For a long time, I've emphasized on this blog, this one and my Web site that writing is a business. Now, I can point to an example of someone who truly embraces the notion of author as entrepreneur.
I'm talking about none other than Seth Harwood. If you don't believe a self-published author can make it, I suggest you check out his Web site and his Author Boot Camp site. This guy is nothing less than amazing!
Seth Harwood is a true-life example of what Mark Jeffrey (the interviewer in this video) calls an "author-preneur."
Author-preneurship is like any other business. It requires time, creative approaches to marketing, persistence and belief in yourself. If you have those qualities and a good product to sell (i.e., a good book), you can do this, too.
Think about that as you're making your New Year's resolutions!
Thursday, 31 December 2009
Sunday, 27 December 2009
Quotation for the Week of December 27
"The world is a tragedy to those who feel, but a comedy to those who think."
-- Horace Walpole
-- Horace Walpole
Thursday, 24 December 2009
Digital Publishing Links Galore
There's so much news coming out every day about e-books and digital publishing, I'd almost have to post hourly to stay current. (Well, isn't that what Twitter's for? Oh, yeah . . . )
Nevertheless, here are some of the more interesting news items on the subject that I've run across.
The Christian Science Monitor wonders whether the e-reader and e-books will change how we read.
Soapdish speculates that Stephen Covey's decision to bypass his traditional publisher, Simon and Schuster, in order to e-publish through Rosetta Books, "may turn out to be one of those moments in the history of book publishing when everything changed and wild forces were released into the creative environment."
Digital books are also available as iPhone apps, which are becoming so big, they could be the foundation for a new wave of tech giants.
While some think digital e-readers won't help the newspaper or magazine industry, it's a different story when it comes to books. Now one university press has formed an alliance that will let it sell e-books directly from its Web site (cutting out the retailer, not to mention the distributor). However, the press hasn't abandoned print publishing, believing that "e-books and p-books will co-exist rather than replace each other."
Personally, I think there will always be a market for print books, even if it's small. But it's important to keep an eye on this e-publishing thing, because it's not going away.
Nevertheless, here are some of the more interesting news items on the subject that I've run across.
The Christian Science Monitor wonders whether the e-reader and e-books will change how we read.
Soapdish speculates that Stephen Covey's decision to bypass his traditional publisher, Simon and Schuster, in order to e-publish through Rosetta Books, "may turn out to be one of those moments in the history of book publishing when everything changed and wild forces were released into the creative environment."
Digital books are also available as iPhone apps, which are becoming so big, they could be the foundation for a new wave of tech giants.
While some think digital e-readers won't help the newspaper or magazine industry, it's a different story when it comes to books. Now one university press has formed an alliance that will let it sell e-books directly from its Web site (cutting out the retailer, not to mention the distributor). However, the press hasn't abandoned print publishing, believing that "e-books and p-books will co-exist rather than replace each other."
Personally, I think there will always be a market for print books, even if it's small. But it's important to keep an eye on this e-publishing thing, because it's not going away.
Sunday, 20 December 2009
Quotation for the Week of December 20
"I believe that professional wrestling is clean and everything else in the world is fixed."
-- Frank Deford
-- Frank Deford
Thursday, 17 December 2009
Covey Publishes E-Books Through Amazon (So Now What's Going to Happen to Publishers?)
For some time now, I've taken the position that self-publishing represents a threat to traditional publishers (not to mention agents and especially in the non-fiction market). Think about it. Why share the profits from a book, if you can publish it yourself, develop your own marketing (which traditionally published authors are expected to do now) and set up distribution channels on your own? Can't get into bookstores? Who cares, if you can sell your books to non-bookstore markets?
All these things have become more feasible. POD presses have helped make self-publishing printed books cheaper and easier. But now, the ever-growing demand for e-books is making the whole business much, much cheaper and easier than ever.
It was only a matter of time before a major author (Stephen Covey) decided to bypass the traditional big publishing houses and issue his books for Kindle (in Covey's case, through an e-book publisher) on Amazon. Figures it would be a business author--and one of the most successful ones in the last 20 years. As such, Covey can surely see the business sense in doing this.
So what does this mean for fiction authors? Well, duh. The bigger you are in the business, the more incentive you have to jump aboard and start publishing your out-of-print backlist as e-books. Even TV writer-producer and crime fiction author Lee Goldberg (one of self-publishing's biggest and most vocal detractors) has done this. And J.A. Konrath, another crime fiction author, says he can pay his mortgage with what he makes from his e-books.
Where does that leave the little guys? Well, right now, new authors and lesser-known names are probably wise to continue seeking an agent or traditional publisher (if only to open doors to the possibility of winning certain awards and establish greater credibility in the business). However, I think the possibilities for new authors who get their work out through e-publishing are awesome (especially in the not-to-distant future, as e-books become more and more popular, if not the norm). The main thing is to make sure it's your very best work. (Which means having someone more impartial than your mom or your SO review it before you send it out to the world.)
Anyhow, if you're looking for an agent, you should do your research, check guides like this one and the membership listings for the Association of Author's Representatives (an organization that requires its members to adhere to a code of ethics). Oh, and you could follow potential agents on Twitter. It could give you some insight into what they like (maybe). Remember that Twitter is a good place to gather information and make connections (it is form of networking, after all). However, if an agent is looking for your type of book, you should go to their Web site, see if they're taking submissions and follow the guidelines. And, unless they're really unusual agents and say otherwise in their Web site, don't tweet story pitches, okay?
All these things have become more feasible. POD presses have helped make self-publishing printed books cheaper and easier. But now, the ever-growing demand for e-books is making the whole business much, much cheaper and easier than ever.
It was only a matter of time before a major author (Stephen Covey) decided to bypass the traditional big publishing houses and issue his books for Kindle (in Covey's case, through an e-book publisher) on Amazon. Figures it would be a business author--and one of the most successful ones in the last 20 years. As such, Covey can surely see the business sense in doing this.
So what does this mean for fiction authors? Well, duh. The bigger you are in the business, the more incentive you have to jump aboard and start publishing your out-of-print backlist as e-books. Even TV writer-producer and crime fiction author Lee Goldberg (one of self-publishing's biggest and most vocal detractors) has done this. And J.A. Konrath, another crime fiction author, says he can pay his mortgage with what he makes from his e-books.
Where does that leave the little guys? Well, right now, new authors and lesser-known names are probably wise to continue seeking an agent or traditional publisher (if only to open doors to the possibility of winning certain awards and establish greater credibility in the business). However, I think the possibilities for new authors who get their work out through e-publishing are awesome (especially in the not-to-distant future, as e-books become more and more popular, if not the norm). The main thing is to make sure it's your very best work. (Which means having someone more impartial than your mom or your SO review it before you send it out to the world.)
Anyhow, if you're looking for an agent, you should do your research, check guides like this one and the membership listings for the Association of Author's Representatives (an organization that requires its members to adhere to a code of ethics). Oh, and you could follow potential agents on Twitter. It could give you some insight into what they like (maybe). Remember that Twitter is a good place to gather information and make connections (it is form of networking, after all). However, if an agent is looking for your type of book, you should go to their Web site, see if they're taking submissions and follow the guidelines. And, unless they're really unusual agents and say otherwise in their Web site, don't tweet story pitches, okay?
Sunday, 13 December 2009
Quotation for the Week of December 13
"Time is that quality of nature which keeps events from happening all at once. Lately it doesn't seem to be working."
-- Anonymous
-- Anonymous
Thursday, 10 December 2009
A Whole Lot of Digital Publishing News
Okay, let's start off this list of links with Sony's plan to create an all-in-one network of entertainment content, such as music, films and games, and make it available for TV, Walkmans and PlayStations. (As the article points out, "If only this were 1999.")
So . . . moving on to e-readers, take a look at two bestselling authors' views on them. Both thriller writers who see the potential in these devices.
And speaking of devices, the NY Times reports, "Five major magazine and newspaper publishers announced plans on Tuesday [Dec. 8] to build an industry-standard platform to present their work on the Web, smartphones and electronic readers in a richer, more flexible and more lucrative form than is possible today." Basically, they're not only putting their content on existing e-readers, but getting ready for the devices to be developed. (Man, keeping up with technology is hard enough. Getting ready for future technology must be a real challenge. I wonder if they hire sci-fi writers as consultants.)
Hey, even The Atlantic is making its short stories available on e-readers.
Plus, don't look now, but more new devices are coming out, such as Joo Joo (which is rumored to have beaten Apple's tablet e-reader to the market, though Apple hasn't confirmed it's working on such a device).
However, there are reports of Apple providing a 30/70 split with publishers who use their fabled Apple Tablet e-reader to distribute content. (We're talking just rumors here.)
And is Amazon losing $2 per e-book?
Finally, David Pogue thinks maybe the Nook isn't quite ready for prime time.
So . . . moving on to e-readers, take a look at two bestselling authors' views on them. Both thriller writers who see the potential in these devices.
And speaking of devices, the NY Times reports, "Five major magazine and newspaper publishers announced plans on Tuesday [Dec. 8] to build an industry-standard platform to present their work on the Web, smartphones and electronic readers in a richer, more flexible and more lucrative form than is possible today." Basically, they're not only putting their content on existing e-readers, but getting ready for the devices to be developed. (Man, keeping up with technology is hard enough. Getting ready for future technology must be a real challenge. I wonder if they hire sci-fi writers as consultants.)
Hey, even The Atlantic is making its short stories available on e-readers.
Plus, don't look now, but more new devices are coming out, such as Joo Joo (which is rumored to have beaten Apple's tablet e-reader to the market, though Apple hasn't confirmed it's working on such a device).
However, there are reports of Apple providing a 30/70 split with publishers who use their fabled Apple Tablet e-reader to distribute content. (We're talking just rumors here.)
And is Amazon losing $2 per e-book?
Finally, David Pogue thinks maybe the Nook isn't quite ready for prime time.
Sunday, 6 December 2009
Thursday, 3 December 2009
More News About E-Books (And an E-Book Sale!)
I never know how much store to put in predictions. However, FWIW, Forrester Research has made a list of 10 predictions for the e-reader/e-book market in 2010. As you can see, they're expecting great changes over the next year alone.
Although Amazon says its Kindle sales hit a record high in November, the question one pundit has raised is whether e-book readers are already obsolete. Technology is changing so fast, I think it's almost impossible to predict exactly what will happen (though Forrester has tried). Even if iPhone apps and other small e-reader devices become more popular, aren't there going to be people like me, who'd prefer to read from a larger screen? (My eyes just ain't so young, anymore. :))
I think a lot of the change will be in compatibility--as in coming up with a format that can be read from a variety of devices. Either that or settling on the best device of the bunch--much like VHS versus beta.
Oh, and while we're talking about e-books, I'd like to mention that I'm holding a holiday sale on my hardboiled mystery, IDENTITY CRISIS, as formatted for Kindle. You can buy it on Amazon for the low, low price of .99 per download during the month of December. So act now, because the price goes up next year.
Although Amazon says its Kindle sales hit a record high in November, the question one pundit has raised is whether e-book readers are already obsolete. Technology is changing so fast, I think it's almost impossible to predict exactly what will happen (though Forrester has tried). Even if iPhone apps and other small e-reader devices become more popular, aren't there going to be people like me, who'd prefer to read from a larger screen? (My eyes just ain't so young, anymore. :))
I think a lot of the change will be in compatibility--as in coming up with a format that can be read from a variety of devices. Either that or settling on the best device of the bunch--much like VHS versus beta.
Oh, and while we're talking about e-books, I'd like to mention that I'm holding a holiday sale on my hardboiled mystery, IDENTITY CRISIS, as formatted for Kindle. You can buy it on Amazon for the low, low price of .99 per download during the month of December. So act now, because the price goes up next year.
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