Real Books - #ebooks #prices #kobo

I came to a disturbing realization a few weeks ago. I still don’t quite think of ebooks as “real books”.

I was preparing for my mid-April vacation, and since I wanted to travel light, I decided I needed to augment the selection of reading on my tablet.

For the past six months or so, I’ve been buying most of my ebooks from Kobo. This is partly an anti-monopoly protest on my part, but also reflects the fact that I really like their website, their reading app, their policies and their customer service. In particular, I like the fact that I can download my books to both my phone and my tablet, and that I don’t need to be online to have full e-reading functionality.

Anyway, I went to Goodreads and brought up my (very long) list of “Want To Read” books, then starting searching for titles on Kobo. The prices varied quite a lot, I discovered. I didn’t hesitate to buy romance or erotica or fantasy which was usually less than five bucks, but prices in the seven to eight dollar range made me stop and think, “How much do I really want this book?” And I just couldn’t bring myself to spend over ten dollars on an ebook, even when I was fairly sure based on authors and reviews that I’d enjoy it.

It’s not that I’m poor. I can afford a few ten buck books a month. I certainly spend more than that on wine, for instance! And I doubt I’d hesitate to purchase a paperback I knew I wanted at that price. When I did some introspection, I came to the conclusion that, even though my own books are mostly available in electronic form, ebooks still seem ephemeral. It’s hard for me to feel comfortable forking over that much cash for a bucket of bits.

I’m a little shocked to find I still harbor this prejudice. At the same time, I’m also rather dismayed at the high prices on some ebooks, especially mainstream titles. Becoming, by Michelle Obama, is more than $15. Likewise Thomas Piketty’s Capital in the Twenty-first Century. What would the hard copy version cost? On Amazon, it’s discounted from $20 to around $16. That makes my dilemma worse. Should I save the planet as well as scarce space in my apartment by purchasing an ebook, when for the roughly the same investment I can get a book to hold in my hand?

Maybe I’m just old-fashioned. Or maybe I still haven’t outgrown my bargain-hunter upbringing. Whatever the source, I hope my readers aren’t like me (although in fact almost all my books cost five dollars or less).

My ebooks are real. Honest!

The Long Game

By M. Christian (Guest Blogger)

I'm not too sure whose been spreading the rumors but, believe me, I'd like to get my hands on them.

Not that it's anything new, I admit. I'll betcha that for as long as human beings have been putting one word in front of another word for money there's been a whispering, a murmuring, a seductive allure that all it takes is just the right story, the perfect book, the ideal concept to launch the author from zero to bazillionare.

But that's all it is: rumor, hearsay, gossip... hollow promises. Okay, sure, it does happen but I'll betcha with what little money I've made with my own writing that the number of people who it has happened to would comfortably fit in an elevator... and a small one at that. In short, while fame and fortune can and has happened with just one book the odds are nightmarishly against you.

But the myth – sadly – persists. The reason I'm writing this is perfect evidence: no fewer than four people recently asked me to be their book doctors, yet each and every one vanished when the reality of what it actually takes to make even a moderate amount of money as an author sank in. All of them had actually written a novel, each of them had put aside money to have it professionally edited, and they'd even started up the long social media ladder... but they all vanished in the space of a few months.

I'm a dreamer ... hell, half my waking life seems to be spent drifting from one fantasy to another: from super heroics to an immaculately imagined life as a pulp author in the 40s, I'm usually lost in the clouds. But while being able to support my very simple lifestyle with only my writing income is one of them I also really try to make at least that fantasy as real as possible.

Part of that is that I really want to make that happen. I know that it won't take one novel ... hell, it'll more-than-likely take dozens and dozens... and that it can sometimes take decades before my work gets noticed and, most importantly, purchased by enough people. Just look at how long it takes to build up a social media presence – and then to turn those numbers into people who actually care about what you say.

In short, I've always accepted that writing is a very, very, very long game. I just wish everyone else would ... not just because I feel for the pain of their expiring hopes but because it's making the world a lot damned harder for the rest of us.

For example, I hate NaNoWriMo – well, actually I loathe it. Okay, I accept the fact that a lot of people need an impetus to write and that some truly great works have come out of it. But for every great novel and each person discovering the glorious thrill that can come from writing there are hundreds of thousands of people who think that because they actually wrote A Novel In A Month (in case there are a few folks out there who don’t know what NaNoWriMo stands for) they can be the next J. K. Rowling, Stephen King, Stephenie Meyer, or [insert author of the moment here]. They take their book and hire (sigh) a book editor, set up a tweet feed, create a web page, sign up for Facebook, and Red Room, and [insert social media of the moment here] with expectations that they will Hit It Big.

As I said, this has always been a problem. There were probably more than a few Sumerian scribes who thought they were going to make more than a few [insert whatever money Sumerians used here] and retire to a little mud hut on the shores of the Euphrates – only to take what few coins they made and go into the sheep herding business like their parents wanted them to.

The problem is that this isn't Sumer – this is 2014 and we aren't writing on clay tablets. The good news about living in this day and age is that we have seen the death of death, at least where books are concerned. Sure, a few of my early books have crumbled to dust, reduced to a few tattered copies in a few struggling bookstores. But those that have been republished as ebooks will be there for as long as the Internet is.

Don't get me wrong, I love ebooks – hell, I absolutely adore working for two different ebook companies as a publisher right now – but the downside of this digital literary immortality, with the perfect storm of an exponential increase in the number of books being written and published, means that being noticed as an author has gone from unlikely to utterly impossible. Add to this the people who still think that the pot of gold at the end of the literary rainbow is there for the taking with just one book and you can see why things have gone totally and absolutely nuts.

Yes, I like to dream; but I when I want to actually make a dream a reality I know that it will take a lot of hard work, that there's no Leprechaun to capture, no social media lamp to rub. I'm not perfect – far from it – but I made a decision some twenty-or-so years ago that to live my dream of being a working writer that it wouldn't be easy ... as well as accepting the sad fact that it may never come to pass.

I have more than a few gray hairs, so I get to say "get off my lawn" now and again: write your novel, have fun, dip your toes into the lake of glorious creativity, know the giddy thrill that can come from creating a work that has never – in the entire history of ... history ... existed before, do the NaNoWriMo thing but, please, for the love of all that is good and wonderful, don't step into the world of professional writing unless you are willing to accept the facts of The Long Game.

Please don't waste my time as an editor and a publisher – and, most of all, do your readers a service and don't waste their time by writing just one book, expecting overnight success, before deciding that all this is – sniffle – too much hard work.

I've said it before and I'll say it again ... until I can't say anything else: the only time a writer ever fails is if they stop writing!

 

About M. Christian

Calling M.Christian versatile is a tremendous understatement. Extensively published in science fiction, fantasy, horror, thrillers, and even non-fiction, it is in erotica that M.Christian has become an acknowledged master, with more than 400 stories in such anthologies as Best American Erotica, Best Gay Erotica, Best Lesbian Erotica, Best Bisexual Erotica, Best Fetish Erotica, and in fact too many anthologies, magazines, and sites to name. In erotica, M.Christian is known and respected not just for his passion on the page but also his staggering imagination and chameleonic ability to successfully and convincingly write for any and all orientations. His short fiction has been collected into many bestselling books in a wide variety of genres, including the Lambda Award finalist Dirty Words and his novels include the queer vamp tales Running Dry and The Very Bloody Marys, the science fiction erotic novel Painted Doll, and the gay horror tale Fingers Breadth.

In addition, he is a prolific and respected anthologist, having edited twenty five anthologies to date. He is also responsible for several non-fiction books, notably How to Write and Sell Erotica.

M.Christian is also the Associate Publisher for Renaissance eBooks, where he strives to be the publisher he'd want to have as a writer, and to help bring quality books (erotica, noir, science fiction, and more) and authors out into the world. 

Is the Pie Really Big Enough?

I've been publishing for fourteen years, since well before the ebook revolution. When I began, getting a publisher to accept your book was pretty difficult. A limited number of publishers existed (especially if you wrote sexually explicit fiction, as I do) and each company could handle only a small number of titles per year. If you did manage to get a publishing contract, this was a powerful affirmation of your literary skill (though definitely not a guarantee of fame or fortune!)

Luck of course played a role. Many a wonderful book languished in the slush piles. Talented authors received rejection notices because they happened to submit the wrong book, perhaps at the wrong time, when the publisher's calendar was already full, or simply because the right person failed to notice their manuscript.

The bar to getting your work accepted was set pretty high. The competition for publisher slots was intense. Once you'd passed that barrier, you became a member of a fairly select fraternity (or sorority), the elite society of Published Authors.

How the world has changed!

Now literally anyone can publish his or her book. The bar hasn't just been lowered, it has effectively disappeared.

This change is due to the advent of digital publishing, augmented by the phenomenal popularity of ebooks. Since the Kindle was introduced in 2007, ebook sales have grown by triple digit percentages each year. As ebooks gained acceptance, the cost of publishing dropped dramatically. At the same time, the market surged, especially for genre fiction like romance, mysteries and, yes, erotica.

In response, the number of publishers mushroomed. Setting up a digital-only publishing house required far less initial capital and fewer human resources than a traditional publisher. Do-it-yourself digital platforms like Amazon, Lulu and CreateSpace reduced the need for highly specialized skills. Bootstrapping became feasible. A new company could put out a few books at a time and use the resulting revenue to create more. Editors and cover artists could be paid based on percentages of sales, so there were no payroll unless there was income. Because digital book contracts rarely paid advances,a publisher's risk dropped. If a book didn't sell well, so be it. Initial outlay was small and the author bore the brunt of the failure.

At the same time, more publishers meant more options for authors. Indeed, publishers were forced to offer much better contract terms than traditional publishers in order to attract authors. And hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of individuals who had always dreamed of being published could suddenly realize that goal.

This trend had huge benefits – up to a point. New voices joined the market. New talents were discovered. For a long time, readers seemed to have an insatiable appetite for more ebooks. A few digital publishers made millions. A few authors, too. The rest of us saw our names in print, or at least on the web, and at least some money flowing into our PayPal accounts.

My books have never been my sole source of income, but I do appreciate getting paid for my work, from both a practical and symbolic perspective. I'd be lying if I tried to pretend I don't wait eagerly for monthly or quarterly royalty statements. It's only natural to want some recognition of the hours I spend crafting my tales, and even more onerous, marketing them.

However, over the past year or so, my royalties have steadily dropped, though I've continued to produce books at more or less the same rate and I believe that what I publish is at least as good, if not better, than my earlier work. I don't want to complain; I'm sure there are plenty of authors who'd be pleased with my take. At the same time, I can't help feeling miffed, because I'm working harder than ever, for less remuneration.

This isn't just me. Many of my colleagues (though certainly not all) are seeing the same pattern. The crux of the problem, in my opinion, is that finally, there are too just many books being published. The market is flooded. It has become impossible to be heard above the din of promotion.

Meanwhile, while ebook sales are still growing, the rate of increase has declined sharply. A recent report on UK ebook sales cited a mere 18% increase in 2013, down from over 100% in 2012. We have more (and more) authors, more and more books, all competing for a declining level of attention.

Exacerbating the situation, there are numerous books out there for sale that, in my opinion, shouldn't be. The epublishing gold-rush has made it easier for talented authors to get their books in front of the masses, but it has also enabled the publication of a tsunami of (pardon my language) crap. Some publishers make this worse by accepting pretty much anything that's submitted, as long as it seems to conform to some popular genre category, and by spending little or no effort on quality editing and formatting.

Self-publishing just adds to the noise level. Don't misunderstand me – I've read fabulous books that were self-published. That route is particularly useful for authors with original concepts that don't fit the stereotypes and which won't be accepted by a publisher for that reason. However, the ranks of the self-published also includes many people who cannot write a grammatical sentence to save their lives, let alone craft a story that will sweep readers away into the world of imagination.

I host a lot of blog tours. People are spending thousands of dollars trying to make their work visible. I participate in blog hops. In the old days, a basket of free books would attract readers. Now you need to provide at least a $50 gift certificate, and if you really want traffic, you'd better offer to give away a Kindle or a Nook. What's next, I wonder? A vacation in Hawaii?

What can be done about this situation? I really don't know. However, I've decided that I'm not going to spend as much time or money on marketing as I have been, because it's clearly not effective in today's reality. I'll keep writing and keep communicating with the readers who do know who I am, but I can't afford to buy the eyes of people who haven't met me yet. If they run across my work, great, but I'm not going to operate my writing business at a loss.

In my blogging and on my lists, I meet a lot of other authors who are new to the business. I do what I can to help them out, believing that what goes around comes around. They all deserve their chance. I used to tell them that the more books we produced, the more excited readers would get. The pie was big enough for all of us to take a piece.

I'm not about to stop supporting my colleagues, but I've started to wonder. Is the pie really big enough to go around? Or do some of us have to go hungry?

Why Ad Agencies Hate Me

By P.J. MacLayne (Guest Blogger)

First, thanks to Lisabet for hosting me today.

Now that Super Bowl and the hype around the commercials are over, I have a confession to make.

I don't care.

I'm not talking about the Super Bowl. I don't follow sports, but the Super Bowl is at least mildly interesting, especially as I live near Denver.

It's the commercials I don't care about.

Let me get something off my chest right away. I HATE commercials. I don't watch TV anymore because of commercials. On the rare occasions when I do watch a show, I get up and find something else to do while the commercials are playing. You'd be surprised how much housework I can get done in a limited amount of time. And my dearly beloved got tired of me picking apart commercials while they were on.

Now, there's a good chance I'll watch on or two of the commercials created for the Super Bowl on YouTube. After all, they tend to be better than your average, run-of-the-mill ad. A few are actually humorous and might make me giggle. But what are the chances that watching any of those commercials will make me want to run out and buy the product?

None. Nada. Zippo.

Because it gets much worse.

I spend a lot of time on a computer. You know all those annoying ads on the tops and sides of web pages? I don't. I mean, I know they exist. But I've trained myself to ignore them, even the ones that flash brightly. I just don't see them. And the chances that I will click on one of them? Zero. Zed.

I've been surfing the Web since the days of dial-up and BBS's. Yes, I'm that old. Not once have I bought anything from an ad on the internet. If I want to buy something, I'll go out and do my research on it, but an ad has never convinced me to buy anything.

I am an advertisers worst nightmare. I am an anti-consumer. But that makes sense, because I'm an old-hippie chick and material goods are not my biggest priority. I'd rather spend money on a camping trip in the mountains or a night out with old friends than some fancy gadget for my kitchen that I might use twice.

With one exception. Books.

I'll actually buy books I see recommended by acquaintances on Facebook or on Twitter. I've expanded into buying books I see on blogs and other websites. I'm pretty open to genre as long as it promises to have a good plot. I use to be one of those people who clung to paper books - I still have two bookshelves stuffed full - but I like being able to buy an ebook from the comfort of my easy chair and and start reading it immediately. I do miss the act of holding a book in my hands and physically turning the pages, but I've learned to be flexible.

Which puts me in an odd place, because I'm going to try to sell you my book now. It's called Wolves' Pawn and it's the story of Dot McKenzie, a lone wolf-shifter on the run, using everything available to her to stay one step ahead of her pursuers. When she is offered a chance for friendship and safety with the Fairwood pack, she accepts.

Gavin Fairwood, reluctant heir for Fairwood pack leadership, is content to let life happen while he waits. Old longings surface when he appoints himself as Dot's protector and becomes more than a friend.

Dot goes into hiding again when her presence puts the pack and her new friends at risk. When those same forces threaten the destruction of the Fairwood pack, it will take the combined efforts of Dot and Gavin to save it. But can anything save their love and Dot's life when she becomes a pawn in a pack leader's deadly game?

And here's a short excerpt from the book. Dot is telling Gavin and his friend Dmitri about her first experiences as a shifter.

She sat on one bed, and sipped her coffee while the two men sat opposite of her on the other.

“First time I shifted I was eighteen. I was running away from my aunt's house for reasons I won't get into. I thought I got a bad cramp, and found myself running faster and easier than I ever thought possible. When I finally got tired, I laid down under a tree to rest. Woke up in the morning miles from home, cold and completely naked. I stole some clothes from a farmhouse to wear home. Had no idea what happened. Thought I was hallucinating or something. Wondered if I should check myself in to a mental health facility.”

“The next time it happened, I was being hassled by some guys when I was walking home after work one night. Got that cramping again as I tried to fight them off, next thing I knew they were running away. Went to look at myself in a store window and saw a wolf.” She smiled. “Freaked me out. When I realized the wolf was me, freaked me out even more. My clothes were in shreds on the sidewalk, but I figured it didn't matter. Got my house keys out of my pocket with my mouth and trotted all the way home. Hoped people would think I was just a big dog. Seemed to work too. Fell asleep in the yard of my aunt's house, and in the morning, when I had changed back to human form, snuck in and got dressed without ever being missed.”

“After a couple more incidents, I realized I had to learn to control the changing before I hurt someone. Plus, I think someone was watching me even back then. So I left my aunt's and set off on my own. Took a lot of work, but I have it mostly under control. Now if I could just figure out who is chasing me and why.”

*****

Sounds good, doesn't it? You can buy it from Amazon right now, from the comfort of your easy chair, or your desk chair, or wherever you might be at the moment, because you have an internet connection. Here's the link. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HVDD1G4 (US)

In case you're interested in a little bit about me, here it is. I'm a computer geek by day and a writer by night. I grew up amid the rolling hills of Pennsylvania I love to set my stories in, but I currently make my home in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains. I can be found on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pjmaclayne or on Twitter @PjMacLayne.

The Inventor of the Ebook

Who invented the ebook - a book in digital form that could be read, stored and transmitted via a computer?

I'll tell you one thing - it wasn't Jeff Bezos!

You may never have heard of Michael S. Hart, but he'd generally considered to have originated the concept of computer based books - back in 1971! Michael founded the Gutenberg Project, a non-profit effort to digitize as much of the world's literature as possible, and make it available free of charge in ebook format.

Michael died last year (you can read his obituary here) but his work lives on. The Gutenberg Project currently offers over 40,000 titles, in various digital formats, with more being added all the time. (Thirty books had been added in the last twenty four hours, when I checked earlier today!)

I had the notion recently that I wanted to reread Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights, two favorites from my teens. I hopped over to the Gutenberg site and in ten minutes I had both titles on my tablet.

Today I needed some text from Emma. Gutenberg came through, once again. But Gutenberg offers a lot more than classics. Contemporary authors can offer their books free as well. And now Gutenberg has a self-publishing portal to help authors prepare books for free distribution.

So next time you're complaining that you have nothing to read, and that you've used up your book budget for the month, check out the Gutenberg Project. I guarantee you'll find something of interest - and it won't cost you a red cent (though donations to the project are always welcome).