebooks shouldn't have to whore themselves out, selling thousands of words for pennies, just because people don't want to pay as much for a book that doesn't include paper.

Killer serials



Courtesy of Wikipedia.

 

Dickens did it. So did Wilkie Collins. Robert Lewis Stevenson? Yep, him too. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle did it as well. Oh, did I mention Stephen King has done it before?

I'm talking about serialized novels, people. Literary magazines were all the rage in the second half of the Nineteenth Century and the first half of the Twentieth Century. This encompasses the likes of Dickens' own periodical, All the Year Round, as well as the piles and piles of pulp fiction magazines, which mostly specialized in short stories. Most of Dickens' novels were published serially, hence their imposing length. The more issues sold, the more money made by a single story.

The tradition of publishing novels in short segments has persisted to this day. A quick jump on Wikipedia tells me that Stephen King began releasing The Plant as a serial in 2000, though it is still (an presumable will remain) unfinished. Arguably, he jumped the gun on this one here. 2000 was still a little early to ask readers to jump on board with e-reading. 

Writers Tracy and Laura Hickman have had more success with their serialized effort, Dragon's Bard, which began in 2010. The story was accessible to subscribers, for a fee, in weekly chapter installments. At the end of the book's digital run, print editions were given to the subscribers. They plan to release the second book in the series in the same fashion, even allowing readers to read the chapters on their Kindles or Nooks.

  

Perhaps it should be mentioned that comic books have been doing this for years. Most comics are released one magazine-like issue at a time, until they're collected into bound book-like volumes called graphic novels. And I'm not just talking about superheroes. Fantasy writer, Neil Gaiman might be more widely known because of the movie adaptations of his work, but he truly rose to prominence because of The Sandman, a serialized story told over 75 issues.

As I've said before, the new world of e-publishing opens us up to endless possibilities when it comes to storytelling, not just publishing. A serialized story allows for smaller chunks of focused storytelling, as well longer, more thought out story arcs. It could also allow writers to keep in those beloved scenes that would otherwise be edited out in order to keep a novel at a more manageable length. At a time when scripted, serialized televisions shows are routinely replaced by 'reality TV', serial novels could be an acceptable alternative to these kinds of stories.

The possibilities are dizzying. And I can’t wait to try them all.

I'm just waiting for it to rain, basically.

Nikolas B.

This is kind of what it looks like outside right now. Not that this is an actual shot. This is someplace in Germany, but it made me think of the little patch of woods behind my house. I'm so happy I live near actual foliage. I'd probably die if I had to look at endless rows of suburban housing all the time.



I wanted to go outside and take a few photos before it started raining, but when I turned on my camera, it yelled at me because the battery was dead. Which is just as well, honestly. I could have ended up taking a hundred shots and only two of them would have been any good. And even their quality would have been suspect. I absolutely love photography, but I suck at taking photos. I've been toying with the idea of taking some of my tax return money and buying a swankier camera, as a little gift to myself.



An actual photo of mine that I'm proud of.
Taken in the main stairwell in the Met, NYC,
one of my absolute favorite places.

The whole writing-a-novel thing has been going along all right. I've been focusing on the publishing aspect a little too much recently, which has caused me to neglect the actual writing part. I find the prospect of self-publishing (and publishing in general) to be extremely terrifying and yet also thrilling. Throw in roller coaster pun of your choice here.



I've got some rough plans drawing out in my head, not the least of which is this blog. I've been having way too much fun coming up with possible book covers that I find myself wanting to make covers for books that don't even exist. I realize now that I completely wasted my time in college. I should have studied graphic design instead.

Even though it's been a week since I last updated, this blog has been lots of fun. I know I should be looking into getting a new background design, but the strange truth is that I kind of really like this one, even though it's one of the generic freebies on Blogger. It fits my personal style. I'm a big fan of 'distressed' and old timey styling in interior design. I'm in the middle of stripping the paint from an old dresser. When finished a thin layer of paint will give the wood a little character. I'm so excited to have a piece of furniture I actually like in my room.

- heather