Writers, You Should Be Concerned About The Bottom Line

Writers, You Should Be Concerned About The Bottom Line

Sorry for the long holiday break but I’m back and in case anyone is confused about the title of this blog, I’m talking about money. I’ll be talking about self-publishing in this blog. I may be a little biased because I am a self-publisher but there are others that agree with me. (See http://jakonrath.blogspot.com/)

If nothing else, trust the numbers. The big publishers only give an author approximately 17.5% for every book sold while Amazon and Barnes & Noble (B&N) offer 70% and 65% respectively for every e-book sold. You will also have a much longer wait between the time you submit the book to your publisher and when the book comes out to the market than with a service like Amazon or B&N. That is time you could be earning money. Uploading to both sites is free so you will have no overhead costs or advances to pay back.

I don’t want to make it sound like selling a lot of e-books is a walk in the park because it’s not. What you’ll be missing if you decide to self publish is a great editor. You can hire your own like I did but please get someone to objectively review your book. You’ll also be missing the marketing experience of a big publisher. You’ll have to do all your own advertising and marketing if you get into self-publishing. A warning to the creative types, if you enjoyed writing your book, you probably won’t enjoy the promotion side as much.

So what’s a creative writer to do? Easy. Don’t re-invent the wheel, just hop on someone else’s wheel. You’ll most likely have to pay for a ride on that wheel but trust me when I tell you it’s still easier than starting from scratch. I would try established bloggers or book clubs. I myself went to a company that had already compiled the names of thousands of women in my target demographic. The company charges a fee to send out an ad or “e-blast” for your book to a specified number of readers but those are readers are potential buyers which equal potential sales. It may cost you a little money but consider it an investment. Facebook is another cost-effective way to advertise. You set the budget upfront so there are no surprises to deal with. Whatever you do, just get out there. Someone wants to hear what you’ve got to say.

That’s it for now.
Take care!
Audrey