tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post6484159739239839996..comments2024-03-18T06:16:18.802-05:00Comments on A Newbie's Guide to Publishing: Guest Post by Mark Coker, Creator of SmashwordsJA Konrathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08778324558755151986noreply@blogger.comBlogger115125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-58769888001894729672011-03-31T23:28:33.907-05:002011-03-31T23:28:33.907-05:00Anne, no, Pubit! is free to the author. I never co...Anne, no, Pubit! is free to the author. I never considered giving my books away for free, so whether or not there was a minimum cost wasn't an issue.<br /><br />Shelby, this is my first time doing Smashwords, and it took me a while to figure out all the things I *had* to do, but was worth it and I had no trouble getting in the premium catalog. Then again, the book I have up will be using a recurring frame, so that might cause an issue. I doubt it since what's inside the frame will be very different and the frame just ties the two books together.Jacklyn Cornwellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07703031152094274587noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-18280573311502551212011-03-31T18:43:21.378-05:002011-03-31T18:43:21.378-05:00I am also an indie author who has her work out on ...I am also an indie author who has her work out on Amazon, B&N, and Smashwords. The vast majority of my sales are coming from B&N, then Amazon; Smashwords is barely selling. I have no idea why not, or what I'm doing wrong.<br /><br />A few things about Smashwords: <br /><br />1. The formatting is a pain. Mark, you write "we strongly recommend that our authors label the book somewhere as either Smashwords Edition or they add a notation that the book was published by the author at Smashwords." But this is not altogether true: Smashwords REQUIRES you to do this, or you cannot get the book into the premium catalog.<br /><br />2.The cover has to pass muster. I have four titles out right now, each one part of a collection. The borders are different colors, but the images are the same. Smashwords decided my covers aren't "distinctive" enough.<br /><br />3. I also emailed them in the beginning when I had some questions, and never got a response.<br /><br />I finally got one of my titles into the premium catalog, and now have to wait for it to be distributed. Maybe then my numbers will go up. I certainly hope so!Shelby Crosshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00919780083926717484noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-72473690165953702502011-03-31T13:54:01.154-05:002011-03-31T13:54:01.154-05:00@J.M.Cornwell
you can now publish directly to Ba...<i>@J.M.Cornwell</i><br /><br /><i> you can now publish directly to Barnes & Noble for free with pubit.com.</i><br /><br />I am unclear on what that meant. Do you mean PubIt no longer has a minimum price of 0.99 or are you just saying that it is free to the author? <br />Smashwords allows you to set the price to zero on BN. Maybe PubIt does too now, but at first it did not.Anna Elliotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13900069052310375058noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-5398824390858491382011-03-31T11:04:08.196-05:002011-03-31T11:04:08.196-05:00I know I'm coming in late, but I just want to ...I know I'm coming in late, but I just want to say that I appreciate all Mark's done for authors. It's opened up doors that would have been closed otherwise. <br /><br />Personally, I think uploading through Smashwords to get to B&N is worth it, but I'm the kind of person who likes to keep it as simple as possible. Going between Smashwords and Amazon is more than enough for me. <br /><br />I hope Mark can get a good profit going. It's because of Smashwords that I'll be making a living off my writing this year. Amazon is a nice piece of the pie, but Smashwords completes it. My advice to anyone who isn't on Smashwords is to get on board. It never hurts to have more exposure.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-36296223697380280362011-03-31T04:47:25.059-05:002011-03-31T04:47:25.059-05:00As someone who smashed his head on the Meatgrinder...As someone who smashed his head on the Meatgrinder a few dozen times, as a result of using OpenOffice (some of the finer points in the style guide don't translate well in terms of where things are in the interface), I've gotta say the trouble was worth it.<br /><br />However, to save others here the trouble, I've posted the template that I developed (that reliably passes Autovetter and Premium Distribution muster) for everyone at my blog, here: http://jdsawyer.net/2011/03/30/smashwords-and-openoffice/ <br /><br />Share and enjoy!<br /><br />And Mark--thanks for all of it. Feel free to mirror the file at Smashwords if you think it would help other folks.<br />-Dan Sawyer<br />Author of The Clarke Lantham MysteriesJ. Daniel Sawyerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16634944509344138905noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-72305196422638478512011-03-30T11:09:31.789-05:002011-03-30T11:09:31.789-05:00Anne, you can now publish directly to Barnes &...Anne, you can now publish directly to Barnes & Noble for free with pubit.com. Not to take anything away from Smashwords (I use them for my books), but there is another option for direct to B&N.Jacklyn Cornwellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07703031152094274587noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-75547976482708022762011-03-30T05:38:19.030-05:002011-03-30T05:38:19.030-05:00Thanks so much for creating a service that helps i...Thanks so much for creating a service that helps indie writers. I have read a few books on Smashwords so far and know that if one follows the directions for formatting their book, it is all good. I will also use Smashwords to publish my own books.Thrillerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01177218613918544102noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-21714112339488830252011-03-30T00:58:02.636-05:002011-03-30T00:58:02.636-05:00I would just like to add that as far as I know, Sm...I would just like to add that as far as I know, Smashwords is the only option for getting a free book up on B&N. If you want exposure, that is a good thing.<br /><br />Mark has been great about answering my questions in the past, and I love that Smashwords offers such easy ways to read. Open a browser and start reading from an computer or device. No need to install a reader or deal with any DRM junk or platform lock-in.Anna Elliotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13900069052310375058noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-77031888660187896962011-03-30T00:16:16.062-05:002011-03-30T00:16:16.062-05:00I love the opportunity Mark and Smashwords has giv...I love the opportunity Mark and Smashwords has given me to expand my ebook publication of my works, my late husband Don Pendleton's works, and our works. Presently 23books with more to come soon. <br /><br />Mark's Smashwords Guide has made formatting easy. Much appreciated, Mark. And I love being part of this publishing change.Linda Pendletonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04333787752335329007noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-8557927893206487882011-03-30T00:00:23.994-05:002011-03-30T00:00:23.994-05:00@Dee - Hi Dee. I don't think piracy is the bo...@Dee - Hi Dee. I don't think piracy is the boogeyman some make it out to be. I added some comments on this the other week in my <a href="javascript:void(0);" rel="nofollow">They Stole My Book</a> that allows authors to announce their stolen books. A few months ago I attended a conference presentation by Kevin Kelly, the author, futurist and founder of Wired Magazine. He told the audience he views piracy as a tax on success, a tax he will gladly pay. So there you have it.<br /><br />@BillSmith - glad we could help you. Our CTO, Bill Kendrick, is a Linux geek, so I'm sure that helped us diagnose and fix that quirk. Agreed on discoverability. We'll be revamping that in a series of stages over the next few weeks. The first fix update will be to our category trees, plus maybe another alternative discovery method I've been noodling on for a couple years. Re: Forums, we want one. We do have a new official page over at Facebook - <a href="http://facebook.com/smashwords" rel="nofollow">www.facebook.com/Smashwords</a> and it's been growing by leaps and bounds the last few weeks thanks to the amazing volunteer efforts of Smashwords author/publisher John Low (thank you John!). Lots of Smashwords authors are connecting with Smashwords readers there. Maybe if we can find a few more John Lows, we can finally launch a message board forum too.<br /><br />@JA Marlow - If you work with spreadsheets alot, email me your utopian wish-list of your ideal sales reporting spreadsheet, all the way down to what columns and rows you want to see, and we'll try to integrate your suggestions into the rev our reports (this offer is open to anyone!). Re: getting publisher credit, one tip is to simply email us and request that you get credit at the specific retailer who's not giving you the credit you want. Every retailer's systems are different, and virtually none of them are built to understand the difference between a publisher and a distributor, so as a result we fit into their systems as a "publisher" even though we're not a publisher.Dovetail Public Relationshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05039664167177159146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-53641652930193592972011-03-29T22:41:07.091-05:002011-03-29T22:41:07.091-05:00I know you are a busy man, Mr. Coker, so thank you...I know you are a busy man, Mr. Coker, so thank you for sticking around and answering questions to this thread. It helped answer some questions I've had about Smashwords after using it several times. As like so many of Joe's blogs, the comments can be the best part of the post!<br /> <br />I'm glad to hear you will be revamping the back-end reporting. That will help a lot when it comes to accounting time. I work in spreadsheets a lot, and right now have to struggle to lay them out in a way that works for my financial records.<br /> <br />And while quarterly payments is nicer than 6 months (which is closer to traditional publishing time-frames) monthly would be nicer. Hopefully you can tweak and automate your system to allow it someday.<br /> <br />One thing that does bug me a little is that I have my own ISBN numbers, which I set up at Smashwords. However, in the expanded distribution many listings show Smashwords as the publisher. I do not like that, as I would like readers to be able to search on my company name, not just my author name or book title. Is this going to change in the future?<br /> <br />Count me as one of the authors that is currently selling better at Smashwords than at Amazon or B&N. At least, so far. I've had two people from overseas tell they buy a lot from Smashwords, including my books, because it's easier for them.<br /> <br />I took part in the last day of Ebook Reading Week at the beginning of March. That was a lot of fun, and I thank Smashwords for the way they did it, as it did not affect my listings at Amazon or B&N with their automated price-matching robots. Very nice!<br /> <br />I also appreciate the sampling system, offering multiple formats to view the sample in. As an author, I like that I can adjust how big of a sample it can be from the Dashboard.<br /> <br />And I see Joe changed the commenting system. Rats, now I have to double-check what gmail account I'm in.<br /><br />J.A. Marlow<br />http://jamarlow.com<br />Night of the Aurora: A planet-wide conspiracy waits at Grandmother's house...JA Marlowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16827212760341967828noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-8155555435456319602011-03-29T19:58:42.462-05:002011-03-29T19:58:42.462-05:00Smashwprds is a wonderful site and I believe it is...Smashwprds is a wonderful site and I believe it is going to become one of the dominant ebook sites, because it is good for authors (great royalties) and good for READERs (no DRM, no geographic restrictions). <br /><br />I truly wish them the best of luck.<br /><br />A quick personal observation on Mark & his company's dedication to personal service: I run a fairly obscure version of Linux as my operating system and when visiting Smashwords, could find no search option. I contacted Smashwords about this and received a personal response from Mark within a couple of days and the issue was quickly corrected -- it was a quirk of the Seamonkey browser bundled into Puppy Linux, so it was an error that was very unusual and affected only a tiny, tiny percentage of possible Smashwords visitors...and yet they adjusted the site code to make the experience work. Awesome!<br /><br />The one thing that I feel is lacking in Smashwords is discoverability -- it is difficult to find some types of books unless you know exactly what you are looking for. The wonder of book browsing in a physical store is the serendipity of just stumbling across something interesting.<br /><br />I believe adding a good "community" section to the site -- forums, featured works reviews, etc., not unlike MobileRead.com and some of the Kindle boards -- would go a long way towards making Smashwords a destination site for people who want to chat about and discover new books. That functionality will keep people coming back to the site over and over again. Enabling readers and writers to find each other more easily is going to be an important part of the rapidly evolving ebook scene.<br /><br />I would also love to see Smashwords add HTML as a downloadable format -- HTML works with EVERYTHING.<br /><br />Bill Smith<br />www.BillSmithBooks.comBillSmithBookshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17416767836260252793noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-55893440999835956742011-03-29T19:56:12.916-05:002011-03-29T19:56:12.916-05:00Great interview, Joe/Mark!
I'm a very happy S...Great interview, Joe/Mark!<br /><br />I'm a very happy Smashwords author, as I'm one of those oddballs earning more from Smashwords and its distributors than I am at Amazon. Significantly more. Though I haven't exactly caught fire with all the distributors (I'm hearing crickets at Diesel), I'm extremely pleased with what Mark and the team have made possible. <br /><br />I won't be going direct to anyone, apart from Amazon. Which is just as well. If I were checking my B&N numbers as often as I check my Amazon numbers, I'd never get any work done!Norah Wilsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01151103954061826427noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-68209646436487762262011-03-29T19:21:21.221-05:002011-03-29T19:21:21.221-05:00well well well - who knew? My brother in Ozzie sen...well well well - who knew? My brother in Ozzie sent me this blog in NZ. I opened an account on Smashwords, created a cover and uploaded a free short story all in a few hours. One hour later and 12 people have read it. That's 12 more than ever before! Imagine this time next week? I am not really about the money it is just a thrill to finally be 'published' and 'read'. Thanks from downunder T L ApaIndie Author Downunderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02023796502933711881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-49779964878346301042011-03-29T14:51:15.341-05:002011-03-29T14:51:15.341-05:00Hey Jody, Yes, there are definite similarities bet...Hey Jody, Yes, there are definite similarities between the digital music industry and the digital book industry. But it wasn't iTunes that stabilized the situation. The music industry organized and came down hard on the perpetrators. That’s what the Publishing industry is going to have to do.<br /><br />Getting back to the interview here, the commentary seems reflect that most of you have the opinion that there are two options, traditional publishers or self-publishing. I hate to burst everybody's bubble but there are some poorly written and edited books out there. Amazon, Smashwords, ARe all that accept indie books, so before you decide to self-pub. Make sure you're good enough. I watched a nascent indie author self-destruct her career yesterday on a review blog, because she vehemently argued with the reviewer over a two star rating. Her poor rating was due mostly to poor sentence structure, spelling and grammar. <br /><br />It costs roughly $250-300 to get a 50000 word manuscript edited. A decent cover costs at least $50. Less than half the ebooks that come out will make that back in a year. Amanda Hocking was a fluke. Her books are in a genre that soared because of the Twilight series and a series of knock-offs. Joe Konrath is an experienced, published author, who doesn't need an editor and probably makes his own covers. In addition, his books will sell so if he wants to spend three-fifty on an editor and a cover, big deal. Not only that Joe spends seven hours promoting for every three hours he writes and I'll bet Amanda does too.<br /><br />When you self publish you're on your own, sink or swim. That's why you might want to start with one of the dozens of existing epublishers. Be careful though, from my experience, some don't edit for beans. I'll be happy to share what I know with anyone interested.Uncle Samhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04455276910545514612noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-54125485305237277412011-03-29T14:08:13.788-05:002011-03-29T14:08:13.788-05:00nwrann said:
> I'm simply asking a questi...nwrann said:<br />> I'm simply asking a question: <br />> is there a better chance <br />> of getting published or <br />> a better chance of <br />> making similar money <br />> self-pubbing?<br /><br />the odds of "getting published"<br />(which you seem to have defined<br />as having your book picked up<br />by a publishing company and<br />being paid a $5,000 advance)<br />are vanishingly small, and will<br />require a huge investment of<br />time and energy from a writer.<br /><br />do you have the stats on _that_?<br /><br />or do you just want to count<br />the money coming in, and<br />totally dismiss the value of<br />the resources that are needed<br />to cause that money to flow in?<br /><br />what about the emotional cost?<br /><br /><br />> It's a valid business question <br />> considering the subject matter <br />> of this blog post. <br /><br />what you seem to fail to grasp<br />is that most of the writers who<br />are publishing via smashwords<br />don't have money as an agenda,<br />in the sense that they do not<br />_expect_ to make much money<br />from the endeavor. therefore,<br />your "valid business question"<br />has little applicability to them...<br /><br />some of them have attempted<br />to go to legacy publishers, and<br />they've been rebuffed, so they<br />turned now to self-publishing.<br />amanda hocking was one of<br />the writers in this situation...<br />and she seemed to do well...<br /><br />others didn't even bother to<br />waste any time or energy in<br />the chase for a publisher...<br />and some of those have done<br />quite well for themselves too.<br /><br />and still others are refugees<br />from legacy publishers, who<br />are taking control of their <br />destiny into their own hands.<br />some of these people have<br />reported that they are now<br />making more money from<br />their self-publishing efforts<br />than they had been making<br />from their legacy publishers.<br /><br /><br />> Mark Coker has the info <br />> available to answer that <br />> question and show us <br />> where the curve is <br />> in the chart that shows <br />> the success of <br />> 40,000 titles and <br />> 16,000 self-pubbed authors.<br /><br />mark's data cannot give us<br />the comparison which you<br />seem to want us to infer,<br />which is that writers would<br />be better off going legacy...<br /><br />and in order to answer _that_,<br />we'd need to know how many<br />writers got mired inside the<br />slushpile at those publishers.<br /><br />because even the writers who<br />made $500 (instead of $5000)<br />from self-publishing are now<br />better off than those writers<br />who got mired in the slushpile.<br /><br />and not just because of money.<br />but because their work is now<br />out in the world, and _alive_...<br /><br /><br />> bowerbird, I wouldn't <br />> expect you to have an <br />> answer to that question <br />> so I ignored <br />> the rest of your poem.<br /><br />as william carlos williams said:<br />> It is difficult<br />> to get the news from poems<br />> yet men die miserably <br />> every day<br />> for lack of <br />> what is found there.<br /><br />i don't expect you to read<br />this response either, but<br />that's ok, because others<br />will read it, and learn from it.<br /><br />-bowerbirdbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-52894123513835088032011-03-29T12:48:28.186-05:002011-03-29T12:48:28.186-05:00are you trying to convince
someone here? or yourse...<i>are you trying to convince<br />someone here? or yourself?</i><br /><br />I'm Not trying to convince, I'm not coming up with arguments, and I'm not rationalizing any choices, I'm simply asking a question: is there a better chance of getting published or a better chance of making similar money self-pubbing?<br /><br /><br />It's a valid business question considering the subject matter of this blog post. Mark Coker has the info available to answer that question and show us where the curve is in the chart that shows the success of 40,000 titles and 16,000 self-pubbed authors.<br /><br />bowerbird, I wouldn't expect you to have an answer to that question so I ignored the rest of your poem.nwrannhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11385433227441707725noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-34476553702762245442011-03-29T12:02:24.805-05:002011-03-29T12:02:24.805-05:00jody said:
> The biggest thing
> WE can...jody said:<br />> The biggest thing <br />> WE can do to help is to <br />> keep reminding people that <br />> illegally downloading a book <br />> is no different from <br />> walking into a bookstore <br />> and shoplifting <br /><br />it's _quite_ different.<br /><br />it's no different from walking<br />into a bookstore and browsing <br />a book, which might (or might<br />not) include reading it entirely.<br /><br />or checking it out from a library.<br /><br />but people are even more tired<br />(sick to death) of that dance...<br /><br />where you and i agree, jody, is<br />that readers actively _want_ to<br />support authors, especially the<br />authors who they enjoy, and<br />will ensure that those writers<br />are adequately compensated for<br />the work which they do, and the<br />sooner authors realize that fact,<br />the better off we will all be...<br /><br />-bowerbirdbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-34451128588895418002011-03-29T11:48:06.254-05:002011-03-29T11:48:06.254-05:00bfuniv said:
> I think it's funny that
&...bfuniv said:<br />> I think it's funny that <br />> comments started with <br />> a bunch of middle school <br />> English teachers. They want <br />> a perfect world that <br />> never existed to return. <br />> They are reacting to <br />> exponential growth <br />> as we reacted to <br />> their red pencils.<br /><br />i made the very first comment,<br />and did use the word "perfect"<br />(in a sarcastic way, and only<br />to mimic a loaded question)...<br /><br />so i'm wondering if bfuniv<br />is referring to me? because<br />that would be the first time<br />i have ever been accused of<br />being an "english teacher"...<br /><br /><br />> Younger generations <br />> are having their <br />> grammar and spelling <br />> shaped by texting, <br />> FB, and Twitter.<br /><br />perhaps bfuniv thought<br />that when i used the word<br />"formatting", i must be<br />talking about grammar<br />and spelling. of course,<br />that's completely wrong.<br />(so imagine tons of big<br />red marks in this section.)<br /><br /><br />> They care about story, <br />> not unnecessary rules.<br /><br />i'm not here to defend any<br />"unnecessary rules" because<br />i find them to be unnecessary.<br />(the joy of a circular argument.)<br /><br />call me old-fashioned, but<br />i do believe words should be<br />spelled correctly in a book...<br /><br />as for grammar, i regularly<br />break a whole buncha rules,<br />necessary and unnecessary,<br />some i know, most i don't,<br />so i can't say much about it.<br /><br />but in terms of _formatting_,<br />which is what i have been<br />talking about all along here,<br />you might get the impression<br />that "people don't care about"<br />things like curly-quotes versus<br />straight-quotes, or indented<br />versus block paragraphs, just to<br />mention two issues that were<br />mentioned here explicitly, but<br />if you actually give end-users<br />the ability to _control_ these<br />variables, you quickly learn that<br />they _treasure_ that ability to<br />set preferences as they desire.<br /><br />(and it's _not_ always the way<br />that the book designers prefer;<br />some end-users like straight<br />quotes, and block paragraphs.)<br /><br />one of the biggest failings with<br />current viewer-software is that<br />it doesn't let the human reader<br />control all of these preferences.<br /><br />-bowerbirdbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-10932637933345182702011-03-29T11:30:09.440-05:002011-03-29T11:30:09.440-05:00Dee, I worked in the music industry for many years...Dee, I worked in the music industry for many years, at the time when everything was just shifting to electronic... Napster was active, music was being ripped off and distributed, and iTunes had yet to be created. Well, Napster was shut down but no one can stop people from illegally sharing music... and when iTunes came along we were all asking 'why would anyone buy music when they can get it for free?' Everyone really believed that the music industry was going to die. <br /><br />Well, even though there is still A LOT of illegal sharing going on, iTunes is booming, and music is going through quite a renaissance - to the benefit of the smaller, indie artists!<br /><br />My prediction is that the same will happen with book publishing. So, developers can keep modifying the technology to make it harder to steal/distribute books, but someone will ALWAYS find a way around this. The good news is that most people don't want illegal stuff; they're happy to pay for it; and I don't think people will have quite the same interest in ripping books as ripping music.<br /><br />The biggest thing WE can do to help is to keep reminding people that illegally downloading a book is no different from walking into a bookstore and shoplifting - I've ranted at many of my friends who rip music and have actually stopped a few of them! I have no qualms about absolutely blasting people on this one - and you might be surprised by how many people listen to you! :)JodyKiharahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03889847783244289634noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-25645768953829222232011-03-29T11:24:28.098-05:002011-03-29T11:24:28.098-05:00nwrann said:
> the reason for
> crunchi...nwrann said:<br />> the reason for <br />> crunching these numbers<br />> and looking at the <br />> percentages is to determine<br />> if, at this time in history,<br />> with a great novel in<br />> a popular genre is there is<br /><br />you have one too many "is"<br />words in that there sentence.<br /><br /><br />> a better chance at <br />> spending the time and money <br />> courting a publisher and <br />> getting a $5,000 advance <br />> or is there is a better chance <br />> at getting into that (less than) <br />> 1% of self-pubbers making <br />> "good" money (5,000 copies <br />> per year?). <br /><br />are you trying to convince<br />someone here? or yourself?<br /><br />because you're not really<br />coming up with any good<br />arguments that haven't<br />already been voiced in<br />this ongoing discussion<br />hundreds of times before.<br />(or thousands? millions?)<br /><br />i mean, seriously, i could<br />give you the standard<br />counterarguments, and<br />then you could give the<br />responses to those, and<br />we could do all the steps<br />to this tired dance again.<br /><br />but nobody really cares...<br /><br />some people will stay with<br />the legacy publishers and<br />be quite happy with that...<br />and if that's you, then fine!<br /><br />if someone else wants to<br />go the self-publishing route,<br />what do you care? and why?<br /><br />the people who will get<br />filthy rich from writing<br />are few and far between,<br />no matter which path...<br /><br />there will be lots more<br />who will eke out a living,<br />no matter which path...<br /><br />and a great many will<br />call it a hobby, and be<br />glad they get paid at all,<br />no matter which path...<br />(most ordinary people<br />have to pay out money<br />to support their habits.)<br /><br />the choice is yours...<br /><br />but there's no need to<br />come here and try to<br />rationalize your choice.<br />nobody cares what you<br />do, and nobody cares<br />what your opinion is<br />about what _they_ do.<br /><br />but everyone _is_ tired<br />of doing the old dance.<br /><br />-bowerbirdbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-44475793187380364632011-03-29T11:21:36.917-05:002011-03-29T11:21:36.917-05:00Hi Mark and Joe, Great interview. You are both vis...Hi Mark and Joe, Great interview. You are both visionaries.<br /><br />Mark, I'm one of Smashwords authors and publishers, Dee Dawning and New Dawning Bookfair. Your beef, and rightly so, was with the elitists in Manhattan. I never managed to get that far. I couldn't get one of the hundreds of haughty agents I queried to show the slightest interest in my work. Why? I don't know. All I know is they thought it was UNFORTUNATE.<br /><br />The system sucks. The pubs and their acolytes, keep pushing their pet authors to churn out more and more books of a deteriorating quality rather than look for fresh writing. And now rather than wait for these authors to pen new works they've been re-releasing many books with new covers and even new names, sometimes without divulging that fact. <br /><br />But fear not, as they begin to sweat the new circumstances that are closing in on them, I am grinning as I work on my fortieth story.<br /><br />I do have a question. Piracy is beginning to be a real threat to the viability of digital books. I saw other day where someone was selling a package of 1200 ebooks for $3.99. Are any of the big boys doing anything to thwart these piranhas?Uncle Samhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04455276910545514612noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-58129287718677499992011-03-29T11:15:28.982-05:002011-03-29T11:15:28.982-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.Uncle Samhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04455276910545514612noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-66123929545269522322011-03-29T11:10:16.815-05:002011-03-29T11:10:16.815-05:00I love Mark's enthusiasm and the opportunities...I love Mark's enthusiasm and the opportunities Smashwords provides. I deal directly with other eBook distributors but Smashword's focus on getting your work on as many devices / computers as possible while providing the broadest array of retailers is phenomenal. As an indie author considering Smashwords, I think you would be doing yourself an injustice by not using Smashwords. <br /><br />Scott Semegran<br />--------------<br />ScottSemegran.com<br />Twitter.com/scottsemegran<br />Facebook.com/pages/Scott-Semegran-Writer-Cartoonist/202104799804327<br />Smashwords.com/profile/view/scottsemegranScott Semegranhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06134079276807335395noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-85937230131989276692011-03-29T10:23:14.903-05:002011-03-29T10:23:14.903-05:00@Robin Said
"come over to kindle boards ther...<i>@Robin Said <br />"come over to kindle boards there are hundreds of authors selling well and making good ... some great ... money with self-publishing"</i><br /><br />As @Dave pointed out there were 1.2 million titles published in 2004 (I'm sure that number is higher now) <br /><br />and Mark Coker stated that there are over 40,000 titles and over 16,000 authors on SW alone. <br /><br />Which means that even with "hundreds" making good (how much is good?) money that number is still below 1% of self pubbers even making "good" money. <br /><br />I agree that if you have an ms sitting around collecting dust and it's already been rejected by every publisher imaginable then obviously the best choice is to self pub. However, the reason for crunching these numbers and looking at the percentages is to determine if, at this time in history, with a great novel in a popular genre is there is a better chance at spending the time and money courting a publisher and getting a $5,000 advance or is there is a better chance at getting into that (less than) 1% of self-pubbers making "good" money (5,000 copies per year?). <br /><br />As far as Mark Coker's statement that "not all authors publish for the money" I believe this to be false. The ONLY reason to PUBLISH is for a writer to make money from their work. Otherwise, why not just post your writing to a blog where the world can see it for free. A more accurate statement would be that Not all writers write for the money.nwrannhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11385433227441707725noreply@blogger.com