Amazon has a big carrot/stick going with KDP Select.
This was my experience in Select:
1) 70% royalties in a lot of territories.
2) Lending library royalties.
3) Fewer sales got me higher on the charts.
4) Better visibility.
5) Fantastic customer service, the few times I had to contact KDP support.
This has been my experience, leaving Select:
1) 35% royalties, no matter what my price, in more territories than if I had stayed in Select.
2) No longer in the Lending Program, (obviously).
3) Lower visibility.
4) Price changes only reflected on my US page, and not on my other
pages. So, even though I ran a big sale, it had no effect on my overseas
numbers, because the price didn't change there.
5) Price changes may not be reflected period. I lowered my price for a
sale, but I was not able to return it to its regular price. Instead,
they're using what should be my price as the crossed out price, and are
continuing the sale. Even though my price is back up to normal at all
other venues.
(Note: Even after I pulled it out of distribution at the other channels and placed it back in Select, even after emailing KDP repeatedly, I am still unable to raise my price back to normal. My sale ended on Thursday. It's now Tuesday).
6) I have one book that was made perma-free in the US, but continues to
have its regular price in all other territories, so the UK ad I bought
for it is worthless.
7) My KDP account became oddly glitchy. Sales showed up and vanished,
number counters ran forward and backwards, and my royalty percentages
changed without my input.
8) When I contacted KDP customer service, I kept getting routed to India and nothing got resolved. All I got were rote responses.
9) Running sales promos costs a lot more money.
10) You need more sales to hold onto your ranking level. Yes, I do think
they've either got two different algorithms going, based on whether
you're in Select or not.
Thankfully, one of the advertisers I worked with gave me a connection to
an actual Amazon person in the US to try and get this all straightened
out. I don't know what the outcome will be. But I have to say, it's very
tempting to go back into Select, where I won't have all these problems
to deal with.
If you want to leave Select, this is what I would do:
1) Try to get a 1-year cushion in your bank account, just in case.
2) Try to have at least one full-length title in Select when you pull the rest out.
3) This is the time to start keeping even better records. Chart your
sales and regularly check your royalty percentages. Take screenshots of
your KDP sales page, especially if your sales go up. Try to time/date
stamp everything somehow. If there's a glitch, and you need to contact
customer service, not only will you be routed to India, you will be put
in a "prove it" position, and you have to be able to cough up physical
proof.
4) Don't just check your US product page if you're changing your prices.
Check all Amazon territories. As soon as you notice something is off,
contact KDP immediately.
5) Compile e-mail addresses of Amazon employees that you've interacted
with in KDP customer service. That way, you can contact them directly
instead of going through India and the rote responses first.
Why I think this is happening:
Honestly, I don't think Amazon is trying to screw you if you leave
Select. I think they just stop caring about you, if you leave Select. And
since none of the other retailers care about you at all, there's no one
to pick up the slack.
I also think that Amazon is having software problems on one of their
servers, and that server is the one that's dealing with non-Select
accounts. Fun, fun, fun.
As indies, we feel a responsibility to our readers to have our books
available everywhere. Unfortunately, other than Amazon, the other
distributors don't really feel any responsibility to its indie authors.
And Amazon only really seems to feel responsibility towards indies who
are in Select.
At least, this has been my experience so far. But who
knows. Now that I'm emailing someone at Amazon proper, instead of Amazon
India, maybe things will change and I will completely change my mind.
We'll see.
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Monday, May 13, 2013
Cover Designers -- their importance, cost and where to find them!
In today’s world, books are definitely judged by their covers.
Your cover is the first thing people see about your book. Frequently, it will
influence whether the person goes on to read the book summary, or even click on
the sample pages.
From that point, your writing – both on the summary and the
sample pages – will hopefully sell your book. But without a good cover, they
may never get to that point.
And if you’re doing a free promotion, your cover could mean the
difference between people freeloading and actually reading your book, or
freeloading and archiving it instead.
So, your cover needs to convey the tone of your book and be
appropriate for the genre you’re writing in. It has to be eye-catching and it
has to look professional. But it doesn’t have to be expensive.
A lot of aspiring indies are scared off by the assumed expense
of covers, and think they can’t afford one. But you can get a professional
looking cover for anywhere from $5 to $500 and up. Seriously. You can find
covers for all budget constraints. Decide what you can afford to spend and go
shopping.
Yes, there are cover designers who charge a lot of money, who
will provide you with both e-book and paperback covers. But there are also
designers who work with e-book covers only, at a much reduced rate. And there’s
a world of pre-made covers, available at an even lower rate, that you can have
the designer modify for a small fee.
And if you pick up an e-book cover, you can modify it into a
print cover on your own, via Createspace’s cover wizard. It’s a fairly simple
process, although you won’t get that cool graphic wraparound look, unless you
have some mad design skills of your own. Just make sure the designer gives you
a high-resolution image, (minimum resolution for print is 300 dpi).
Often, as indies, we don’t know how well a book will sell, so
it’s tough to commit hundreds or thousands of dollars to the pre-production
phase. But I hope this blog post shows you that you don’t have to. You can
absolutely get professional covers at very affordable prices.
The covers I’ve had done for my serialized novel, The Gospel of
Ruth, have cost between $5 and $50. I wish I could insert pictures into this
blog, but I can’t, so you’ll have to check them out yourself on Amazon. Here’s
the story of each cover:
Episode One: Cerridwen’s Cauldron cost $5 on Fiverr.com. It was
designed by someone who was testing the waters of the cover design industry.
Talk about a bargain. It’s a beautiful cover worth much more than $5, and I was
thrilled with it.
Episode Two: Twice-Born was a pre-made. I asked the designer to
add in the car (and possibly the hand -- I can’t remember if it was already
there or not). With the modifications, the cover cost me $50. $30 for the
pre-made, $20 for the additional artwork.
Episode Three: Demon Child was another pre-made cover. I found
the image of the skull and I sent it to the designer. She added it in to her
pre-made for me. This cover cost $40. $30 for the cover and $10 to add the
additional design element. (Episode Three is not published yet, but you can see
it on my FB page: www.facebook.com/christianamiller.author)
So, you see, you can totally customize pre-made covers or even
get a custom cover, for a price that won’t break your budget.
Here is a list of cover designers
who’ve done excellent work, many of whom offer fabulous pre-made covers. When
you’re in the market for a cover, please check them out:
Cover Designers:
(also http://www.goonwrite.com)
Happy hunting!
Who Am I And Why Am I Giving You Advice?
Indie publishing is a dynamic
industry. Changes can—and do—happen daily. It's what makes self-publishing a
challenge, but it is also what makes it so thrilling. If you find staying on
the pulse of an ever-changing, fluid industry to be exhilarating, then you are
right in your element. Becoming an independent, self-published author is a
great way to have fun, generate additional streams of revenue and build a new
career.
In 2008, I was writing for television
on General Hospital: Night Shift. The future looked promising—until the
show was unexpectedly canceled. By 2009, I was unemployed but still not
worried. After all, I had mad skills. I was a Northwestern graduate and had
done post-grad work at UCLA. I had years of work experience in various fields.
Another job should be right around the corner, right?
By the time 2010 rolled around, I was
worried. My unemployment had run out, my savings were a thing of the past and
there were no jobs. Forget writing, I couldn't even get work as a temp. I was
using credit cards to pay the bills and scrambling for whatever odd jobs I
could snag.
Fortunately, I had also finished
writing my first novel about a woman who was in the same boat I was, Somebody
Tell Aunt Tillie She's Dead. The protagonist, Mara, had lost her job and
her unemployment was running out. To top it off, she was evicted from her
apartment, banned from Beverly Hills, and her tarot cards were predicting her
imminent demise. So, against her better judgment, Mara used a little magic to
make her world right, and that decision set off a life-changing cascade of
events.
Inspired by friends who were indie
authors, I decided to take the plunge into the indie world, hoping that by
taking control over my career, for better or worse, I would be bringing a
little magic into my life as well. After all, what did I have to lose?
Career-wise, I had hit rock bottom.
That decision set off a life-changing
cascade of events.
I finished the last rewrite of Tillie
in April 2011, set up my publishing account in May and launched the book in
June, sending it to book bloggers for reviews and authors for book blurbs.
Then, in July, I officially let the world know that Tillie was
available.
The first few months, I basically
made coffee money—$25, $18 and so on. It was better than nothing, but I had no
idea how it was going to pay the bills. My credit cards were maxed out, and I
was working for a film producer for free, hoping it would lead to a paying gig.
The next decision I made would launch
my career.
I co-wrote a short story with a
friend for a charity anthology she was editing. Every Witch Way But Wicked
was launched in October, featuring a number of already established, indie
authors. It was for a good cause, all proceeds went to charity, and I never
expected anything to come of it.
I was wrong.
Suddenly, readers who bought the
anthology and read our story wanted more. By the end of October, I was floored
to find out I had sold 226 copies of Tillie. The ball was rolling, and
it was only going to get better.
In November, I sold more than 900
copies of Tillie. In December, I sold over 1,000 copies. And then Amazon
launched Amazon Select, so I jumped in. When it comes to indie publishing, it's
the early risk-takers who tend to reap the most rewards.
Thanks to Select, my visibility shot
up and suddenly, I was selling between 1,700 and 3,300 copies of Tillie
every month. By the end of June 2012, I had sold over 18,000 books, and I was
getting fan mail from around the world. Every day was like Christmas, and every
new review was a brightly wrapped present. I crunched numbers, tracked
algorithm changes, explored marketing options and discussed the business of
indie publishing incessantly.
It wasn't long before I stopped
looking for a day job to fall back on and embraced my new career as a full-time
indie writer.
Being an indie has enabled me to meet
and befriend a world of readers, form friendships with other indie writers,
build a dedicated fan base, pay my bills, rent an office, get my daughter into
a better school district, pay down my student loans and fund a retirement
account. What started as an experiment ended up completely changing my life.
As of this writing, Tillie has
consistently been in the top 20 of the U.S. genre bestseller lists for the last
nine months, and on the U.K. Bestseller list for the last month.
If you have a passion for writing, if
you're ready to treat your career as a business, if you love having total
control over your work and are willing to take on the extra responsibilities
being an indie entails, this is your time to shine.
For the first time in history, you
have the ability to bypass the gatekeepers, carve out your own career, control
your product and reach out to readers directly. And you have the support
system—from book sites like Kirkus and book bloggers, to freelance
artists and editors, to an extended online support system of fellow indies—to
make your dream of being a professional writer a reality.
If you're on the fence, I urge you to jump in and give it
a try. This is the best time to be an indie. Indie publishing is the wild, wild
West of the modern-day era. There are no hard-and-fast rules, everything
changes on a daily basis, and the scrub-brushy piece of land you stake out
today could wind up being the Napa Valley of tomorrow.
(Originally published on kirkusreviews.com as "Christiana Miller: The Self-Publishing Bestseller on 'How I Did It'.")
Overcoming Writer's Block
You sit down at your
computer, fingers on the keyboard, eyes on the blank screen… the very, very
blank screen… and it's not getting any less blank.
Suddenly, your
subconscious gets intimidated, your mind freezes up and your fingers are
paralyzed. You may shut your computer down and walk away from the screen that
day, but when you go back, that blank screen is still going to be there.
Waiting for you. Mocking you. What's a writer to do?
Every writer goes through
that moment of panic, staring at their computer screen, wondering if they
should be hitting the pavement, looking for an office job instead. No matter
how experienced you are, there are always going to be days when you need to
trick your mind into letting go and letting you write.
These are the methods I've
developed to short-circuit the panic, so I can get on with writing. Check them
out and see if any of them might work for you.
TIME LIMIT:
Since the hardest part is
getting started, my favorite trick is to promise myself that I'm only going to
sit down and write for five minutes. Five minutes isn't that long. I can do
anything for five minutes. Even things I don't like. Even writing <grin>.
Even on lousy days.
Five minutes is a short
enough time that it's not going to panic my subconscious. And I give myself
permission to write whatever comes to mind in that five minutes. Even if it
turns out to be utter crap. I can always improve it later, in the rewrite.
Inevitably, by the time I look up from the computer, an hour or two has gone by
and I've gotten quite a bit of writing done.
Some writers schedule a
set time to write, every day. I find it easier to set a starting time, and let
the ending time be dictated by the writing or other life commitments. If I have
an ending time in mind, I tend to start too close to it!
Personally, I prefer the
five minute trick to word count, because when you're knee deep in writer's
block, word count can be intimidating.
OUTLINING:
Another way to keep from
having that panicky "what now?" moment is to write a rough outline
before you start. It doesn't have to be detailed—unless that's what makes it
easier for you. It doesn't even have to be the entire book. You can do a loose
outline of the chapter or section you're writing.
Personally, I enjoy
writing without knowing too many details about what's going to happen in
advance, so I create a very rough, loose-form outline. However, if you're on a
time crunch, creating a more detailed outline will help you meet your deadline.
Writers of daytime dramas, who only have a week (or less) to write their
scripts, are able to write so quickly because they go off of detailed outlines
of their episode (aka breakdowns).
CHANGING APPROACH:
On the other hand, there's
a lot to be said for trying something different. If you normally pants it, try
an outline. But if you normally write outlines, try flying by the seat of your
pants for a change. You may find that approaching a story from a different
angle jump-starts your creativity.
Lately, I've found that
too much outlining makes writing seem like work. However, pantsing it–which is
something I don't normally do–brings back the joy and mystery of writing. But
when I think back on it, I think all of my favorite stories and scripts have
all been written without an outline.
Each method has its own
merits. Mix and match at will.
DAYDREAM:
Another trick I use is,
before you start typing, sit down on the couch or the computer chair, close
your eyes and daydream your scene. Let it play out in your head. When you open
your eyes, immediately type up the scene that you saw. That's when it's going
to be the most vivid.
Don't worry about minor
changes or logic gaps. Just write it down the way you saw it. You can fix it
later. But if you wait to long to write it, you may lose some of the immediate
vibrancy of what you're seeing.
WORD COUNT:
Some writers set a word
count for the day. And really, if you write 1000 words a day, you'll have
written the rough draft of a book in two months. Just make sure you rewrite,
polish and edit before hitting that publish button!
PLACE:
Designate a specific place
that you go to write. I always write in my office and take care of the business
end of writing at home. As a result, whenever I walk into the office, I can't
not write. It feels wrong. That's my writing place.
What makes it even easier
to keep as a writing place, is that there's no internet connection. So I can't
do anything but write, until I get home. If you don't have an office, you can
designate a specific area in your house or in your garden. Or at a local café.
Some place where you consistently go to write.
When I'm at home, my
writing place is sitting at the end of the couch, feet up on the ottoman.
Unfortunately, that's also where I do all my marketing stuff, so it's not quite
as productive writing-wise as the office is.
CELEBRATE LIFE:
Go do something you've
never done before. Skydive, go to a witch's sabbat, fly a plane, drive to a
city you've always wanted to visit, go surfing, take your kids to Disneyland,
do something. Anything. You'll find that doing something new often jump-starts
new story ideas or plot complications or gives rise to new characters.
SCHEDULE THE MUSE:
What you can't do is wait
for the Muse to come to you. Muses are fickle and seem to delight in testing your
level of commitment. If you always go to your rendezvous place, at the
appointed time, and sit down and write, your Muse will eventually start meeting
you there. They tend to visit more frequently when they know your schedule.
And for those who don't
believe in Muses, what you're doing by creating a schedule or a writing area,
is stimulating the creative side of your brain to start engaging during a
specific time period or in a specific place.
Another thing to keep in
mind while you're writing is that it's about the journey. Be in the moment with
your story. Focus on what you're doing now, the images and feelings you want to
convey, the characters you want to spend time with. Don't worry about page
count or marketing strategies. Just concentrate on telling a complete story.
You can always address whatever problems come up, in the rewrite.
REWRITING:
This brings me to my last
point. All writing is rewriting. So there's no point in stressing over your
rough draft. You may think what you've just written is brilliant, you may think
it's utter crap, you may vacillate between the two extremes on a given day. It
doesn't matter. The important thing is to get it written down, in a fixed form,
so you can rewrite it. You can't polish it if it doesn't exist. Write it down
now and you can always fix it later!
(Originally published on Kirkus Reviews as
"Overcoming Blank Screen Panic," includes additional material)
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Writing / Publishing Blogs All Indies Should Know About
Whether
you're looking for advice, are researching various aspects of the industry, or
just want to procrastinate in a way that makes you feel productive, these
bloggers all have blogs you should know about.
If you know of a blogger who's not listed, who writes a writing or indie publishing blog, please let me know and I'll add them to the list. I'm also including two forums that I have found to be indispensable in terms of indies giving advice, support and tips to each other:
Blogs You Should Check Out:
http://amandahocking.blogspot.com/
http://aprillhamilton.blogspot.com/
http://blog.smashwords.com/
http://booksat.scarlettrugers.com/bookcoverdesign
http://davidgaughran.wordpress.com
http://densewords.blogspot.com/
http://e-bookformattingfairies.blogspot.com
http://gailcarsonlevine.blogspot.com
http://guidohenkel.com/
http://indeliblewriters.blogspot.com
http://ireaderreview.com/
http://jackson-pearce.com
http://jakonrath.blogspot.com/
http://jennybent.blogspot.com
http://jimbutcher.livejournal.com (archives)
http://kriswrites.com/business-rusch-publishing-articles/
http://nailyournovel.wordpress.com
http://phoenixsullivan.blogspot.com
http://plotwhisperer.blogspot.com
(also on YouTube at: http://www.youtube.com/user/marthaalderson/%5B/url%5D)
http://talliroland.blogspot.com
http://terribleminds.com/ramble/blog/
http://thewritersguidetoepublishing.com
http://thisblogisaploy.blogspot.com
http://tonyakappes.blogspot.com
http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com
http://writeitforward.wordpress.com
http://writersforensicsblog.wordpress.com
http://www.bksp.org/upload/index.php
http://www.deanwesleysmith.com
http://www.howtowriteshop.com
http://www.kboards.com/index.php/board,60.0.html
http://www.lindsayburoker.com
http://www.marissameyer.com/blog/
http://www.publetariat.com
http://www.screenwritingtricks.com/
http://www.stevenpressfield.com
http://www.thebookdesigner.com/
http://www.thedominoproject.com
http://www.thepassivevoice.com/
http://www.veronicasicoe.com/blog/about-vero/
http://yearoftheindie.blogspot.com/
https://www.kirkusreviews.com/features/writing-and-publishing/
Read, enjoy, share and learn a few things! Just don't let it suck up all of your writing time -- because it easily can. But, at the end of the day, what's going to matter more than learning about writing, publishing and marketing, is that you actually managed to get some words on the page.
If you know of a blogger who's not listed, who writes a writing or indie publishing blog, please let me know and I'll add them to the list. I'm also including two forums that I have found to be indispensable in terms of indies giving advice, support and tips to each other:
Blogs You Should Check Out:
http://amandahocking.blogspot.com/
http://aprillhamilton.blogspot.com/
http://blog.smashwords.com/
http://booksat.scarlettrugers.com/bookcoverdesign
http://davidgaughran.wordpress.com
http://densewords.blogspot.com/
http://e-bookformattingfairies.blogspot.com
http://gailcarsonlevine.blogspot.com
http://guidohenkel.com/
http://indeliblewriters.blogspot.com
http://ireaderreview.com/
http://jackson-pearce.com
http://jakonrath.blogspot.com/
http://jennybent.blogspot.com
http://jimbutcher.livejournal.com (archives)
http://kriswrites.com/business-rusch-publishing-articles/
http://nailyournovel.wordpress.com
http://phoenixsullivan.blogspot.com
http://plotwhisperer.blogspot.com
(also on YouTube at: http://www.youtube.com/user/marthaalderson/%5B/url%5D)
http://talliroland.blogspot.com
http://terribleminds.com/ramble/blog/
http://thewritersguidetoepublishing.com
http://thisblogisaploy.blogspot.com
http://tonyakappes.blogspot.com
http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com
http://writeitforward.wordpress.com
http://writersforensicsblog.wordpress.com
http://www.bksp.org/upload/index.php
http://www.deanwesleysmith.com
http://www.howtowriteshop.com
http://www.kboards.com/index.php/board,60.0.html
http://www.lindsayburoker.com
http://www.marissameyer.com/blog/
http://www.publetariat.com
http://www.screenwritingtricks.com/
http://www.stevenpressfield.com
http://www.thebookdesigner.com/
http://www.thedominoproject.com
http://www.thepassivevoice.com/
http://www.veronicasicoe.com/blog/about-vero/
http://yearoftheindie.blogspot.com/
https://www.kirkusreviews.com/features/writing-and-publishing/
Read, enjoy, share and learn a few things! Just don't let it suck up all of your writing time -- because it easily can. But, at the end of the day, what's going to matter more than learning about writing, publishing and marketing, is that you actually managed to get some words on the page.
Saturday, May 11, 2013
What's in a Name?
The reason I named this blog Year of the Indie, is because every year is going to be Year of the Indie. That's my prediction / hope at least. And it's held true now for a number of years.
The other thing I've noticed is that no matter when you become an Indie, the most often repeated statement is a variation of "Awww, man. I should have started sooner. I missed the Indie gold rush!"
Well, while it's true that many indies who jumped on the bandwagon early are now making insanely lucrative livings, the truth is, there is always going to be something going on -- well, at least as long as Amazon continues to be innovative and support their indies. And hopefully, even after that. Now that Amazon's also a traditional publishing house, I'm not sure how much incentive they have to actually help keep indies growing.
After the first gold rush of indie books was over, everyone lamented how they should have gone indie earlier, that they missed the gold rush, that it was now really hard to break in. And then, Amazon introduced Amazon Select, creating a second gold rush.
However, it wasn't long before people started lamenting that, with the changing algorithms, they should have jumped into the indie pool earlier, that they should have grabbed onto Select when it first came out, that the second gold rush was over and it was too late. Tt looked like Select was done with, after Amazon threatened to remove blogger affiliate accounts for too many freeloads.
And then, J.A. Konrath, J.R. Rain and some other big name indies jumped back into Select to prove that it was still alive and still gold-rush-capable, even if it had slowed down a bit.
So what does that mean for you? That it's going to be all right. Whenever you jump into the indie pool, it will be the right time for you. Don't worry about the past, work on maximizing the present.
Amazon Select still exists, and it's still a gold rush for many. For every blogger who dropped listing free books, another blogger stepped forward to fill the void. And many of the established bloggers picked up the financial slack by charging authors anything from a small stipend to an insanely high-priced ad to list freebies.
Even with the changes -- the lesser amount (and sometimes costlier price) of blogger love, the reduced algorithmic weight of freebies -- it's still possible to launch a new book and see astronomical sales.
As a side rant, I know other distributors are complaining about Amazon taking over the indie market. But if the other distributors would give their indies as much support as Amazon does, Amazon wouldn't have the monopoly it does.
There is nothing stopping other distributors from offering similar incentives to Amazon, but they choose not to. They have a laissez-faire attitude towards their indies. Amazon, on the other hand, has a carrot-and-stick attitude. You're rewarded for being in Select, and punished for leaving.
Instead, both Apple and now Barnes and Noble are making it more difficult to publish directly to their sites. But that opened up the door for sites like Draft 2 Digital, which converts and publishes e-books to B&N, Apple and Kobo.
For every door that closes, or gets harder to open, someone shows up to fill the void or take up the slack. You just have to beware of the unscrupulous opportunists who also show up, ready to charge aspiring authors ridiculous prices for huge, pie-in-the-sky promises.
So when's the best time to go indie/self-publish? Whenever it's right for YOU.
Oh, well. For a post that was going to be about titles, I certainly went off in a sideways rant!
The other thing I've noticed is that no matter when you become an Indie, the most often repeated statement is a variation of "Awww, man. I should have started sooner. I missed the Indie gold rush!"
Well, while it's true that many indies who jumped on the bandwagon early are now making insanely lucrative livings, the truth is, there is always going to be something going on -- well, at least as long as Amazon continues to be innovative and support their indies. And hopefully, even after that. Now that Amazon's also a traditional publishing house, I'm not sure how much incentive they have to actually help keep indies growing.
After the first gold rush of indie books was over, everyone lamented how they should have gone indie earlier, that they missed the gold rush, that it was now really hard to break in. And then, Amazon introduced Amazon Select, creating a second gold rush.
However, it wasn't long before people started lamenting that, with the changing algorithms, they should have jumped into the indie pool earlier, that they should have grabbed onto Select when it first came out, that the second gold rush was over and it was too late. Tt looked like Select was done with, after Amazon threatened to remove blogger affiliate accounts for too many freeloads.
And then, J.A. Konrath, J.R. Rain and some other big name indies jumped back into Select to prove that it was still alive and still gold-rush-capable, even if it had slowed down a bit.
So what does that mean for you? That it's going to be all right. Whenever you jump into the indie pool, it will be the right time for you. Don't worry about the past, work on maximizing the present.
Amazon Select still exists, and it's still a gold rush for many. For every blogger who dropped listing free books, another blogger stepped forward to fill the void. And many of the established bloggers picked up the financial slack by charging authors anything from a small stipend to an insanely high-priced ad to list freebies.
Even with the changes -- the lesser amount (and sometimes costlier price) of blogger love, the reduced algorithmic weight of freebies -- it's still possible to launch a new book and see astronomical sales.
As a side rant, I know other distributors are complaining about Amazon taking over the indie market. But if the other distributors would give their indies as much support as Amazon does, Amazon wouldn't have the monopoly it does.
There is nothing stopping other distributors from offering similar incentives to Amazon, but they choose not to. They have a laissez-faire attitude towards their indies. Amazon, on the other hand, has a carrot-and-stick attitude. You're rewarded for being in Select, and punished for leaving.
Instead, both Apple and now Barnes and Noble are making it more difficult to publish directly to their sites. But that opened up the door for sites like Draft 2 Digital, which converts and publishes e-books to B&N, Apple and Kobo.
For every door that closes, or gets harder to open, someone shows up to fill the void or take up the slack. You just have to beware of the unscrupulous opportunists who also show up, ready to charge aspiring authors ridiculous prices for huge, pie-in-the-sky promises.
So when's the best time to go indie/self-publish? Whenever it's right for YOU.
Oh, well. For a post that was going to be about titles, I certainly went off in a sideways rant!
Indies Who Are Making A Living
Hello,
fellow writers!
In
the summer of 2011, I tested the indie waters by publishing my first novel. By
winter of 2011, being an indie was my full-time job.
Since
then, I've been mentoring aspiring indies as well. One question I get asked a
lot is: Is it possible to make your living as an indie or is success a fluke?
Well,
yes. I just did an informal survey of indies, and within a few days, I had an
enormous list of indie authors who make their living as writers.
Once
upon a time, one of the blog sites would post the top 100+ indie authors of the
month. But I think that was discontinued after August 2012. I don't know why --
unless it was because there were just too many indies on the list and it got to
be too time-consuming!
I
would love to bring that list back. But, just to get you started, here's a list
of indie authors who are making their living with their writing. Some have been
making such a great living, they've been scooped up by traditional
publishers.
But
if anyone tells you that no one can make a living as an indie author, that
success is just a fluke, I have 222 things you can say back to them (and the
list is growing every day):
Names of Indies Who Are Making A Living Writing
(along with Genre):
Aaron Pogue
Abbi Glines
Addison Moore
Adrienne Thompson
Aiden James Paranormal
Alexa Grace
Alexandra Sokoloff Paranormal
Allan Guthrie
Amanda Hocking Paranormal
Amber Lynn Natusch
Angie Fox Paranormal Chick Lit
Angie Stanton
AnneMarie Novak
Antoinette Stockenberg
Artemis Hunt Erotica
Artie Cabrera
Barbra Annino Paranormal
Barbra Freethy Romance
Bella Andre Erotica
Bernadette Marie Romance
Beth Orsoff
Beverly Kendall
Blake Crouch Horror
Bob Mayer Action-Adventure
Boyd Morrison
Brett Battles
Brian D. Anderson Fantasy
Brian Kittrell Fantasy
Bruce Blake
C.J. Archer
C.J. Lyons
Camilla Chafer Paranormal
Chick Lit
Candice Hern
Carolyn McCray
Cassia Leo
Catherine Bybee
Catherine Ryan Hyde
Chanda Hahn
Cheryl Bolen
Christiana Miller Paranormal
Chick Lit
Christine Kling Suspense
& Thriller
Claudia King
Cliff Ball Speculative
Fiction
Colleen Hoover
Connie Suttle
Cora Carmack
Courtney Milan
Dale Mayer
Dani Amore
Danielle Bourdon
Dannika Dark Paranormal
Darcie Chan Main-stream
Lit
David Dalglish Fantasy
David Gaughran
David McAfee
Dean Wesley Smith
Deanna Chase
Deanna Roy Chick
Lit
Debora Geary Paranormal
Chick Lit
Debra Holland
Dee Ernst
Denise Swank
Diane Capri
Diane Darcy
Donald Wells
Donna Fasano
Donna McDonald Romance
Edie Ramer Paranormal
Chick Lit
Edward W. Robertson Sci-Fi
Elizabeth Reyes
Elle Casey
Ellen O'Connell
Eve Langlais
Gary Ponzo
Gemma Halliday
Gerri Russel
Glynn James Horror
& Sci-Fi
H.M. Ward Paranormal
H.P. Mallory Paranormal
Chick Lit
H.T. Night Paranormal
Heather Killough-Walden
Hugh Howey Sci-Fi
Imogen Rose
J.A. Konrath Horror
J.D. Hallowell
J.R. Rain Paranormal
J.R. Tomlin Historical
Fiction
Jack Kilbourn Horror
James Henderson
Jamie Maguire
Jana DeLeon
Jasinda Wilder
Jason Letts
Jay Allan
Jen Talty
Jennifer Blake Romance
Jessica Sorensen
Jillian Dodd
Jinx Jamison
Joan Hall Hovey
Jody Morse & Jayme Morse Paranormal
Romance
Joe Nobody
Joel Goldman
John Daulton
John Locke
John O'Brien
Joseph Lallo
Joseph Nassise Urban
Fantasy & Horror
Jude Hardin
Judy Angelo
Kara King
Kary English Fantasy
& Sci-Fi
Kate Danley
Kate Perry Romance
Kathleen Brooks
Kathleen Long
Kathleen Valentine
Kathy Bennett
Katy Evans
Kay Bratt
Kelly Harper
Kelly McClymer Chick
Lit
Kirstie Cook
Kristen Ashley
Kristen Lamb
Kristie Cook
Kristine Kathryn Rusch
L.J. Sellers
L.M. Ironside
L.T. Ryan
Lacey Weatherford
Lauren Royal
Lawrence Kelter
Lee Goldberg Mysteries
Liliana Hart Romantic
Suspense
Lindsay Buroker
Lisa Mondello
Lisa Renee Jones
Lisa Scott Chick
Lit
Lizzy Ford
Lola Stvil
M. Louisa Locke
M.J. Rose
M.P. McDonald
Maggie Ingles
Marie Force
Mark E. Cooper
Mark Tufo
Marla Braziel Romance
Marti Talbott
Matthew Mathers
Melanie Nilles
Melissa Foster
Michael Bunker Sci-Fi
Michael J. Sullivan
Michael Prescott
Michael Stephen Fuchs Techno-thriller
Michael Wallace Thrillers
Mike McIntyre Travel
Memoirs
Mimi Strong
Minx Malone
Monique Martin
N. Gemini Sasson Historical
Fiction
Nick Spalding
Noel Hynd
Paige Weaver
Patrice Michelle/P.T. Michelle Romance/YA
Patricia Ryan
Phoenix Sullivan Thrillers
Quinn Loftis
R.J. Parker
Rachel Astor
Rachel Hanna
Rachel Schurig Chick
Lit
Rachel Van Dyken
Raine Miller
Rebecca Donovan
Rebecca Forester
RJ Parker
Robert Crane Fantasy
& Sci-Fi
Robert Gregory Browne
Rose Pressey
Roxie Rivera Erotica
Russell Blake Action-Adventure
Rusty Bigfoot Wilson
Ruth Ann Nordin
Ruth Cardello
Ruth Cardello Romance
Ryk Brown
S.L. Baum
S.M. Reine
Sandra Edwards
Sara Fawkes
Sarah Woodbury Historical
Fiction
Sarra Cannon
Saxon Andrew
Scott Nicholson
Shadonna Richards
Shalini Boland
Shayne Parkinson Historical
Fiction
Sibel Hodge
Stephanie Abbott/Emma Jameson
Stephanie Bond
Stephanie Rowe
Susan Fleet
Susan Kaye Quinn
Susanne O'Leary Chick
Lit
Suzanna Medeiros
Sydney Landon
Tallulah Grace
Tammara Webber
Teresa Wilde/Teresa Morgan
Terri Reid
Theresa Ragan
Tina Folsom
Tina Reber
Tonya Kappes Mysteries
Tracey Garvis Graves
Ty Johnston Epic
Fantasy
V.J. Chambers
Victorine Lieske
Will van der Vaart
Willem Thomas
|
And for all the aspiring indies, keep at it and I'm sure it won't
be long before you join the list as well!
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